What was your first job?

Everyone had one, whats yours?

[Eterion]

Just wanted to post something non-tech related for once... so... heres something everyone can relate to (unless youre Paris Hilton heh)...
What was your first job?
I'll start

First Job (under 18):
Data Entry for a Small Literary Works + Publishing Firm
I was 15 at the time, keen eye for editing and spelling, and could type 95WebmasterWorldith few or no errors.

First REAL Job (once I turned 18):
I got a job at Disneyland! Yes, you heard that right, the Happiest PLace on Earth (in Anaheim, CA).
It was great, taught me work culture and ofcourse I made use of the unlimited admission to Disney pass I was given as a "Cast Member" (Thats Disney lingo for employees).

What was YOUR first job?

[Essex_boy]

At 15 writing commercial games for home computers of the time, which was cool.

Wasnt too hot at school and had many Teachers wrote me off, surprising reaction when they found out. Never write anyone off.

At 18 sold computers for a stor in Cambridge, despite coming top of teh sales league I was offered a £5 per week pay rise. When I stopped laughing I realised he was serious - thats true.

He was annoyed that Id laughed at his generous offer. Left that afternoon.

[trillianjedi]

I was offered a £5 per week pay rise

Hehe - I used to earn that a week doing my paper-round ;-) Thanks for making me feel old.

I had a great first "proper" job looking after tennis stars during Wimbledon.

Still got all the autographs.

TJ

[ken_b]

hmmmm.. "real job" I think that was for a big name department store. $1.25US per hour, which was minimum wage at the time. That was a while ago. They paid us each week in cash.

Didn't much care for that kind of work, especially at that pay.

Never had a "real" computer job.

[phidentity]

First job was at a local computer store, I spent most of my time there anyway, playing network games etc, so he hired me.

Then worked of a small retail software company, spent most of my time playing civilisation... with the boss. Good times.

Then UCI Cinemas. Ouch.

Then started up my own things and never looked back.

Jon

[AWildman]

My first job was doing odd jobs for a guy who owned a small mom and pop antique/junk store. Stuff like stripping paint off old furniture, etc.

My first real job was working for Kmart. I went on to work at Kmart Headquarters. That was quite an experience! We'd take two hour lunches with the boss cause HQ is right across the street from a BEAUTIFUL (highly recommend seeing it) shopping mall. Three floors in two buildings, one on each side of a highway. If only I hadn't been married to a loser at the time who sucked up all my money so I couldn't spend it at that mall...

[Crush]

I started buying cans of coke at sainsburys and selling them for a profit at school. I had a business partner who ended up drinking the profits away. First lesson in chosing a good business partner. My first real job was working in my parents shops. They wanted me to take over. Thank god I did not or today I would have not seen half the things I have since then.

[Eterion]

hmm thats odd...
I just realized that by typing 95 w.p.m. in my originally post, it came out with "WebMasterWorld" automatically. I couldve sworn I didnt type that name in... maybe ive gone mad?
Testing... 95wpm 95 WebmasterWorldpm

[Eterion]

apparently "wpm" triggers an automatic "WebmasterWorld"?

cool!
wpm
heh :)

[olwen]

I was offered a £5 per week pay rise

Hehe - I used to earn that a week doing my paper-round ;-) Thanks for making me feel old.

When New Zealand still had £sd, and I was 15 and worked in a shop in the school holidays I got that for a full week's work. I am old I think.

[Syzygy]

>>> £5.00 per week...

My first job - at age 13-14 - was doing a paper round seven days a week. Ended up taking over the longest round the shop had and earned £5.30 a week; I was rich! That was in the late 70's... Whilst a little older, and still doing the same paper round, I also worked in Tesco's on Thursday & Friday evenings and all day Saturday for something like £18.00 a week. And that was whilst still going to school Mon-Fri...

Syzygy

[hannamyluv]

I must be pathetic. My first job was a hostess at Bob Evans. Smith, Party of 3 for Non-smoking?

[AAnnAArchy]

My first real job, other than babysitting (started doing that at 11 - I don't think I'd trust most 11 year olds these days with any babies) was at 16, at May Co., before it was Robinson's May. I hated it with a burning passion.

