Category Archives: Work

Nov30

My Black Friday

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My Black Friday

Hello one and all! I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday! Sorry that I’ve been MIA these past few days – I’ve been working, working, working! I had my fifth Black Friday in retail this week and it was pretty crazy. I woke up at four in the morning on Black Friday to be at Next by five thirty so we could open by six. Thank goodness for my mom who set her alarm with me at four so that I didn’t sleep through mine! She even had a pot of coffee ready for me – what a doll!!! So I got to work and right as we opened the door at six – BAM – the store was flooded with shoppers. I honestly wasn’t expecting it at all. This was my first Black Friday working outside of the mall, so I assumed that a smaller business wouldn’t have nearly as much shopping traffic…I was dead wrong. For my entire almost twelve hour shift at Next there was a constant stream of people flowing in and out of the store. It was exhausting! The day went by relatively quick though since we had a solid amount of shoppers all day. And when there wasn’t any one in the store it gave us time to straighten up all of the clothing and displays. It felt so good to be outside of the craziness that I’m sure was happening ten minutes down the street at the mall. I promised my sister that I would visit her during her very first retail Black Friday shift now that she works at The Body Shop. When I got to the mall around six o’clock in the evening it was still swarming with people. It gave me anxiety! By that time all of the stores were completely trashed, so it wasn’t even fun going into any of my favorite shopping spots. My sister looked like she was doing great though during her shift so I definitely had a proud mama moment about that!!! The best thing about my Black Friday was coming home to find a letter from my best friend Tyler who’s currently in basic training on the kitchen table…and just coming home in general! Ha! I was so happy and exhausted that I ended up crying the entire time I read the letter. They were happy tears of course! I miss him so much and hearing from him was the perfect ending to a long day. All in all it was a solid Black Friday. A different but good experience from my previous four shifts working in the mall!

Unfortunately my work weekend wasn’t quite over after my long day on Black Friday because Small Business Saturday occurred on the following day. It was only an eight hour shift yesterday but it still wore me out!! I’m pretty sure that everyone was done spending their money after Black Friday because we barely had any customers yesterday. It ended up being a very chill day but I was still tired!!! By the time I got home around nine thirty I was already fantasizing about curling up under my covers and going to bed! After about twenty hours of work in two days you better believe I slept like a rock last night! I think I got thirteen hours of sleep so I’m feeling rejuvenated, recharged, and ready to go. But in all reality I’m going to end up doing nothing today, I need some me time. My mom is going to dye my hair for me so I can get some pampering and my best friend Lea is going to swing by for an hour or so later tonight. So it should be a nice, quiet day at home.

After being at the mall on Black Friday evening I realized just how much I hate people. Lol I kid, I kid! But really, shopping becomes totally unenjoyable when you’re just being jostled around a gaggle of shoppers. I have Monday off so I plan on participating in the Cyber Monday deals to get the rest of my holiday shopping done. My online gift giving destination lately has been http://www.amazon.com. They seriously have EVERYTHING and the prices are fantastic!!! I’ve gotten about half of my holiday shopping done already so I’m really hoping I can check the last few people off of my list this Monday! If you know of any sites that are having some great Cyber Monday deals, please let me know!

How was everyone’s Thanksgiving? Did any of you guys go Black Friday shopping? What kind of deals did you get? What kind of craziness occurred where you were shopping at? I’d love to hear all about it so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Happy Sunday! -Sarah

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Nov27

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!

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Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!

Happy happy Thanksgiving!!!! My sister, mother, and I have taken a break from our preparations of our Thanksgiving dinner, so I figured now would be a good time to send some holiday wishes to all of you! There are so many things that I’m thankful for that I’d like to share with you. In my list and explanations I didn’t include my family and friends, because those are the obvious ones! My close circle of immediate family and a whopping two friends (sad but true) will always be my number one, so no explanation is needed:) #enoughsaid

Here’s some of the things that I’m thankful for this holiday season and every day!

