High school Quote by Cheryl Strayed
““Unlike Kate, by then I’d had a job. In fact, I’d had sixteen jobs, not including the years I worked as a babysitter before I could legally be anyone’s employee. They were janitor’s assistant (humiliatingly, at my high school), fast-food restaurant worker, laborer at a wildlife refuge, administrative assistant to a Realtor, English as a Second Language tutor, lemonade cart attendant, small town newspaper reporter, canvasser for a lefty nonprofit, waitress at a Japanese restaurant, volunteer coordinator for a reproductive rights organization, berry picker on a farm, waitress at a vegetarian restaurant, “coffee girl” at an accounting firm, student-faculty conflict mediator, teacher’s assistant for a women’s studies class, and office temp at a half a dozen places that by and large did not resemble offices and did not engage me in work that struck me as remotely “officey,” but rather involved things such as standing on a concrete floor wearing a hairnet, a paper mask and gown, goggles, and plastic gloves and—with a pair of tweezers—placing two pipe cleaners into a sterile box that came to me down a slow conveyor belt for eight excruciating hours a day.””
About This Quote
Source Memoir: Wild, 2012
A varied work history provides diverse skills and resilience, shaping personal identity and adaptability.
In simple terms: Multiple jobs build adaptability.
Key Takeaway
Embrace varied experiences for growth.
Themes
resilience
adaptability
diversity
career
self-discovery
Mood
reflective
inspirational
Type
philosophical
narrative
When to use this quote
- career transitions
- volunteering
- freelance work
- entrepreneurial ventures
Key Concepts
Skill accumulation
networking
self-reliance
Questions to Reflect On
- What lessons have you learned from each role?
- How do varied experiences influence your current goals?
A Different Perspective
Frequent job changes can hinder deep expertise development.
