Be Willing To Learn
By Debra Scala Giokas '87
One day, when I was a senior
in high school looking for work, my parents and I were walking in a shopping
mall about twenty minutes away from where we lived. I had come of age – working
age – and I needed to start saving for college. “Go apply to JC Penney,” they
said as we spotted the store.
I took the elevator up to the
fourth floor, which only permitted employees. I saw women carrying clear
plastic purses and a man with a gold badge. I asked the receptionist for an
application, filled it out, and waited right there on the spot for an interview.
A woman wearing a leopard
print blouse, stylish glasses, and her hair in an updo met me with a firm handshake
and a gracious smile.
She looked at my application,
lowered her glasses to the tip of her nose and said, “You have no experience.
Why should I hire you?”
Without skipping a beat, I
replied, “I am willing to learn.”
I got the job. Why? She explained
to me that willingness to learn is the best quality to have.
Afterwards, I couldn’t wait
to tell my parents. They were thrilled. It was one of the proudest moments of
my life. I never even thought about the minimum wage salary, which was $3.35
per hour. To me, it was the best job in the world.
I spent the next several years working my way through
college at JCPenney in a variety of capacities. Here I honed my interpersonal,
organizational and financial skills. I learned how good design affects sales,
and I learned about the cost vs. retail price. I became adept at cash
management, issues with credit cards and a slew of returns after the holiday
season. I also began to understand how important customer service (and
listening to people) is to a company’s well-being.
The staff kept challenging
me. I started in the Boys’ Department, then worked in Infants’, Men’s,
Housewares, Bedding, Cameras, Credit, Audit and Invoice. They called me an
“associate”, and made me feel like a part of their team. I worked the 12:30 p.m.
to 9:30 p.m. shift on Saturdays, and I worked nights after school. During
college breaks, I worked full-time.
I got my first job out of
college in the Customer Service Department at Canon USA. I was able to obtain this
position because of my
experience in the Camera Department at JCPenney. Since I sold cameras, I had
already proven my ability to learn about the products. This helped me to answer
customer complaints with typewritten letters in those pre-e-mail days. From
this I learned an important lesson: you never know which experience will help you
accomplish your next goal.
I parlayed my customer
service stint of eleven months to obtain a marketing job at a bank and, eventually,
a position at a law firm. I have been working in legal marketing since 1990.
I will never forget the JCPenney
Human Resources Director who took a chance on me. I tend to remember the people
who were kind to me in my youth. Perhaps that is why I try to give back, too.
At my workplace, I am one of
the professionals who participate in "Shadow Day," held on February 2 (“Groundhog Day.) On this day, teenagers from
area high schools come to our workplace and “shadow’ professionals who have
jobs in their desired fields.
Through “Shadow Day”, I have met many bright and
ambitious high school students. I can recall one particular student who really stood
out. She spent extra time with me, asked intelligent questions, and sent a
handwritten thank you note after the event. She also asked for advice on how
she could use her summer to get ahead.
"I'm willing to try anything,” she wrote.
I know she will go far.
Nothing is more inspiring to
a boss, a teacher, or a mentor than someone who is willing to learn.
Debra Scala Giokas has been in the field of Legal Marketing
for 25 years. For the last 15, she has been working as Marketing Director of
Long Island’s second largest law firm Certilman Balin Adler & Hyman, LLP.
Debra shares her love of English as a board advisor for Literacy Nassau which promotes adult literacy in the
community. Debra was also an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Dowling College,
where she taught an undergraduate course in services marketing for six years.
She has been published in a
variety of business and legal trades, which includes a quarterly column in the
Public Relations Professionals of Long Island's (PRPLI) newsletter “For
Immediate Release.” Debra’s poems regularly appear in the Great South Bay Magazine, and have
appeared in magazines and literary journals. Debra was recognized by PRPLI with
its Mentor Award in 2012.
