If you do this consistently, your career will take care of itself

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what actually makes someone good at their job.

Not fancy titles.
Not being the most technically skilled person in the room.

But something far more basic. And far more overlooked.

And this really hit me recently when I was back in my hometown.

A job I kept getting back, year after year

When I was a teenager, I worked at a small restaurant in my hometown.

I worked there for seven years.
Two years while I was at high school.
Five years while I was at university.

Every summer, I’d come home for the holidays and call the owner around October to ask if he’d have work for me again.

Every single time, he’d say yes.

He’d give me full-time hours from November through to February. Which was rare. There wasn’t much full-time summer work in our town, especially for students. A lot of people struggled to get jobs.

But every year, without question, he hired me back.

Going back as a customer

Recently, my husband and I went back there for lunch.

The place looked the same. But the experience couldn’t have been more different.

We walked in and the girl behind the counter yelled out, “Just take a seat anywhere.”

No hello.
No greeting.
No menus.

We sat outside. And waited.

Fifteen minutes went by. No one came to serve us. The table next to us had been left uncleared, plates still full of food. Birds everywhere. Chirping loudly. Picking at leftovers. It was uncomfortable and honestly pretty unpleasant.

Eventually, we just left.

And as I was walking out, something clicked.

Why my boss always said yes

I would never have let that happen.

If someone walked in, I’d stop whatever I was doing, grab menus, greet them properly, ask where they’d like to sit, and walk them to the table.

Even if I was busy. Especially if I was busy.

Because once they were seated with menus, I’d bought myself ten or fifteen minutes if I needed it.

I took so much pride in that job. I was conscientious. I cared deeply about doing it well. I treated customers like they were the most important people in the room. Because they were.

And suddenly it made complete sense why my boss hired me back every summer and gave me full-time hours.

When I was a teenager, I genuinely thought everyone worked like this. I assumed this was just how people showed up to their jobs.

Turns out… they don’t.

The real lesson

So much of being good at what you do is just showing up properly.

Being reliable.
Being positive.
Taking pride in your work.
Caring.

You don’t have to be the most skilled person in the room. Someone else might be technically better than you.

But if you show up, take your work seriously, and act like it matters, you will go far.

This applies everywhere. Hospitality. Offices. Running your own business. Working with clients.

The bar is much lower than people think.

And that’s exactly why simply showing up puts you ahead of most people.

If you want a job you genuinely care about, take pride in, and feel good showing up to every day, I can help.

The Creative Career Level Up is where I work closely with people in the Creative and Tech industries to help them find their next perfect role.