My education: I’ve been feeling an overwhelming sensation of pride in myself lately for finally getting myself back to school. I always thought that college wasn’t going to be for me, but now that I finished my first semester I wish that I would have started school sooner! I’m so thankful that my parents have been helping me occasionally with my tuition and text books. But shockingly, I’m also thankful for being able to pay most of my college expenses on my own. Which leads me to my second thing on my list….

My job: As soon as I ended my four year stint at PacSun, I honestly had no idea what I was going to do. I was so nervous for my future. I was so scared that I wouldn’t find another job right away. Getting that call with a job offer from Next was the biggest relief I’ve experienced in a long time. If it wasn’t for that call, there’s no way that I could afford paying for my education almost completely on my own, as well as keeping up with my car payment for the Little Red Love Machine. I’m so appreciative to have a job period, let alone a job that I really enjoy. My coworkers and clientele are just fantastic, so it makes going into work a joy.

My blog: This might sound dumb to some people, but I really am thankful for starting http://www.lifewithlilred.com!! I’ve been told that I should make a blog countless times before, so a little over two months ago I figured “why not?”. And I am so glad that I did! I forgot how much I enjoyed writing and expressing my feelings until I started trying to make a blog post or two daily. I’m so thankful for all of my readers and followers who have shown me so much love and support! Lifewithlilred is always going to be a thing, and I’m really hoping that as the hype continues to build that I’ll be able to make some kind of moolah for my work. But that’s thinking way far in advance! It’s good to dream though:)

Myself: Sarah: I am so thankful for the person who you’ve become. It feels so good to finally say that I love who I am after years of depression, self harm, and eating disorders. I love the way I look, which I never thought I would say. I love that I’m open and accepting to everyone. I love that I have a bright and bubbly personality. I love that I think for myself, which is so very important. Most of all, I’m thankful that I’m finally able to recognize all of these amazing qualities about myself. I’m thankful that I’m no longer in a zombie like state of depression. I’m finally thankful to be alive.

So there you have it – the other things that I’m thankful for besides my family and friends! I hope all of you have an amazing Thanksgiving today. I hope all of you share it with people who you love. Where ever you are in the world – I am so thankful for you! Thank you so much for reading. If you have any questions or concerns: leave me a comment and let’s chat! ALSO: If you partake in Black Friday shopping tonight or tomorrow PLEASE remember to be kind to the retail workers!!! I promise you that they would give anything to not be working amongst all of the craziness that is sure to happen! Send me some good luck vibes as well so I can get through my Black Friday shift! It would be much appreciated 😉 Happy holidays! -Sarah

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Oct31

ATTENTION ALL READERS! HELP!!!

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ATTENTION ALL READERS! HELP!!!

Alright guys, I met the coolest dude at work at Next tonight, and I NEED you guys to give him some love. Dominic Mashorda is the NINETEEN YEAR OLD owner of his own business. A sneaker store in Youngstown, Ohio that is so very originally called Sneakerville. 😉 Best believe I have to represent everyone doing it big in my home state. Dominic came into my store tonight looking to buy some gear to resell in his business. This young man was such a pleasure to talk and hang out with – and a lot of talking and hanging out was done considering he was in Next for over two hours. I’m not going to disclose how much money was spent in the time he was there, but sweet Dominic left with bags full of rad new merch for Sneakerville. His story is seriously one of the most insane tales of motivation and dedication I’ve ever heard, so please read up on him. This awesome article I found basically explains it all:

http://businessjournaldaily.com/company-news/18-year-old-entrepreneur-opens-sneakerville-store-2014-1-20

If you could also make sure to give him the love and likes on Facebook and Twitter it would be greatly appreciated.

Here’s Sneakerville’s Twitter page: https://twitter.com/SNKRVL

And Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SNKRVL

Credit is deserved when credit is due, and every ounce of success this kid earns is so well deserved. Dominic was so sweet and humble the entire time he was in the store. There were two young teenage boys who were checking out the new pair of Lebron’s that launched today while Dom was paroosing the store. Dominic had already set aside a size to purchase for Sneakerville, which happened to be the size one of the boys needed. Without a moments hesitation he offered the kicks to the young man and made his day. After he was done with his shopping, Dominic offered to take myself and my coworker out to Chipotle after we closed up for the night – but unfortunately, Chipotle had the same idea because they were closed too! 😦 It was such a kind gesture though!

