The Summer Job

While discussing his Grammy-winning music career, Jimmy Buffett once compared it to something familiar to all of us: “I still consider it a summer job. I try to maintain that summer job as long as I can. It’s exciting to be able to have the opportunity to do things I always dreamed of as a kid.”

What does that say about the summer job? They can be fun! They can be so much fun, in fact, that one of the most successful musicians in America today likes to think of his career as one.

Working through the summer doesn’t have to be boring. Summer jobs give us an opportunity to try our hand at different skills, to make money, and to meet new people. And if nothing else, you’ll be in good company with some of the world’s most successful people who worked summer jobs before they hit the big time.

Bill Gates spent his first summer working as a page in the US Congress.

Christopher Walken was a lion tamer.

Amy Poehler scooped ice cream.

Yahoo’s CEO Marissa Mayer bagged groceries.

And billionaire Michael Bloomberg? He worked at a parking lot.

(Oh, and former Biz Kid$ host Austin once took a summer job at his university’s television station, which you can read about on his blog post here.)

Looking for some ideas? Read this story from The Desert Sun newspaper: “The Summer Job: How Teens Can Take Initiative.”

So where are you working this summer, Biz Kid? We want to know! In fact, we’re giving away copies of our new book, “$100 to $1,000,000” to ten lucky fans who tag a photo from their summer job with #SummerJobSnapshot by July 1st on Facebook or Twitter. We’ll even personally mail the book to your doorstep, anywhere in the world. So get snapping!

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