It is likely at the age of 14 this is the first time you've considered getting a “real” job. Let’s first state that like in our earlier example of mowing grass, it may not always be necessary to get a “real” job. If you can make the money you need by providing some service to others, that is probably a better way to go. First you get paid cash, and you have some elements of running your own business. If you are mowing lawns, in order to keep your “customer” you need to do a quality job and do it on time. If that goes well, you may hear of other people on your street that would also be interested in lawn service. Before you know it, you have 5 or 6 lawns to cut on a weekly basis making $20 to $30 each. For you that may sound a lot better than working at McDonalds making minimum wage and likely giving up a lot more of your time to make the same amount of money.
Remember that your time has value. In fact, your time has a ton of value. I’d suggest an early shift in your mentality towards finding a job and look to be paid for the value you provide, rather than the time you spend. I’ll keep going back to the lawn care example. If it takes you 30 minutes to mow your neighbor’s yard and he pays you $25, some quick math suggests that you were just paid $50 per hour. You’d probably have to work a full 8 hour shift at a fast food restaurant to come out with $50.
Your neighbor isn’t necessarily paying you for your time, but rather for your value. Perhaps it hurts his back to do the lawn, or his work schedule doesn’t afford him many opportunities to take care of his own yard. To him, it is well worth $25 every week to not have to worry about the hassle of maintaining his landscaping. In other words, your service has great value to him. He doesn’t care if it takes you 5 minutes or 5 hours, as long as it is done right he has decided that is worth $25 to him. So whenever possible, seek out opportunities where you can be paid based on the value you provide.
There is one assumed underlying trait that you must have in order to make all of this work. That is a strong work ethic. I’ll give you a hard truth about how many adults feel about your ability to work as a 14 year old. Are you ready?
Many adults you’ll run into in the workplace think you are lazy. Many teenagers come in with the attitude that they are owed something, and aren’t willing to put in their time to earn it.
This may or may not be true of you. If it is true of you, you probably wouldn’t admit it or maybe even realize it. However, this stereotype doesn’t have to be true. You simply have to be ready to work hard. Be ready to listen and learn from others and work as a team. Be dependable. You aren’t coming into most situations as a 14 year old that they want to run the company. While you are certainly a needed part of the team, realize that you are the new guy or gal and you have to earn respect through hard work. O
Because teenagers don’t have a lot of work experience yet, they will be asked to do the most simple and least paid jobs. This means picking up after a supervisor and cleaning up, “boring”. However, the ability to do these jobs well and without complaining will mean moving up into better paying jobs quicker. The first thing teenagers need to do is learn how to
work. That means doing something repeatedly for six to eight hours. Easier said than done, as many adults I know can’t do this well. Busing tables or washing dishes in a restaurant are good jobs for teenagers. If you like being outside, then try landscaping or construction. Don’t focus too much on a particular type of job, but on learning how to work.
As you pursue that first job, remember that people skills are the number one thing you should look to develop. No matter what you do later in life, you can bet that other people will be involved! It is never to early to start earning respect and trust through your work ethic, and taking pride in what you do. These two things will win a lot of people over and leave a positive impression of you in their mind. Simply treat people as you’d like to be treated and you’ll do fine. Here are some other jobs for 14 year olds that you may not have thought of:
1. Babysitting. Ask family and people at church if they need someone to watch their kids. You can also sign up at Care.com
2. Lawn Care. Put up signs in the neighborhood or just go door to door and ask if they want you to mow their lawn.
3. Newspaper Delivery. Find out if your local circular needs someone on bike to deliver
4. Local Farmhand. Depending on where you are located, maybe there is a farm nearby that could use some help. This could be picking vegetables, planting, caring for animals, etc. but makes for great experience and gets you outside.
5. Intern. If you have a good idea about what you want to do with your life, find a company in this industry and intern. Sometimes this isn’t a paid job, but many times they will pay you at the end of a project. Really, the value here is getting to know people in the profession and picking up vital experience which should help you determine if this is right for you.
6. Small Business Assistant. I love this idea. Small businesses tend to have a great amount of flexibility to make decisions quickly. In other words, if it is a shoe repair shop with 2 employees, they likely won’t have a big formal process to go through to get hired. Simply walk in, introduce yourself and tell them you want to learn more about their business and would like to help out. See what they say. You’ll likely pick up a ton of different skills and experiences as a small business owner has to do a little bit of everything. Just walk in and strike up a conversation!
Thanks to everyone who commented here!
