Like many recent grads, I wound up working in retail my first few months out of college. And I’m here to tell you: Being a sales associate is exactly as terrible as everyone says it is. Managers and customers are mean, you’re on your feet all day, and chances are, selling clothes (or in my case, tea) is not your life’s calling.

As it turns out, I have no business working in sales. I’m shy and aloof — and to top it off, I don’t like talking to strangers. There were plenty of things I hated about the job: I hated following a deceptive sales model to pressure customers to spend more money; I hated standing outside sampling our product to strangers in the cold; I hated smiling all day when I was feeling anything but cheerful; I hated cleaning the employee bathroom. Was I delighted to turn in my apron (yes, we wore aprons and you can bet I hated those too) for good? Of course. But, ultimately, I’m actually glad that I worked in retail.

Because I will never forget these 10 invaluable lessons the job taught me:

OLD MEN ARE SHAMELESS

…AND SO ARE LITTLE KIDS

SOMETIMES, YOU HAVE TO LEARN ON THE JOB

SMILING THROUGH THE PAIN IS A NECESSARY EVIL

The customer is always right. The manager is always right. You, it seems, are never right. Keep smiling!

…AND BAD MOODS CAN BE HIDDEN

Sometimes you feel like this:

But it’s usually best not to show it.

SALESPEOPLE DESERVE RESPECT

…BUT SALESPEOPLE ALSO LIE

 

YOU HAVE TO STAND UP FOR YOURSELF 

Customers would get angry about the price of the tea, the length of the line, the fact that we didn’t sell plain rooibos, and about a million other things that were not my fault. When a customer was rude, I always — gently, of course — put them in their damn place.

SOMETIMES, THE CUSTOMER IS JUST WRONG

While “the customer is always right” is a nice adage, there will be moments when the customer is jsut plain wrong. Like when they try to shoplift six tea tumblers or attempt to purchase $500 worth of items with a stolen credit card.

NOTHING LASTS FOREVER