Monday, January 12, 2015

The Professional Bartending Circuit

"Greetings chummers." A salutation, in the words and tone of my favorite YouTube Let's Player. Grand Ole nerdery aside, a greeting of some sort is necessary when it's been this long since I've posted an article on this blog.

(This is a cocktail.)
With that out of the way... let's begin.

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I started this blog when I realized that it could be an asset for my resume, and a piece if expertise that not every serious bartender in the industry had. In short, I started it to convey a level of professionalism and dedication that helped me to stand out. I did a number of other things to help myself stand out, like relaunching my original YouTube channel as a bartending channel, participate in cocktail competitions, and other things that I don't have special links for.

(This is the cocktail that won me a prize!)

If you understand the tone in the above paragraph, you probably expect a but to come, and you'd be right. Not being one to start a sentence or paragraph with but; I simply did not take enough initiative to actual put my new experiences to good use. Over a period of one year, I applied to only two jobs. Part of the reason is because I couldn't find any jobs that interested me, and another part of the reason is because I was exhausted of working one full time job that wasn't giving me any new experiences while also trying to turn my various Internet endeavors into a profit.

At the end of the summer, I gave two weeks notice but ended up staying part time for another three months. During that time, I grew a pet project blog into a slightly more serious team effort. But of more relevant note (okay, I was lying about the 'but' thing) I applied to a grand opening position for a new lounge at the airport and of course I easily got the job.


(This is a table at the lounge I work at. Exciting, no?)
There are a few trade offs that helped me decide to apply to the position. First of all, high end airport experience, and grand openings look good on a resume. The company is also international, having locations in both Hong Kong and Singapore; great for someone trying to get their foot into the door. But the job isn't just a means to an end (there I go again throwing 'but's into the beginning if things). It's new. New lounge, new people, new experience. And not to speak badly of past employers - rarther, imply it - the direction and soul of the company was not something that I could jive with any longer. I was frustrated with everything, and just going along with it in hopes of something giving way.


(This is a bar I found in China. Sadly, I didn't go in.)
It probably doesn't sound like there are any trade off from the way I'm speaking, but there are. A tight relationship with coworkers, a certain level of freedom, and seniority I guess (okay, seniority is over rated, but listing things in threes seems better). Those things are not rare , though. I've had good working relations and freedom at most jobs. I still have it at my new job, though, as I said, it's all new, and the type of freedom is different as well.

(Who are you saying breaks the fourth wall?)
In closing, sometimes I like to pretend I'm Deadpool and break the fourth wall. Is writing aimlessly with no proper closure bad thing? Well, I suppose if I had to make any conclusion it would be that, most things are a work in progress, with no proper closing in sight.
 
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