I want to start this by saying I'm a 42 year old cashier at a very well known gas station chain. I have worked since I was 19 starting as an office aid for a college department (was a go for type thing running all over the place/gate shack guard (would life the bar going across the entrance road to the college campus). After that I worked for a clothing retailers that paid Pennies on the dollar and allowed a manager to fire me cause I was a guy and didn't do the bidding of the women who worked in every other department. Then I worked at a place that would take donations locally to help keep things out of the landfill and resell what they could. There was a stint at a very old gorcery store some where in there but then the floor cleaner blew up. This was while listening to my family and everyone else screaming “If you want a better job go to college” I wasn't meant for college and only left with about 20k debt, I know cheap for now a days but this was early 00's and a community college at that. After I was done pretending I was enjoying college I went to work for a Shack and bought the “If you work hard take these classes and courses you too could be a manager and make lots of money and work less hours.” This was already after my manager got hurt, Donkey Manager (cause he was a rear end of a donkey) quit the same day leaving just me who had been there for four months to try and run the store. I did everything a manager was meant to do, pay roll order work my ass off as only three of us was there to run a store meant to have a staff of 7. I would open go home after noon come back and close. Work open to close during the weekends (the two other employee's couldn't cause well party life). I was told by the District manager that I would be the next assistant manager for six months and be trained by the new manager that was only a temporary before he moved onto a new store. Well He never moved on and brought his own assistant manager with him and had no knowledge of what the District Manager told me. So I became a moving employee. Would go from store to store where ever I needed to fill in. Every store I went too Sales went up but I could never get a store of my own. In that time I caught four managers and three assistants as well as countless staff stealing or cooking the books at the store. Each time the LP and DM's took credit and I got moved along. Did that for nearly four years then got let go when in the late 00's when I started working our sale system to benefit the customers. Everything I did was within the rules of the company and I had proof but it didn't matter I cost them money and was gone before I say a word. After that I was un-employed for some time, moved to the big O couldn't find steady work Moved back and got a job in a Barrel. Did what I was always told, learn as much as I can cause they they'll need me more and pay me more. Nope all I was used for was for them to send two jobs home and pull me off mine pay me basic wage to do the others job that was making 7 more dollars an hour then I was. Always promised when a spot opens up for one of those two it would be mine but it never happend cause I wouldn't come in on my days off and actually had the gul to call in when I was sick. so I moved to a Rocky state and all my jobs have been cashier at something.
So I'll end this here with telling the young. Use what happend me to as a cautionary tale, don't fall for the “If you work really hard, learn all this extra stuff we'll give you a raise.” Going above and beyond never paid off for me, I watched others get the promotions or the raises. Watched the ass kissers get what I was told I would. If I had been smart back then after the first broken promise I would have gotten it in writing or started looking for something else.
Believe in yourself, believe you are worth more. Believe you are capable of more, don't saddle yourself like I am now with just being a cashier. Don't be afraid to apply for the jobs you might not have the most skills associated with it. I'll leave this with a saying from my grandfather:
“It never hurts to ask the worst your going to be told is no the best is yes. Get your foot in the door and keep moving forward if you can.”
TLDR: Believe in yourself, fight for what you've been promised and what you want. The future is yours.