Oftentimes, a high school student may not realize it, but they are tunnel visioned. They are tunnel visioned on achieving perfect academic performance, under the impression that it is that academic perfection that will help them succeed later in life. While it is true that academic performance is highly valuable to future endeavors like college and career planning, other aspects of a teenage life needs to be focused on– especially jobs.
It’s recently become a running joke online to both jeer at unemployment and, interestingly, feign fear of “j*bs” (censored with an asterisk to demonstrate the absurdity and offense of the term). The contradictory popular reactions of employment are intended to be funny. It’s an unserious take meant to make light of teenagers’ large online presence while also joking about those who actually maintain jobs.
But further than this online phenomenon of cracking jokes on the status of one’s employment, research and firsthand experiences have actually shown the benefits of being a teenager at work. While at first the situation seems too demanding of a teenager’s already-so-limited time ,due to other factors like schoolwork and sports, a part-time or full-time job might be worth the sacrifice.
Collegeboard agrees that “Working long hours can limit opportunities to build friendships and explore interests that enhance intellectual and emotional development” (Collegeboard). When speaking about high school jobs, the social life and personal life of a teenager deserves to be valued. If one decides to cherish and preserve their personal time, it would be completely understandable, as teenagerhood is sacred. Parties and hangouts exist to be attended and one’s friendships exist to be strengthened. Collegeboard, in addition to acknowledging the potential social and personal losses of teenage employment, also admits the benefits of working a job as a student. The high school educational-powerhouse says that employment has been shown to teach kids better time management skills while also giving them a profound sense of independence (Collegeboard). These benefits are valuable to a teenager because they help channel maturity, lessen time-induced stress, and overall better prepare them for adulthood.
Aside from these general skills, any job, no matter how boring, niche, or experimental, will lead one into learning some sort of lesson or technique. For example, a first-time lifeguard may learn new kinds of swimming strokes. A new server may learn how to code-switch from professional to casual conversation with different audiences. A teenage tutor may learn how to efficiently gather a child’s attention, or learn valuable teaching techniques. According to PrepScholar, the value of a high school job should never be overlooked because it “never hurts to gain new knowledge” no matter boring or obscure, as “It may end up being interesting or useful to you down the line” some way or another (PrepScholar).
More than that, and likely the most obvious (and sometimes argued as the most valuable) benefit of working as a teenager is the paycheck involved. Teenagers view money more as a gateway to independence than it is a gateway to capitalism. Some adults regard their pay as a reminder of bills and expenses. But the teenage population that has yet to worry about that, the teenage population that still has a naive hunger for currency and material prowess, see their paychecks in gold-tinted glasses. To most of us, it is a one way ticket to independence, free from our parents’ grasps. We’re set to buy as many packs of gum and Redbulls as we desire, starting from our first paycheck. And firsthand experiences agree on that feeling of euphoria.
I asked my sister, Maiya, who is a JCHS alumni, how she felt when she received her first paycheck as a Guerriero Gelato & Cakes employee.
“It was relieving,” Maiya confided, “because my allowance at the time was really frustrating.” As an 18-year-old living on-campus, she is now grateful for the amount of money she was able to save from her former employment at Guerrerio’s. While it may not have been a grandiose amount, she has saved enough to learn the art of saving, and to pay for most of her dorm necessities.
Her sentiment was shared by current JCHS student Jumana Abouzid, who works at a local beauty store just a few minutes from JCHS. “Having a job is really stressful, especially as a junior. But the money makes it all worth it, even if it isn’t a crazy amount,” she said as she thinks back on her two years working at the store. It’s hard to manage schoolwork, social life, and a job– Jumana agrees– but the joy of the hustle, the euphoria of the pay, and the utility of the skills you learn can ease that stress. Jumana also told me that she has made great friends with her coworkers, some of them bonds she would never trade for the world.
Working as a high school student can be scary. It can seem like diving into the open sea, not knowing the strength and resilience it takes to swim, unfamiliar with the ripples and tides of the work environment. But I encourage students to take that dangerous leap. I, too, have feared too much responsibility and a professional atmosphere. But putting yourself out there and preparing to take on the novelty of a job is how you can get used to it. The skills, friendships, and money that you can gain from a job are worth seeking out. I give the easiest advice possible: try it out. After all, jobs don’t have to last forever– you can always just quit.
