The Entrepreneur Forum | Financial Freedom | Starting a Business | Motivation | Money | Success

Welcome to the only entrepreneur forum dedicated to building life-changing wealth.

Build a Fastlane business. Earn real financial freedom. Join free.

Join over 80,000 entrepreneurs who have rejected the paradigm of mediocrity and said "NO!" to underpaid jobs, ascetic frugality, and suffocating savings rituals— learn how to build a Fastlane business that pays both freedom and lifestyle affluence.

Free registration at the forum removes this block.

Dead-End Sh*t Jobs ... Yours?

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,077
169,494
Utah
I'm posting this here in Your Fastlane Plan because sometimes, dead-end jobs are a necessary evil. We all have bills and obligations to pay -- sometimes dead-end *shit* jobs are just the bandaid we need to pay the bills while our greater focus is put into our efforts on business growth.

So with that said, what Dead-End *shit* jobs have you had? Do you currently have?
I was thinking back to all the crap jobs I've had and I am amazed I had the fortitude to endure it all.

My list:

1) Pizza delivery (Had to mop floors too)
2) Subway sandwich lunch driver (Lasted 3 weeks)
3) *Student* Painter (Lasted 6 weeks)
4) Charity organization can collector
5) Bus boy, Chinese restaurant (cockroaches in back!!!)
6) Wholesale flower deliverer
7) Plumbing day laborer
8) Stock boy, Sears Roebuck
9) Newspaper delivery at 3am in the morning
10) Hospital TV system auditor (lasted 2 days)

Much of these jobs I had after college graduation. :nonod:

If you find yourself in a *shit* job, take a deep breath and reassure yourself that it is only temporary. Your job is no predictor of your true potential but only a byproduct of your circumstances and your choices.

I did my best thinking while enduring these jobs -- I remember mopping floors and coming up with ideas as well as stockpiling motivation. The thoughts "I'm better than this!" builds and builds until the fire under your a$$ can no longer be tolerated and leaping into action is no longer an option, but a survival move.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Sid23

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 9, 2007
682
114
Re: Dead-End *Shit* Jobs ... Yours?

1) Little league baseball umpire
2) Bartender (several different times)
3) Temp at ad agency (cold called radio stations)
4) Law Clerk
5) Waiter
6) Waiter for catering company at events
7) Produce stocker
8) Temp at non profit - prepared mailers
 

BEAR

Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
109%
Oct 11, 2007
35
38
Montana
Re: Dead-End *Shit* Jobs ... Yours?

I have had many "shit" jobs over the years.

Even though each sucked at the time, I did learn something from each of them and they all had a part in sculpting who I am today.

I started at 15 yrs old and was on my own at 16, had my first daughter at 20 so yea, I HAD to make ends meet and keep my undesired "shit" jobs.

  • construction labor
  • dishwasher
  • fast food (many times over the years)
  • bus boy
  • waiter (on the Tahoe Queen, that job wasnt too bad:smxB:)
  • more construction labor
  • auto detailer
  • warehouse worker
  • heavy equpment oporator
  • mechanic ( a few times)
  • service writer
  • clerk (at a local grocery store)
  • Realtor
  • Asst. manager (construction company)
  • Manager (differnt construction company)
Whew, I know that I have forgot a few but I sure am glad to finally be on my way to my dreams with my own company, but with the knowlege (and mistakes) from all my past employers.
 

yveskleinsky

Silver Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
23%
Jul 26, 2007
2,215
515
46
Re: Dead-End *Shit* Jobs ... Yours?

1. Early shift at McDonalds (first job). Man that was awful.

2. Cleaning lady for (all male) publishing company. This job was worse. ...I had no idea how bad a men's bathroom could look. How can people be that gross- without even trying?! I am actually starting to gag just thinking about it.

3. Substitute teacher. Awful. You walk into a classroom, and have kids trying to manipulate you for 5 hours. ...Or sexually harass you as was my experience working with jr. high kids.

4. 7-11 cashier- graveyard shift. Never got robbed, but had to clean up puke and chase off homeless people more than once.

