Working Woman Reaches Milestone and Can’t Stop Now!

Just a couple of years ago, I began to receive a notice from the Social Security Administration (SSA) which details every year I worked since the first year I started working and how much I made every year since. In 1968 I made three hundred and sixty eight dollars – $368.00 during that entire year.  I was lucky at that time to have lived at home with one living parent, and I didn’t have to pay any rent, but we were poor and we faced pretty tough challenges over the next few years.

I am happy to report that I am still working nearly forty years later. I managed to get a college degree from a state school along the way while working. I made progress against my goals every year; each job required more skills and experience, more responsibility, longer hours, and – luckily – better pay! I found an area of work that matched my skills, that offered advancement and that I was really good at. I’m still at it!

If I were to sum up my advice in three words it is: Don’t give up.  If I were to sum up the five most important things that made a difference to me in pursuing my goals they would be: mentors, education, confidence, creativity, and strength.

I had mentors in every job I held whether as a waitress or a professional – seek out mentors. My education, which I paid for myself, has stood me well for decades – post high school degrees do make a difference to employers.  I have always had confidence that I could do a job – practically any job well if just given the chance – confidence generates ability (I once got a summer job as a cook in a private home even though I’d never cooked in my life!).  Being creative really helps when the challenges mount up, try anything.  And, approach all barriers from a position of strength. Be strong.

I have entered my 40th year as a working woman. Forty years ago things looked pretty grim. Forty years later that SSA report makes me proud. A first job is often the jumping off point to being self-sufficient, to furthering your education and creating a better future. Think about what you really want to be and then you have to take the leap!

– Fabulous at Fifty-Five