Finding your next opportunity

Miss Fairley was put together and organised. She could get things done and didn’t suffer fools gladly. And I was sitting in her office. 

I was 15 and had been a Saturday check out girl for a year at a local supermarket. My little fingers flying over the big, grey till as, item by item,  I put through people’s weekly shop. And it was fine. Okay. A 20 minute walk from home. 

But I wanted more variety.

So, I had a look around. And then I applied for the job, got the interview and explained what I was after. 

They offered me the job!

I would be working at Boots The Chemist on Princes Street, Edinburgh, one of their flagship stores, laid across three floors, complete with staff canteen and views overlooking Edinburgh Castle.

Yet after a few weeks in, I was still on the tills.

So I asked to speak to Miss Fairley, the nice lady who was head of HR, and who had interviewed me.

As I sat once more in her office I shared that I was really happy to be working at Boots and that one of the main things that had attracted me to work there was their variety of different departments. It was a chance for me to grow and learn. 

She listened and granted my wish.

I went on to work at Boots for 2 years. On Thursday evenings, Saturdays and on school holidays and worked with a wide range of people: university students, those who were seasoned retail staff and dedicated “always worked for Boots’ people.

I loved it.

Here are the departments I worked in and what I learned:

Pharmacy - the things people would tell me about their ‘ailments.’ The conversations I would have and the questions folk asked. I learned to listen well and ask the right questions even when there were 10 people in the line.

Photography - systems, processes, form filling and dealing with happy holiday makers who came in with their rolls of film, eager to see what they’d snapped after a couple of beers.

Cookshop - cocooned on its own little cosy floor, I learned a lot about all the stuff you can buy for a kitchen and what were the latest popular gadgets for Christmas. Cookie jars in the shape of cute animals and coffee makers were huge.

In those 2 years,  I was never on the tills again. 

✅ Are you ready to step up? 

✅ Got your eye on the next opportunity?

✅ Excited about how that new journey can help you develop?

Find your Miss Fairley and ask to have a conversation. 

You never know where it might lead you.