5. Telemarker for motor club. 'Nuff said.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

phlgirl

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
21%
Aug 29, 2007
755
157
Philadelphia
Re: Dead-End *Shit* Jobs ... Yours?

Oh this is a good one, MJ!!! Love this idea.... I think you can learn a lot about someone, by understanding where they have been.
  1. Orange Bowl (think Orange Julius) at the mall - I worked the counter
  2. Salad Alley - hostess
  3. Bell Atlantic - directory assistance operator (555-1212) - my mom worked for the company and got me this job, as soon as I was legal
  4. Pizza Hut - I made the pizzas, at a delivery only location in my hometown and then moved up to waitress, in college! lol
  5. Players Niteclub (PSU) - waitress
  6. Telemarketer - cannot even remember what I sold - lasted a few weeks, at most
  7. Hotel State College - front desk/reservations & bookkeeper
  8. Mid America Group (business insurance) - receptionist
  9. CIGNA - Staff Accountant
  10. IBM - SAP Software Consultant
  11. Rohm & Haas - SAP Software Config/Support
Wow.... thanks for the trip down memory lane! Pure comedy. Not sure the last few would be classified as **** jobs but it just depends on how you look at it. They all serverd their purpose in my life....
 

JesseO

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
6%
Jul 25, 2007
542
33
Phoenix, AZ
Re: Dead-End S*** Jobs ... Yours?

1. Bagger at grocery store
2. Cashier at grocery store
3. Night crew/stocker at 3 grocery stores (hours were horrid)
4. Management at grocery store
5. Meat department in grocery store
6. Telemarketer for 4 different companies (good money, easy job)
7. Installations for window covering company
8. Property manager (great job for obvious reasons, I think)
9. Assistant on a couple side businesses
 
  • Thread starter
  • Admin
  • #7

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,077
169,494
Utah
Re: Dead-End *Shit* Jobs ... Yours?

Cmon guys ... DEAD END SHIT JOBS!

Property Manager, Realtor, Bartender ... these are respectable jobs! Mopping floors and scooping up turds in backed-up toilets aren't!

gross.jpg
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Sid23

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 9, 2007
682
114
bartending jobs ARE shit when you have to clean up the bathroom at the end of then night. which i had to do most night.

sometimes it was puke though. much easier to clean.
 
  • Thread starter
  • Admin
  • #9

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,077
169,494
Utah
bartending jobs ARE shit when you have to clean up the bathroom at the end of then night. which i had to do most night.

sometimes it was puke though. much easier to clean.

Ok I stand corrected! Sorry!
 

citta ventosa

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
50%
Oct 1, 2007
2
1
My list in chronological order:
1. Construction and roofing (scraping tar off of roofs in 100+ degree heat...not for me)
2. Summer painting jobs
3. Temp work at a CPA society
4. Temp work at a Radiological society
5. Intern for a radio promotion company (I quit this after 3 months of "paying my dues" i.e. getting coffee/lunch for the execs, dubbing new release CDs, and learning absolutely nothing)
6. Answering phones for an Italian restaurant
7. Pizza delivery driver

For me, the office gigs were the least tolerable. Clock in, clock out, rinse & repeat...

*takes deep breath*
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,077
169,494
Utah
Welcome Citta!
 

andviv

Gold Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
40%
Jul 27, 2007
5,361
2,143
Washington DC
Pizza delivery (driving and then closing the store, moping floors, cleaning the freezer, dishwashing, etc)
Picking up the plates and trays from tables (no, wasn't a waiter, didn't usually get any tips either, just wait for patrons to be done and then clean their mess)
Waiter (catering service... however I happen to be a waiter for the Playboy party, so that wasn't bad at all)

All the others have been OK.

Phlgirl, SAP consultant? that's big money, highly desired job!!!!
 

phlgirl

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
21%
Aug 29, 2007
755
157
Philadelphia
Phlgirl, SAP consultant? that's big money, highly desired job!!!!


Agreed. It was a great experience and up until the burn out phase, I really enjoyed it.