[limbo]

Crush - completely coincindentally I set up a cottage industry doing the very same at my school. I was ordered to stop when I stepped over the line; going from Delboy suitcase antics in the playground to setting up camp infront of the vending machines (rookie error) - I made about £60 a week. The head banned me from doing it but winked at me while he was 'reading me my rights'.

First real job (after obligatory paper round) was at 16 for a local paper photoshopping images of property for the home buyers section. That was cushy as my boss had no qualms letting me off early to play cricket, and it paid pretty well too, about £50 a day.

[Debbie_King]

My first job, at age 16, was as a general dogsbody in a fruit and flower shop. I was only using it as a stop-gap until I found something better, but at least it kept me off the dole.

I was only there three weeks before starting at the local council offices working in data prep as a Punch Card Operator. This was where I first came in contact with computers, such as they were in 1977.

Ever since then (even before actually 'working in IT') I've worked with computers in some shape or form. It's nice to have evolved along with them; that way I've never had the frightening experience of coming back to work and finding everything changed beyond recognition.

:-)

[TheDoctor]

First paid job: doing casual agricultural work.

First legal job (ie one where I paid insurance and tax): worker in a frozen chicken factory. I worked on what I used to refer to as a "disassembly line". After the chickens were kiled and the feathers burned off, they were sent along the line to have bits cut off, stuck back inside and put into bags, before being sent into the freezer.

I still bear the scar where I sliced one of my fingers open.

My first IT job came at the age of 19, when I became a computer operator: Honeywell 125, with 32K of memory, four tape drives, card reader and printer.

[oneguy]

These are interesting to read. (maybe not mine... I mean everyone elses.)

First Job - My parents used to make me run a metal lathe in our basement when I was 7 or 8. I don't think there were labor law issues at the time, it was a family business. I laugh and say no way if anyone ever hints at me taking the business over.

First REAL Job - I actually can't remember. I had lots of crappy jobs like being dishwasher at a country club, and being a "laborer." I was always a good employee for anyone, but I would quit as soon as I got bored (learning curve leveled off) or if anyone gave me flak I didn't deserve. I could always find some other crappy job.

[dregs33]

Hi

Worked in a shop selling punk rock clothing, in London's West End, in the late 70's. Can remember some well known musicians coming in, and drinking Tequilla and snakebite with them as they nicked the clothes, and the shop paid me £10 a day.

dregs33

[GeorgeGG]

Ok, I'm 'OLD'.

First real job, auto body repair shop. (1960)
8am to 6pm Mon-Fri with 1 hour off for lunch.
8am to 3pm Sat with 1 hour off for lunch.

$20.00 per week. When I got married I got a $5.00 raise :)

GeorgeGG

[Webwork]

Paper boy.

Hmmm, that may not qualify. I guess that I was really an independent contractor.

Okay. Chicken man.

Me and Colonel Sanders secret recipe of herbs and spices, 100 pounds of chicken parts and 10 screaming pressure cookers filled with boiling oil. Perfectly safe and sane job for a pi-mpled 16 year old.

(Wow! The system whacked p i m p l e d into @%#$led. Guess the system can't distringuish between s e x and the antidote to s e x, which to 16 year olds is zits.)

[edit_g]

First job - doing research over the phone: "hello, I'd like to ask you a few questions about {big burger chain's name} latest television advertisment. Do you have a moment to talk?". That was a summer job when I was 16 -- nothing like a summer job in telephone research to make you work harder in school...

First real job - hired by a .com one week after they had fired 70% of their staff. Found out later on that I was doing three people's jobs for less than a quarter of what one of them was paid before they were laid off. But, hey, .com, right? :)

[Essex_boy]

I had a summer job working for a big departments store chain in the UK - I mean big in all major towns, total bunch of slave drivers.

Treated staff like they were well slaves, no respect for anyone- the customers were even worse. just because they were buying in a big name department they thought they were the mutts knackers.

I still avoid the chain 15 years later....

[giggle]

My first real job was, around 1981, writing educational software for the Armagh Planetarium. Great fun. Using Apple IIe's. Looked forward to going to work every day.

[Herenvardo]

As many young people in my town, I won my first money in agriculture, collecting grape during the end-summer.
After that, I'm managing four websites plus I teach particular classes about maths & computing.

Greetings,
Herenvardö the pluriemployed

PS: Woops! I forgot to tell... during all this time I've also been studying :S XD