I have a deep admiration and respect for young men and women out in the world who are making it happen, so it only felt right to give my new friend and young entrepreneur a shout out on here. And let me just repeat…Dominic is NINETEEN. He’s out there making things happen that people twice his age are doing. If that’s not impressive, than I really don’t know what is. I’m older than Dom by a year, but his experience made him seem years above me. Meeting this young man made me want to get my ass in gear and start working even harder for the things I want in life: My college degree, a faithful band of followers on http://www.lifewithlilred.com, and to continue to pursue theater acting work on the side. Seeing this young man reach his dreams at such a young age was the inspiration I needed to keep putting in work for everything I aspire to accomplish. If you have time, give Dominic Mashorda a Google or Yahoo search. Familiarize yourself with his work and the face of a kid who’s going to take the business world by storm.

What makes a great business man or woman to you? What is your definition of success? What’s a dream that you’re working to make a reality? I want to hear from you! Leave me a comment and let’s chat. Have a fantastic Thursday night! -Sarah

Annnnd as always, here’s my shameless promotion of Next and all of the cool shoes, clothes, and accessories that we have to offer!

http://ruleofnext.com/ (Sales pitch: Now is a great time to check out all of our sneakers for our fall sale!!!)

http://instagram.com/ruleofnext (Give us a follow on Instagram!!)

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HA! ^^^ Story of my life 😉

OH! PS: In case you were wondering – the featured image on this post is indeed part of the layout of Sneakerville! Cool huh?

Oct20

Work Hard Play Hard

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Work Hard Play Hard

In the words of the great Wiz Khalifa: Work hard. Play hard.

I feel like this phrase has been defining my life lately. For four years, from the time I was sixteen until present day, I’ve worked my ass off in the retail world. In that time, I saved a lot of money. I saved enough money that I was able to purchase my beloved 2012 Mazda 2 Sport (AKA the Little Red Love Machine) on my own AND I’m able to pay for my college tuition on my own. Not many twenty year olds can say that and I must say, it’s an awesome feeling. I spent countless hours slaving away in PacSun in order to make the money that I have and I guess when it comes down to it, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. PacSun helped me out a lot financially. If I hadn’t spent those four fateful years working for that company, there’s no way in hell I would be able to afford my car and education. But just because I’m an insanely hard worker, doesn’t mean that I don’t know how to have fun! I’m so thankful that I still have extra pocket money so that I can go on a shopping trip with my friends, or to dinner, or a movie and not feel guilty about it. This article makes me sound like my life revolves around how much moolah I make, but I promise you it doesn’t. On the contrary, my life revolves around me being an independent young woman who happens to need money to keep the woman on the go lifestyle! I’m very blessed that my parents are as supportive of me as they are as well. They don’t make me pay rent and they still pay my phone bill, and I am SO thankful for that! I plan on moving out by the time I graduate school which will be when I’m twenty two. Until then, I’m gonna work my little ass off at Next, ace every college class I take, and still make time for fun stuff too! I’m a firm believer in treating yourself. For example, when I would have to be at the mall early to open the store, I would promise myself I’d get a Starbucks drink if I got to work on time. That was motivation enough to get me out of bed and get myself moving. Or if I’m out running errands, I would purchase a little treat for myself like a new tube of lipstick after I got all of my necessities. There’s nothing wrong with giving yourself motivation in the form of rewards! Ha! My final hurrah gift to myself before I buckle down financially now that school is starting is getting a tattoo this Friday. My tattoo artist has been running specials for Halloween, so I figure no better time than the present to get the tat that I’ve wanted for ages now! Getting inked up is my way of congratulating myself for all the hard work that I did to get myself a new job and to get into school. I’m proud of me! Here’s a pic of what I’ll be getting:

isis

I’ll be getting Isis on my side, and I am SO excited!

