Working in the club industry is without a doubt one of the most entertaining and fun jobs I have ever had. Who doesn't want to serve drinks while jamming out to their favorite songs all night then get a hell of a tip at the end of it all? But with all that comes a boatload of perks and losses. I would have to say that working in such a fast pace environment definitely kept me on my toes. I was always on the go and learned how to live off of 3 hours of sleep a night. The sleep deprivation becomes routine and you almost forget that you're tired. The money though, that's what keeps you. I guess that's what keeps a lot of people doing what they do. I've worked for as long as I could remember and money was always something that had to be earned. Being raised by young parents was no help either. They spent their money recklessly and never taught me how to save. (Oh, and did I mention both of my parents were also bartenders during my childhood years?) Nonetheless, I grew up around the booze and hospitality industry and it's safe to say that I get my amazing people skills from my parents.
When I started working in the industry I was unaware about all the misconceptions and preconceptions that you have to deal with. Sure it's great to skip a line when you walk up to the club but is it so great when you have to spend the rest of that time trying to maintain good behavior because your manager is right beside you? Of course walking into a club and getting pulled to a table is always a good time. But is it a good time when you realize you're at an opposing promo teams table and could potentially be fired for it? See, the club is meant to be a fun environment where you enjoy the vibes, music, and company of your friends (I guess drink a little too). When you turn that into work, the fun officially get null and void. It becomes business. It becomes your JOB. It's not about you having fun it's about everyone around you having fun.
I didn't understand my boss's concepts all the time when it came to the severity of not entertaining our competition until the other night. I went out to a club with my girls that I hadn't been allowed to attend in a while. The party was okay. It was filled with a bunch of pretentious girls standing around looking like they were waiting for the cameras to roll out and yell "action" as well as overcrowded with fraudulent men that will save an entire weeks check just to get that VIP table come the weekend. There are very few that can actually "pop bottles" without breaking bank. Point is, I walked in with three other girls and when doing so another bottle was bought by the guy at the table. BAM! There it was. It hit me. My boss used to always tell me "why go and make someone else's party good when you have your own to make look great". What my girls and I did that night was sell another bottle for the club. If I had still been working in the nightlife, I would have been promoting another persons party instead of my own. That's like a Coca~Cola factory worker drinking Pepsi on the job. Not a good look. I guess it just made me for the very first time realize the point my boss was trying to make. The whole time I was working with him I was so insistent on attending all my competitors parties but when the freedom came to attend I was let down by the results.
All in all the nightlife industry is a tricky business. When getting into it you have to mentally and physically prepare yourself for everything you will have to endure. It takes a certain type of person to make it successfully within the industry and I truly believe if you aren't passionate about it then you will absolutely hate it. #LennysThoughts