I think I just got carried away on the trip down memory lane. :)


SeanS - I hear you on the 'after the bar is closed' activities. I think girls are even worse than men at that age.
 

phlgirl

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
21%
Aug 29, 2007
755
157
Philadelphia
****Ok, so I just thought about that for a minute and although I absolutely agree that the money is top-notch, when you find yourself heading to the airport on Sunday night and then flying home Friday, working a minumum of 12 hours each day and staring at the same hotel room wall each night, the hourly wage doesn't seem to make much sense anymore. ;) Particularly when you add a few winters in Buffalo, NY to the mix. You get about 48 hours a week with your friends/loved ones so the quality of life is pretty weak.

Don't get me wrong.... no complaints. I would not change a thing. I learned a TON and met great people but it does have it's dark side. It's a trick you see..... there is no logical way out. What's the level for a consultant? Senior consultant. Lovely paycheck but there is no career path which leads you off the road. It slowly drives you insane. :)
 

Rawr

Gold Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
95%
Aug 12, 2007
1,838
1,755
south florida
Nice lists everyone. One has to experience these kinds of jobs to get appreciation for the latter ones. A thing that can make a shit job tolerable are the little extra perks..which I fully exploited at every opportunity. :)

So, from the top:

1. Arby's cashier. Oooh boy. First job ever at 15, hired 4 weeks before I turned 16. I was getting paid $5.60 (got a raise after 6 months to 5.75!) Folks who started at 16 got paid 7.50. So I fully made up for this by eating extra Sbarros and chicken fingers. Working here for a year was enough to never make me consider fast food again.

2. Working at Mall of America at those pay a buck try to get the ball in the hoop games - or make a ping pong ball into a cup thats floating around game. The best part was working the baskeball games because I would just work on my jumpshot all day. Taught me how to work under massive pressure (ever had 30 people surrounding you at one time all wanting something?)

3. Sears men's and women's departments stacking clothes. Men changing room is nothing - but women, they would leave piles of clothes on the floor - like 20 items. I would look at this mess and say "No thanks". Fired after 10 days after I went to lunch and saw a modeling contest. I liked the cute girls who were in it and joined the contest- had to do the walk and interview. Came back from 15 minutes lunch two hours later.

4. Pizza delivery - great money for a kid, pulled over twice within 5 minutes once and got away every time since I am a delivery boy (didn't even have the pizza in the heating bag at the time) Free food, pop. Not bad.

5. Chipotle. Did you know those carnitas (pork) and barbacoa (Spicy beef) meats come in one solid frozen block, and then you have to use your hands to pick them apart so they are nice and shredded for serving? Ever worked in front of a deep fryer and made a day's worth of chips? And all this fun started at 8am 2 hours before the store even opened. I lasted 2 months.. I honestly don't know why.


6. Dominos Pizza driver - nothing new, except that I worked on the college campus (private school at that) Can we say PERKS?! Especially during those 1-2am runs when I was offered such tips as: Shots, weed, makeouts, games of beer pong.. etc. I've also met a stripper who was.. umm naked and invited me in. and a few cool people along the way.

7. Cingular. Sales. Since working as the delivery guy I realized that working is dumb unless you are getting commission or tips. Got decent commissions here, and was making $14/hr average (this is just 2 years after making $6 an hour at Arbys) Learned sales here

8. Bartender. Enter Joy and Bliss. First in a semi- college crowd bar, later at a private golf course. I believe no further explanation is needed. Hot co-workers, great money, fun atmosphere. You learn how to deal with stress and pressure when times get busy, how to keep your cool, how to be witty and how to flirt. And just for MJ - I had to pick up shit off the bathroom floor and clean the toilet once.

I am just 23, and don't even know what to try else - It seems I should just work for myself since there isn't much else that's as fun and makes money. Or I shouldn't work much at all and just go travel for months at a time.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Bilgefisher

Bronze Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 29, 2007
1,815
308
Aurora, Co
Ive only had a couple jobs, but here is a list of shit duties I had while serving in the Navy.

