Submitted by:  Melanie Petersen

I would like to encourage people who are looking for a job to never give up.  I would also like to share with you something my dad taught me and my three sisters.

He said:  Act like you are your own boss, because no one can ever hold a good man down.  This may sound weird but let me try to explain.

My dad would tell us that you do not work for a boss.  You ARE your own boss and will determine your own success.  He told us we must never be late or absent for no reason.  To always go above and beyond your job description.  Be the best worker you can be because you are doing it for yourself to get ahead in life, and not for your boss.

You are your own boss and will determine your own success.

When we finished our studies and had to look for work it was a time in SA that, as a white South African with the implementation of BEE, jobs were scarce, and many young people left to find work overseas.  But my dad always just told us that if we work very hard, we will always find work.

We all four applied this to our careers, and it has worked.

In my first real job as a beauty therapist I was never sick.  When I was not doing treatments, I was washing dishes in the kitchen or helping at the front desk; whatever needed to be done, I was willing to do.  My employer was paying for my time, so I would keep myself busy with whatever needed to be done.  When an opportunity opened for me to leave, to do something better, my boss was very sad to see me go.

My younger sister went to study accounting.  She was such a hard-working and diligent student, that when she graduated, one of her lecturers gave her a job at a firm where he was a partner.  She then, after a few years of working there, left and joined a large national accounting firm.  After having two kids, she went to her boss and said she would be resigning to spend more time with her kids.  They asked her what they could do to make her stay as there was no way they wanted to lose her.  She said, ‘Ok, I will try to work half-day for you, as long as I can work from home and come into the office once a week.  Of course, they said yes.  So now she works half-day from home at the same salary.  This is because they know the high standard of work that she produces.  They know she is trustworthy and always gets the job done on time.

My baby sister studied marketing and could not find a job in that field, but she managed to find a job as a receptionist at an accounting firm.  She worked hard and decided to study accounting part time.  One day an accounting position opened in the firm and they asked her to apply for it.  She has now also moved on to better things.

Life can be tough at times, but life can never hold a good man down, just as my dad always taught us.

Guys, please do not give up.  I know that the economy is very bad out there.  I know that the lack of jobs is the worst it has even been.  Your hard work will pay off.  Be the best you can be.  Even if your boss is terrible.  Remember you are your own boss and you work hard for yourself to become a success.  Life can be tough at times, but life can never hold a good man down, just as my dad always taught us.

Good luck and God Bless.