How many lines of work?
I answered a survey from the Consumer Reports website, and they wanted to know at the end "How many lines of work have you had since age 21?" I thought this was unrelated to buying consumer products, but what the heck? I answered the question. It prompted me to make a list. So here it is.
First of all, when they said "lines of work," they meant being an accountant, or administrative assistant, or auto mechanic, regardless of who the employer was. They were not referring to the industry that a person worked in, or a specific job title. (Some of my administrative assistant jobs had titles like "Keyboard Specialist" or "Secretary.")
-- locker room & pool attendant (at the pool run by my local government)
-- voter registration & vote-counting clerk (at my board of elections)
-- administrative assistant (at about 6 offices over the years)
-- sales assistant (at 2 stores in a shopping mall)
-- personal & financial organizer (for a client who was disorganized)
-- library page/aide (at my college library, then at 2 public libraries)
-- formality clerk (at a government office)
-- statistical & research assistant (at my graduate school)
-- data entry clerk (at about 4 offices over the years)
-- customer service agent (not sure how many places)
-- census taker (at a different government office)
-- warehouse sorter (at the headquarters of a non-profit thrift store)
-- English tutor (at home)
This includes jobs in the Midwest, East Coast, South, and Washington DC region. (Although some people like to think that Washington DC is part of the South, I disagree.)
I'd like to think all this diversity and flexibility makes me fit for ANY job in the future. There are skills in here that would take me hours to explain! Each time I tried something new, I had no idea what I'd learn, or what else might happen...it was an adventure. How many employers right now would value this type of background? How does your background compare?
First of all, when they said "lines of work," they meant being an accountant, or administrative assistant, or auto mechanic, regardless of who the employer was. They were not referring to the industry that a person worked in, or a specific job title. (Some of my administrative assistant jobs had titles like "Keyboard Specialist" or "Secretary.")
-- locker room & pool attendant (at the pool run by my local government)
-- voter registration & vote-counting clerk (at my board of elections)
-- administrative assistant (at about 6 offices over the years)
-- sales assistant (at 2 stores in a shopping mall)
-- personal & financial organizer (for a client who was disorganized)
-- library page/aide (at my college library, then at 2 public libraries)
-- formality clerk (at a government office)
-- statistical & research assistant (at my graduate school)
-- data entry clerk (at about 4 offices over the years)
-- customer service agent (not sure how many places)
-- census taker (at a different government office)
-- warehouse sorter (at the headquarters of a non-profit thrift store)
-- English tutor (at home)
This includes jobs in the Midwest, East Coast, South, and Washington DC region. (Although some people like to think that Washington DC is part of the South, I disagree.)
I'd like to think all this diversity and flexibility makes me fit for ANY job in the future. There are skills in here that would take me hours to explain! Each time I tried something new, I had no idea what I'd learn, or what else might happen...it was an adventure. How many employers right now would value this type of background? How does your background compare?