Do you mind if I ask you to go in depth about the wonder's of working in retail? (You work in target, right?)
Alright this might be a lot of words or it might be a medium amount of words I’m not sure yet. I’m going to start with the basics and just go on from there, and if I miss anything then I’ll try and correct it later.
No matter where you work, the core fundamentals will be more or less the same. You stand around, you scan things, you put them in bags, and click a couple buttons. Where I work you get some kind of break about every two hours, but you’ll spend the lion’s share of your time standing in the same place. This does not feel great on your feet or back, so hopefully you have a mat to stand on, and some comfortable shoes.
The basics of a cashier job couldn’t be much simpler, and you’ll pick them up after the first few transactions. Scanning, bagging, and putting in/taking out cash couldn’t be simpler. There are advanced things you could possibly run into such as but not limited to coupons, gift cards, ID checks, rebate checks, WIC checks, price inquiries, merchandise locations, etc. Most of those you’ll just kind of pick up as you go, but after about a month you’re likely to have run into every issue you could encounter at the register, and will know how to deal with them.
Now if you work at a big chain, chances are they’ll have a store credit card or rewards card, and they’ll want you to hawk that. I’ve found (at least at Target) that our card sales goals are often woefully inaccurate, so as long as you can get a few a week, you should be good.
Supervisors and managers can be your worst nightmare or your best friend, so do your best to stay on their good side. I like all of mine and we get along just fine, and I imagine most of them are at heart good people.
By and large I’ve found that customers aren’t the demons they’re made out to be. Sure there are jerks, and there will always be jerks, but I’ve found that greeting someone with genuine positivity will usually get you some back.
Since the work is tedious and sometimes taxing, you’ll be able to bond pretty quickly with your co-workers, since you’re all in it together. Having someone to talk to when the store is dead can help pass the time, and make going to work not feel so dreadful.
Sometimes your managers will give you other stuff to do that gets you off the register, like cleaning up the lanes or some other task specific to that area of the store. Cherish it. Ask for it. Doing something besides cashiering for a bit of your shift can seriously lighten your mood.
Keep in mind I can only speak to the experience of being a cashier. I imagine people on the sales floor or stocking team often feel like a bunch of moms cleaning up other people’s messes. Well, I have to do that sometimes too.
The biggest irritation with customers is mostly that they’re oblivious. They’ll try and hide items they don’t want instead of giving them back to you to put back, or they’ll let their kids make a mess because “somebody will clean it up,” and they do these things because they have never worked retail, and don’t understand the amount of effort required to make a store clean and presentable for about 16-24 hours a day.
The most important thing is to not let the job get you down. At the end of the day it’s just a job. Never let yourself feel devalued over what you’re doing, because it’s just a stepping stone, not the end of the line.
There’s probably stuff I forgot but this is the gist I have for right now.