What motivates you guys? How do you work hard? What are your favorite things to do to play hard? Leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

Oct19

I love my job….really!!!

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I love my job….really!!!

How many people can say that they completely love their job? I am SO thankful that I can be a member of the people that answered yes to that question. This first week of working at Next has been AMAZING. As I mentioned before, my store carries high end mens clothing, from Versace to True Religion, MCM, Billionaire Boys Club, and everything in between. So a typical day at work is me being surrounded by a bunch of dudes. And let me tell you something, these dudes go to bat for me like no other. The relationship with my coworkers and customers already feels like a big brother/little sister relationship, and I love it! It feels good to feel like one of the guys. It also feels good to be fawned over and called pretty a lot! Ha!! But really though, feeling respected and feeling like my opinion is worth value to these customers and my coworkers is so cool to me. I feel happy every time I get asked for my opinion on a shirt or for help picking out an outfit to wear out. Next is a completely different environment than what I’m used to. The clientele and product is completely different than PacSun. I’m not gonna lie, I was feeling a little discouraged on my first few shifts because I didn’t really know what I was talking about. But after learning about the brands and watching my coworkers interact with the customers I have a really good general idea of everything now. Tonight during my shift I felt confident for the first time at the store. I was confident in my ability to sell anything and everything to every single person that walked in the door. It was awesome! Did I mention how much fun we all have at work yet? We always play the sickest music. From old school to new school rap and hip hop, to alt rock, and indie, you can be sure that the best jams are always playing. We also have a projector that screens movies, music videos, and most importantly the Cleveland Cavs games on our walls. To top it off, every Friday night we have a popular DJ fresh from Akron spinning in our shop. God, I’m so lucky. These past few months I’ve wanted nothing more than to start school and to have a dope part time job. Now I have both – and it’s the best feeling ever. I worked hard and I made it happen! I start school on Monday. I’ve been achieving my goals non stop this month, and I can’t wait to see what my future holds!

Make sure you follow Next’s Instagram:

http://instagram.com/ruleofnext

Also, do me a solid and follow my own personal stores site as well, where you can see posts through out the week from my coworkers and myself:

http://yooying.com/nextakron

And finally, keep on checking out the company’s website for all the latest and greatest news from our brands, store owners, and employees. Make sure you check out our online store as well!

http://ruleofnext.com/

I’m so aware that I’m shamelessly promoting my job here, guys. So thanks for bearing with me! Check out our sites and pleeease let me know what you think! Have an awesome night! -Sarah

Oct12

Happy one month blogiversary to me!

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Happy one month blogiversary to me!

Today marks my one month blogiversary of http://www.lifewithlilred.com and I am SO happy! Special thanks to all of my readers and followers for going on my blog journey with me! Only one month in and I already feel like I accomplished a lot on my site. I feel like we covered a lot of ground with each other, and that’s very exciting to me! Best believe there’s more to come on lifewithlilred! In other fantastic news, today is my first day at my new job at Next and I am SOOOOO excited!!!!! I’m really hyped to get back to work and meet my new coworkers. These two weeks of unemployment have been fabulous though. In those two weeks I finished everything I needed to attend school at Tri-C on October 20th. I think that’s what I’m particularly proud of. I did everything all by myself with no former knowledge of how to do it. When I was in high school, a lot of teachers didn’t think I was going to graduate, so they never prepared me to go to college. Well ha ha on them because here I am now going to school and paying for it all on my own to boot! Lil Red is on fire! It took me over two years to get myself back to school, but I’m finally doing it – and you know what they say: it’s better late than never. Which ironically is the phrase I used when I would turn in my homework weeks late in high school 😉 . But I promise that won’t be the case in college! I know what I want to do and I’m ready to do it. Working retail for four years has really shown me that I don’t want to do that for the rest of my life. If I didn’t push myself to go to school, I firmly believe I’d still be stuck in the PacSun rut for years to come – and that’s not okay. I’m finally recognizing my own potential to succeed in the world, and it’s an amazing feeling. I feel like I’m blossoming into an actual adult. It’s hard to feel that way when you’re stuck working in the mall 24/7. I have exactly what I want now. A cool part time job and a college education. What could be better?!