-watching restricted personal 24/7 (I do mean all the time)
-Mess decks cleanup. Hands and knees scrubbing and sweeping.
-scullery 3 meals a day.
-Trash disposal room. Compacting trash with 3000# hydraulics. If liquids get mixed in, it makes an interesting mess. Especially when its 3 month old eggs that have been kept at room temperature. Yes, you end up wearing it half the time.
-grinding rust from the superstructure of the sub with air powered needle guns. This area was exposed to sea, all black and could reach temps of 130 degrees in the Georgia sun.
-Cleaning sea water heat exchanger tubes with high pressure water. (several thousand pounds.) Crawl into the heat exchanger (it was just big enough to be in the fetal position). Run the high pressure hose in and out of each of the thousands of tubes. Performed around every 6 months.
-Cleaning the bilge. Crawl head first into a bilge, shimmy over and under pipes, and clean the green oily water that is sloshing back and forth.
-tank inspection - crawling in oily and sea water tanks for inspections with baffle holes in the deck.


Funny part is, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. Amazing experience.
 

thecoach

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
19%
Aug 29, 2007
125
24
Regina, SK, Canada
Here are a few of mine...

Maintenance at an urban campground (litterally a shit job sometimes)
Night crew maintenence at Wal-Mart
Telephone Survey person (that last 2 weeks)
Client retention telemarketing for a bank (essentially my job was call clients that have been slowly pulling out all thier business and now have only one product left and ask them why and try to get the business back...I don't think I've ever been told off more times in my life...lol)
Cellular sales in a kiosk in a mall
Bartender at a very very slow club, infact I more or less got paid to study, so I guess it was pretty good...haha
Delivering newspapers at 5am (my buddy works for the newspaper in town, so I bail him out, he buys the beer the next few times we go out)
Yardsmen at a lumber yard...lots of back killing labour like handbombing lumber, plywood and bundles of shingles in the heat of summer
Special events security...lots of caberats and concerts where people more or less come to get drunk and rowdy (still do this casually on the slow months)

Shortest job I ever had? A Sporting goods store....got hired, scheduled to work the following Monday and decided "I seriously can't get motivated about selling baseball hats and hockey pucks for $6/hour" and no showed on the first and and just called in that I quit. Didn't even work a second and I quit.
 

Rawr

Gold Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
95%
Aug 12, 2007
1,838
1,755
south florida
Thecoach - that was awesome, I think you now officially have the record for least amount of work ;)

I worked at a republican fund raising telemarketing station. Basically bully people over the phone to give you money. Some very nice grandma pledged $2000 on her credit card.. I feel like shit because I know most of that money is not going to the republican party but to the people who run the biz... And the best part? I got a 25 CENT commission on this. Twenty five cents for 2k... what a joke
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

CarrieW

Gold Contributor
Read Fastlane!
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
41%
Nov 12, 2007
2,537
1,035
suburbs of savannah in Ga
Ive worked at

Mcd's-2 diff stores 2x each I worked openings some days and closings the others

kfc-- omg the nastiest fast food place ever! talk about horrible closings I was a cashier so I got the pleasure of washing all the nasty greasy dishes! just to give you a visual the floor is so bad at the end of the night they bust out an actual hose and squirt cleaner right on the floor and then squeegie it to the 4 drains in the floor ewwwww.

burger king- closing shift had to poilsh the huge amount of brass in the store every night and clean the bathrooms nasty!

toys r us at christmas nuff said

walmart layaway at christmas (can you say insane)

walmart cashier

walmart stocking crew

walmart ladies clothig dept(this wasnt that bad except that I did my job all night and when I was done I was forced to stay and help the slackers finish their dpts that really pissed me off)

Kmart Little ceasars inside the store

bus person for an italian restraunt

telephone surveys. bus to bus is a breeze consumers suck!

telephone sales to cc customes for health/life ins.

omg Im sure theres more that Ive mentally blocked lmao!

Ive had pleanty of other jobs that were great tho. most of those involved children. or a nice clean office enviroment!
 

santiago

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
27%
Aug 20, 2007
107
29
Hmm..

