Top 7 Benefits of the Seasonal Job Experience for Your Employment

By Steven Mehler

It’s starts before Thanksgiving, really. In fact, today, Halloween is the beginning of the holiday season. Costumes hang alongside shelves of Thanksgiving decorations. In another area of the store are brightly lit Christmas trees, wreaths, and boxes of ornaments. People begin posting on social media how terrible all of this is – that we have to have Christmas thrust upon us so early each year. Really? There are actually some very good things about the holiday season coming early.

- People get into the Christmas spirit much earlier – their moods are better, and they are often nicer to their fellowman.
- People have longer to think about Christmas and, yes, begin their shopping earlier. And this may be a good thing, if there is less credit card debt racked up through last minute shopping that has not been planned for.
- People have access to seasonal jobs for a longer period of time.

Those seasonal jobs, during the holidays and during summer months, have often been seen as just a method for students to earn some extra cash for their personal needs. And certainly this is true. But there are far more benefits to such jobs which we often don’t consider. Here are seven of them.

1. The Paycheck: Yes, the paycheck is definitely important. College students who must finance parts of their educations rely on this extra money; people who are long-term unemployed have an opportunity to earn a bit of money to supplement whatever other assistance they may be receiving; housewives have an opportunity to earn some extra money for personal or family needs.

2. Fine Tune Some Skills: While most seasonal jobs are not in supervisory or managerial positions, it doesn’t mean that skills are not picked up. People in retail may learn how to be diplomatic in some of the worst circumstances – an angry, hostile customer, for example.

People who take seasonal jobs in the summer tend to be in lawn care, amusements parks, hotels and resorts, swimming pools, and parks. Again, they have to deal with people in a variety of situations – disciplining kids at the local pool or during day camp programs, dealing with unhappy consumers at restaurants, putting a smile on their faces while a table they are waiting on is disruptive and trashing the place, soothing the disgruntled resort guest, and more.

3. Exposure to Diversity: It’s one thing to be in class with others whose backgrounds are different from your own. It’s quite different to work side by side with them. Diverse people who come together, even for short periods of time, develop much better understanding of one another, and this is always a good thing.

4. Addition to a Resume: Students and those with very little experience can use a seasonal job and references from their supervisors on their resumes. It makes sense, then, for seasonal employees to perform well, even though the job has nothing to do with their ultimate job goals. But the main thing here is to write the resume correctly, because only well-written resume can brighten up your seasonal job experience. If you are not sure how to do this, there are dozens of online tools and writing services like BidForWriting and CV Wizard, where you can find some help.

5. Chance to Get a Full-Time Job: Some who take seasonal positions with the same company during multiple seasons, and who do well, may very well be offered a permanent position when one opens up. And students who do this and then graduate with a degree might be considered for a management position.

6. Networking Possibilities: Particularly if you work a seasonal job other than retail, you do not know who you might meet. You might be engaged in lawn care and have the chance to meet and converse with the homeowner who holds a management or executive position with an attractive company. If that homeowner is impressed by you and your attitude/behavior, this might be a good contact after graduation.

7. Get Inside Scoop on Companies: Working even for a few months will give you important insight into the inner workings of a company. If it is a nightmare, you know it will be over in a few months; if it is great, you will know that you want to come back and perhaps look for a fulltime position to open up.

Seasonal jobs may not be fulfilling or seem to be worthwhile. And that’s okay. Under most circumstances they are temporary, and, if you are unhappy, you only have weeks or a few months to endure. But, no matter how unpleasant the job may be, think about these seven benefits. Some of them may relate directly to you.