City of Bellevue

Camp Counselor

June - August 2019 • Bellevue, WA

What I liked

Great environment, understood camper as well as counselor safety very well, friendly administration.

What I wish was different

The availability of resources.

Advice

Don't ever wear white shoes! Be vocal about resources you need (the squeaky wheel gets the grease).

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Pool lifeguard manager

May - August 2019 • Bellevue, NE

What I liked

I loved my coworkers and dealing with first aid incidents

What I wish was different

I wish there were more workers so we didn’t have to work so many hours a week

Advice

Do something you love, or at least try and find the good in the job

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Economic Development Specialist

March 2017 • Bellevue, WA

What I liked

Great team, very dedicated to personal and professional development. Willing to give a long leash even to new staff to try new things and launch new projects. Very willing to innovate.

What I wish was different

LOTS of bureaucracy. I never expected public service to be a cakewalk, but the amount of work it takes even to make a small technology purchase is absurd. Lots of culture clash between our fast-moving, innovative team and the larger, slow-moving city bureaucracy. Compensation does not always reflect actual work done, but rather what it was planned to be at the time you were hired.

Advice

Be patient. Government is notoriously slow and inefficient, so be ready for that beforehand. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t push for change, but you’ll be happier if you level-set your expectations.

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Manager of a pool

May - August 2018 • Bellevue, NE

What I liked

I enjoyed working with people all around the same age as me, and having the opportunity to get to know them better and build strong relationships with my employees.

What I wish was different

Nothing! This was my first year as a manager, fifth year total as a lifeguard, but I enjoyed everyday I got to work.

Advice

I would say just keep a positive attitude, even when a patron or customer is not happy because if you become unhappy too, the problem will be harder to solve or the issue will become worse.

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Environmental intern

January 2018 • Bellevue, WA

What I liked

I was learned a lot about working in government and a field I wasn’t previously knowledgeable about. I felt like I was working with people who genuinely cared about making a difference.

What I wish was different

I wish I could have seen more levels of the processes we worked on, and met with senior members.

Advice

Make your own suggestions for projects and work you want to do.

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Summer Park Ranger

May - August 2018 • Bellevue, WA

What I liked

I liked having a lot of independence in my work; I was able to choose how to spend most of my days. I also enjoyed interacting with the public and my coworkers.