Busboy at Shoney's - quit after a week. No joke, their practice for cleaning lettuce heads was to empty a trash can, fill with water, dump lettuce heads in it, take them out and put them on the "fresh salad bar".

McD's - enough said, flipping burgers...

Worked in a torque wrench manufacturer - I literally had a station where I greased the inside of the wrench for 3 months, 8 hours a day.

Lawn service - had it's benefits, sun, etc. But really mowing several lawns a day isn't that great.

Room Service Waiter - Holiday Inn.

And, my best "shit" job. At the Atlanta Zoo, literally cleaning out you know what out of the exhibits. Pay was $10 an hour though..:bgh:
 

JesseO

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
6%
Jul 25, 2007
542
33
Phoenix, AZ
Re: Dead-End *Shit* Jobs ... Yours?

Cmon guys ... DEAD END SHIT JOBS!

Property Manager, Realtor, Bartender ... these are respectable jobs! Mopping floors and scooping up turds in backed-up toilets aren't!

Ok, I shoulda mentioned that as property manager I also do some maintenance...including reaching my arm down toilet lines (power ranger toys don't go down well) and picking up all kinds of different stuff when people somehow manage to miss the entire dumpster with their open bags of trash. Other than that, I'd agree it's a very respectable job =)
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

aptohosting

Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
21%
Aug 16, 2007
360
76
North Carolina
Only had 2 jobs before I started my business.

1) Campus Tech Support Help
2) Circuit City Computer Sales

Both paid human wages 8-9 per hour, but the monotony and the slow laneness factor sucks.

Self-employment ftw!
 

Sid23

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 9, 2007
682
114
Btw, DeadEndShitJobsYours.com is free in case someone wants to grab it :)

Not anymore!

I like the concept and this thread alone has my ideas running. Definitely worth it for $10.19 for a year.

EDIT#2: I now own both. Haha.
 
Last edited:

Sid23

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 9, 2007
682
114
Of course...both sites are available for sale for $40.76.
 
Dislike ads? Remove them and support the forum: Subscribe to Fastlane Insiders.

Poudda

New Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
13%
Sep 7, 2007
118
15
Calgary, Alberta
Paperboy for free local newspaper – collecting for a free paper was fun. Not!
McDonalds – cashier. Quit about 3 seconds before I got fired for growing my hair long – which I didn’t want to cut before going to a Judas Priest concert
Grocery store – one day, they just stopped scheduling me
Bargain store – head stock boy – this was one of the best jobs I ever had. Not kidding!
Busboy & short order cook – the company decided not to pay me in the end because I literally ate into the profits
Selling meat out of a pickup truck - door to door sales - I stuck around for a few months because one of the sales girls had really fantastic boobs
Chicken fast food delivery – only crashed my folks car once
Mutual fund company – fixed other people’s screw-ups, was on contract and decided not to renew
Electrician’s apprentice for about 6 months somewhere in between all this. I actually enjoyed the work. I lost a ton of weight and was building muscle where I’d never seen muscle before. Then I realized that winter was coming….
Banks – teller, customer service, sales, commercial lending, and as of today collections. Once a banker….

And if you think you have a shit job…


http://www.trueofficeconfessions.com/
 

Sid23

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 9, 2007
682
114
I just traded the two above domains for www.myjobistheworst.com.

My cousin, a site designer, is already foaming at the mouth...
 

MJ DeMarco

I followed the science; all I found was money.
Staff member
FASTLANE INSIDER
EPIC CONTRIBUTOR
Read Rat-Race Escape!
Read Fastlane!
Read Unscripted!
Summit Attendee
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
445%
Jul 23, 2007
38,077
169,494
Utah

Sid23

Bronze Contributor
Speedway Pass
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
17%
Aug 9, 2007
682
114

Post New Topic

Please SEARCH before posting.
Please select the BEST category.

Post new topic

Guest post submissions offered HERE.

New Topics

Fastlane Insiders

View the forum AD FREE.
Private, unindexed content
Detailed process/execution threads
Ideas needing execution, more!

Join Fastlane Insiders.

Top