Lesson #4: Get a Job You That Love, But Don't Be Afraid to Work Hard for It

Believe it or not, getting a good job that I actually like is something that I actually think a lot about right now. For one thing, that's a big reason why I'm currently attending college. I want to set the foundation for my future now because I know how important it is to love what you do.

So in my first post I briefly mentioned how Rachel went from a spoiled rich girl to a successful business woman, but clearly that job didn't just fall into her lap. She had to start from the bottom and work her way up.

Rachel entered the working world at 23 years old when she got her first job waitressing at Central Perk. Although this wasn't her dream job, she took what she could get and made the best of it. However, after working at the coffee shop for two-and-a-half years, Rachel decides to quit her job and pursue her dream career in the fashion industry. By letting go of this safety net, Rachel opens herself up to find a job that she loves and takes a position as an assistant at Fortunata Fashions. Even though this is one step closer to her dream, Rachel still finds herself doing trivial tasks like making coffee (still) and untangling hangers.

However, Rachel doesn't have to stick it out for too long, because she is soon offered a job at Bloomingdales as a buyer and personal shopper for the department store. After two years of working at this job, she is offered an even better one as an executive at Ralph Lauren. Although her interview doesn't go very well, she still manages to get the job by showing her determination and passion for the fashion industry.

Rachel's transition from waitress to successful business woman shows that hard work pays off and that in order to get the job you want, you have to be willing to put some time in. Another one of the friends who certainly knows a lot about putting time into his career is Joey.

As an actor, Joey has certainly seen many ups and downs in his career. When the series began, he took less-than-ideal roles in obscure plays, commercials, and subway advertisements for STD clinics.

Although Joey has had some low points in his career, he has also had some impressive achievements. For example, he had a recurring role as Dr. Drake Ramoray on the popular soap opera Days of Our Lives. While he loses this role on the show for claiming to write his own lines (and his character is killed off after falling down an elevator shaft), they eventual bring him back on, this time as another character who had her brain transplanted into Dr. Ramoray's body. He is later nominated for an award for Best Returning Character.

Joey has also had some other notable roles, such as Al Pacino's "butt double" and the main character on the tv show Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E., a show about a detective and his crime-solving robot. In addition to his work as an actor, Joey has often had to pick up odd-jobs, such as a Christmas elf at the mall, a cologne sampler at a department store, a Christmas tree salesman, a museum tour guide, and a waiter.

These additional jobs, rather than detracting from Joey's career as an actor, show his dedication towards his passion; he's willing to take on various odd-jobs in order to continue making a living rather that giving up acting altogether to find a more practical job.

Throughout the series, both Rachel and Joey are prime examples of what it means to work hard and achieve your dreams. They both work in fields that some may consider impractical or hard to find work in, but they manage to be successful in their careers through determination and perserverance.




Images courtesy of (in order of appearance):

• Tumblr
• personal image made using imgflip
• photobucket
• Love Lace
• Friends Wikia
• Tumblr
• Tumblr