Tag Archives: teen leaders

A Teen’s First Job

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Train up a child…

 

A Teen’s First Job

 

When age fourteen is reached, teens start thinking about working outside the home.  Some children start working out of the home at age ten or twelve doing lawn care or short-term similar jobs.  In my opinion, children should be kept in productive activities as early as possible depending on capabilities and safety.  At least by age fourteen children should start earning and budgeting money. Many places cannot hire someone until they are sixteen, so working at age fourteen and fifteen may require some creative thinking in figuring out ways to earn money.

A first job outside the home sets a pattern that may last a lifetime in the work habits a teen learns and that teen’s ability to take orders from supervisors. Teens also learn responsibility and the fact that many times they must work whether they feel like it or not.

Parents need to have a talk with their teens before that first job and make sure they understand the following:

  • A worker should arrive within a 15 minute time frame of the time they start work and should leave after time to get off work.
  • Workers must obey supervisors without question.
  • The worker is not the boss. The boss is the boss!
  • When instructions are not understood, ask for clarification instead of guessing and possibly doing something wrong.
  • Be loyal to the company or person for whom the work is being done.
  • Be pleasant. Do not complain.
  • Many people could have been chosen for the job and others can replace you.
  • Do not make promises you can’t or won’t keep.
  • When you make a mistake, apologize and move on. Don’t dwell on it.  Everyone makes mistakes.  If you are making a lot of mistakes, perhaps you should look for a job more suited to your abilities.
  • Make out a budget. Since there is no rent expense, a larger amount can be saved.  Ten percent should be given to charity.  Car expense should be included in a budget. Food expense should be figured closely as most teens tend to waste a lot of money on drinks and fast food.  Soft drinks have no nutritional value. Drinking water instead of soft drinks can save a lot of money.
  • If driving to work, proper care of the car is necessary.This includes oil changes as well as gas.
  • Sometimes workers lose jobs for reasons other than performance.Many businesses hire employees temporarily to avoid paying benefits.

 

Teens have a great amount of energy and vitality to offer to a job.  They can do much that older people can’t do and are a valuable resource if in the right position.  My husband and I have always told our children, “If you make money for your company, you will have a job.  If you lose money for your company, you will lose your job.”  Businesses exist for the purpose of making money.  They don’t exist for individuals.  That is the reality of life.  Unfortunately, often politics enter into whether a person has a job as well.  Sometimes friends get chosen for positions even if another deserves it.  Teens must learn that life is not fair, but they, themselves, need to be fair whether or not others are fair to them.  Much of this can be learned on a teen’s first job.

Myths about Teens

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Train up a child…

Myths about Teens

There seems to be a tendency in our society to lump all teens together as a group and assign certain characteristics to them. Many of these assigned characteristics have us shaking in our boots at the very thought of associating with teens, or, heaven forbid, working with them in a learning setting. This is unfortunate. Teens, just like everyone else, must be thought of as individuals. Many of the qualities of teens that we think are common may not be so common at all. Let’s look at a few of them.
Some would say that teens don’t like older people and that to be successful in working with them, one must be near their own age. This is definitely not true. In fact, many times teens look at older people as grandparents and they are carrying fond memories of grandparents. When I was teaching GED classes, one essay topic was to write about someone greatly respected. Over and over I received essays about grandparents and other older people. Believing this myth causes teen leaders to be chosen who are often too immature to really give them the help that is needed.
Quite often people can be heard saying that all teens are rude. This, too, is not true. The basis of all good manners is kindness and consideration of others. Some teens have been raised in families where there has been an absence of kindness, and, in this case, it often carries over in the actions of the teens. On the other hand, teens often have a keen sense of fairness, and, if in a kind environment, they want to have good manners. Many have simply never been taught good manners, but would practice good manners if they knew what to do.
A huge myth is that all teens like to have fun all the time. Many teens today are suffering hurt from broken homes and broken promises. Trying to force them to have fun goes against nature when they are hurting. It is true that they need physical exercise, but sometimes they just want to have a dependable shoulder to cry on and someone to whom they can express their hurt, fears, and concerns.
Many say that you just can’t talk to a teen. The truth is that most teens would love to have someone to talk to but feel that to do so would cause condemnation or more trouble. They have often been betrayed when they have shared secrets, so they may “clam up”. Teens can often work out their own problems if they have a good listener who knows how to interject a pertinent question now and then.
Teens need our help. They have a lot to deal with in a short period of time. We need to debunk old ideas about teens and strive to understand each as an individual in order to give the help they need.