In just one month of blogging, I feel like you guys have already experienced a whirl wind of a journey with me. If you read some of my very first posts, I was extremely depressed. Now I feel like the strong emotions I was feeling prior to these past few weeks are way easier to manage. I feel like the concrete block that was strapped onto my chest has finally been released and I can breathe easy. I have the whole world ahead of me now. These next few months are going to be a roller coaster of new experiences, and I’m happy to say that I’m finally ready to put my hands up and enjoy the ride.

Have a fantastic Sunday guys! Wish me luck on my first day of work!! I can’t wait to tell you all about it! -Sarah

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Oct9

GREAT NEWS!!!!!

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GREAT NEWS!!!!!

So I am SO happy to tell you guys that I got offered the job at Next!!!!! I start on Sunday! I got the call yesterday, and I am so beyond thrilled. I honestly didn’t think I was going to get the job because it had been a week and a half since my interview, so I deleted their number thinking I wasn’t going to hear back from them. When they called I didn’t recognize the number and almost didn’t pick up – but I’m so glad I did! I want to thank you guys SO much for sending me the good vibes and keeping your fingers crossed for me, because I firmly believe that helped me get the job! Yesterday was so perfect. I had an awesome visit with my guidance counselor, as you read about in I Love College! Part 2! and I got a new job to boot! Could the day get any better? The answer is YES, because the season premier of American Horror Story: Freakshow was on last night!!!!! It was fantastic! However, there were a few parts that I didn’t care for, so keep posted on my page for my review of the episode, which will be up by the end of the day. I’m so happy guys. September was a rough month for me, so I’m really thankful that October has started with a bang. I feel like things are finally coming together. I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be right now, and that really is an amazing feeling. I hope that all of you are experiencing positivity and joy this week. I’ll be sending all of you the good vibes and positive thoughts to keep the good times rollin! If you’d like to check out Next, here’s their website: http://www.ruleofnext.com/ . There’s a bunch of really cool stuff on there, so definitely take a look! I’m so ready for this new and exciting chapter in my life, and I can’t wait to share it with you guys along the way!

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Hope you all have a fantastic Thursday! I’d love to hear all about the great things that happened to you today, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! -Sarah

Sep25

Last day of work!!!!!

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Last day of work!!!!!

Well, today was the day. My final shift after a four year long career at PacSun! I started off as a mere sales associate in October of 2010, and ended as a full time assistant manager four years later. PacSun was my first job, and I’m so thankful that I had the opportunity to stay there as long as I did. I’ve made life long friends through the company, from my coworkers, to customers, to fellow employees in the mall. As sad as it was to finally leave, it was also a happy thing too. I’m finally going to go to college, and hopefully never have to work retail again. 😉 I’m extremely excited to see what my future holds outside of the company. I honestly feel like if I were to stay there any longer, college would be permanently put on the back burner. I am so proud of myself for being proactive in building a new future outside of my job. When you work at a place for so long, you almost feel stuck there. I was beginning to feel that way, and believe me, it wasn’t a good feeling at all. It felt amazing to take my future into my own hands, and decide what happens next. I’m so thrilled to start college at Tri-C in October, and am so ready to begin a new adventure! I’m forever grateful for everything that PacSun has done for me. From the time I was sixteen until now, I’ve had nothing but smiles and positive experiences. I don’t think that many people can say that about their jobs, so I feel very privileged to be able to say that about mine. In my featured image you can see a note that I wrote on one of our walls in the backroom. All of the employees who have left our PacSun family have wrote on that wall, and it was such a surreal experience to leave my mark on the Wall of Fame. Here’s my final PacFUN mirror pic selfie! It only felt right to take one 😉

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Thanks for the amazing memories, Pac. Lil’ Red is off to bigger and better things:) Have a wonderful Thursday night guys! Thanks for reading! -Sarah