When I was in grade school, I was envious of those kids who came from money.
- Their parents would hand them money for candy, toys, sports equipment and electronics.
I could not afford all of that. As I got older, the jealousy turned into determination to earn my own money. When I turned 16, I wanted to get a job, I started looking around the area for opportunities. I found that there were the most job listings for maid services. There were lots of homeowners looking for help with cleaning. I knew I was able to handle cleaning. If I was going to be paid to clean, I was going to do a great job and make sure the surfaces all shined. I decided to reach out to the people and offer to clean their home. First, I had to borrow money from my dad and mom. I needed to buy some cleaning products and tools. I showed up at the first house and got started on the job. They wanted the house cleaned from top to bottom. I was not organized or efficient and it took me over 4 hours. Finally, I had the house all set. The couple came home and checked out my efforts. Thankfully, they were happy and I was paid. Until the end of my senior year of high school, I worked as a maid for hire. I got really busy with the maid service. But after those years of cleaning houses, I was ready to be done with it. I had saved up a decent chunk of money. I put it towards my future college. It helped me to avoid huge student loans. I’m glad I worked as a maid as a kid. Being a maid is hard work and I learned a lot. I feel my work ethic came from that effort.