The scene shop in the Theatre Department on campus is about to undergo a renovation. I work in the scene shop as my work study, which means that much of the reshuffling of tools and equipment has become my responsibility.

Wow, can I just say that there is a lot of stuff packed into that shop!

Luckily there are a handful of shop helpers in the form of students who take classes in the department. They are required to put a certain number of work hours into the scene shop each semester as part of their major/minor. I will say this here and now without naming any names. There is a work ethic that is just about non-existent in most of the students. Yes I know that you have to be here, and yes I realize that you are not being paid, but…. You need to realize that you are demonstrating a lack of drive, motivation, focus, and work ethic that is going to hurt your chances in the ‘real world’ greatly.

When in the future you are seeking a position with any school or company in your chosen field of study, chances are that there will be other people that already know you working there as well.

Do you really think you are going to land that job when the powers that be hear the stories about when you would take forty-five minutes to complete a five minute task back in the scene shop? Wait till they hear about how you spent the better part of your three hour work shift texting your BFF and shouting your OMG’s to your co-workers, halting their work as well. I would never ever be willing to hire someone like that. Your texting needs to happen on your own time, not your departments time.

Realize that your future career starts now. If you want to make money and have success when you graduate, then you need to start now! Show your work ethic and make your peers and professors eager to give you a glowing letter of recommendation. Make them have no other choice but to admit, “We should hire this person. They are a work horse, and just about the most reliable person I remember from back in college.”

Do you have any stories about how not caring about some sort of required volunteer, unpaid work (internships and such) came back to haunt you later?

Prime