Fifteen-year-old
Elliot Pearlman is a sophomore at Hilton High School in New York and my
younger brother. This past summer, Elliot spent his school-free days
working a very important and stressful job that he likes to call
“sleeping coordinator.” As a sleeping coordinator, his main tasks
consisted of setting up the time and length of morning, afternoon and
evening naps.
The
motivators that caused Pearlman to decide to pursue this line of work
were the facts that he “didn’t have to get up in the morning and go to
school, and no one would hire [him] for a real job.”
One
of the most frustrating aspects of being a 15-year-old is that not only
are you still too young to drive, but many places will not employ
anyone under the age of 16.
Although
you may be too “youthful” for some companies to put you on payroll, it
doesn’t mean that you have to spend the hot summer days setting world
records for length in television watching or torturing your older
siblings (thanks, Elliot). There is still plenty you can do to give
productivity a chance.
Use your neighbors
Though
you might be a tad too old to set up a lemonade stand, you can still
sell your services around your neighborhood. In any given community,
there is never a lack of lawns to mow or children to babysit. If you
really want to try living on the edge, you could even take up dog
walking and master the art of the pooper-scooper.
Save the money you make
When
you do reach the age of employment, it’s time to begin to look for a
“real” job. And though spending your only months of true freedom locked
away helping whiny customers may sound like the last thing you want to
do, working can be a great way to save up some extra cash for any
upcoming fun activities.
One
of the greatest aspects of having a summer job is that there are so
many types to choose from. One of the most obvious choices, of course,
is to find work in your town. By working close to home, you will most
likely be able to work for the entire year and during your school
vacations and holidays. And staying at one job for a long time will
give you the opportunity to build good relationships with your bosses
and coworkers—who in turn can supply you with great letters of
recommendation when applying to college.
Meghan
Reardon, a student at SUNY Brockport who is double majoring in
communications and psychology, decided that working in her hometown of
Newburg, N.Y., was the right decision to make. But Reardon did not just
commit herself to one summer job; she took on two and worked 55 hours a
week as a senior camp counselor at Camp Chadwick and as a sales
associate at a Hallmark Gold Crown store.
Although
some people see working two jobs for three months as just as tedious as
school, Reardon had a plan. All of the paychecks that came from working
at the summer camp went directly into her savings account, and the
money she made at Hallmark went toward her leisure activities.
By
dividing her earnings that she made during the summer, Reardon was able
to live with stress-free finances once school was back in session, and
she says she could then “concentrate on schoolwork and not worry about
having to make money.”
For
all of those who want to experiment with working two jobs, Reardon has
some advice. “The most important thing to remember is that it is 55
hours a week of your summer vacation, so make sure that one of the jobs
you work at, you really enjoy,” she says.
Get a job away
If
you want to try college life, or if you are in college and want to keep
your university freedom, you could always try a campus summer program
or work away from home at a summer resort.
When
Anna Hintz was completing her bachelor’s degree at Niagara University,
she worked at the Chautauqua Institute for the summer. The Chautauqua
Institute is a place where guests find renewal through educational and
religious lectures and seminars.
During her summers at the Institute, Hintz worked as a desk clerk at the Athenaeum hotel.
Along with a free place to stay and three meals a day, she also received a pass to sit in on any of the lectures offered.
June
through August may be the most blissful time of the year. But if you
spend your summer working and fattening up your piggy bank, you can
have a happier new year.
OTHER SUMMER IDEAS:
• Spend a summer abroad
• Learn a foreign language
• Work in a different country
• Attend a summer program on campus
• Become a camp counselor
