Hello all!

I'm sorry for posting so many 'educational' write-ups in a row, but after seeing an entry on my friend Bill's blog about what haulage jobs can teach young people, I thought I'd write a similar article about my own area of 'expertise' (ha!): self-employed courier jobs.

Why 'self-employed courier jobs', and not just courier jobs, you ask? Well, because while any job holds a number of valuable life lessons for youngsters, being 'your own boss' adds another dimension to the whole process. Why? Because if you're lazy, or make a mistake, or don't have your priorities straight, you won't get paid. There's no boss to go pleading to for your paycheque, because you are the boss. Do you see where I'm going, my darlings?

So, what exactly can self-employed courier jobs teach you that you wouldn't get at a regular job? Well, first of all, I'd have to say organization skills. In a 'normal' job, you will have a set schedule, and you will have to go to work and work those hours. Being self-employed, you make your own schedule, which means you will have to work out how many hours you work a week, and on how many days. If you have other activities, such as school, you will have to work around them, as well. This will help you acquire smashing planning skills in no time, and believe me – they come in handy later in life!

Another thing self-employed courier jobs teach you is to motivate yourself. Again, regular jobs require you to go to work regardless of how you're feeling, or risk not getting a paycheque and getting fired. So, often you'll find yourself trudging through a day of work, not wanting to be there. With self-employed courier jobs, that aspect never comes into play, so the temptation to sit at home playing PlayStation may be great. Remember, though – the less you work, the less you get paid. So you'll have to learn to get yourself in the right state of mind to work as much as you possibly can! And who knows? Once you've learned to motivate yourself, those 9-to-5 jobs may not seem as hard...

The final thing I think self-employed courier jobs teach young people is restraint with their finances. At first, it may seem tempting to blow all that hard-earned money – YOUR hard-earned money – as fast as you can. But without a steady or constant paycheque, you will quickly find that you need to be a little more cautious than usual, or run the risk of being permanently 'skint'.

There, my dears. I hope this post gave you something to think about – especially you younger ones! See everyone next time!

Gertie

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Pictured: People not making money.

"People not making money" © 2009 garryknight, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en