Fork Lift Certified?

Throughout the course of my life, from college into mid life, I have always embraced opportunities to learn new skills.  Not because I'm an over achiever by any means, but I simply like the diversion and the distraction of something new.  My Dad also always taught me that no matter what your position in a company, the more you know, the more valuable you become.  So whenever additional training came along, I did it.

And I'm not really talking major things.  I worked for a grocery store as a front end manager and closed up the safe and balanced cashiers tills each night.  After weeks of using an adding machine, it became apparent that it would be most useful and make me more efficient, if I learned 10-key by touch.  I found an online course and taught myself.  I could close up our store with all books balanced faster than any other person there.  There was a need for some back up cashiers.  I figured, I was there anyway, and why not learn to be a cashier.  I learned every PLU Code for every produce item most proficiently.  As a supervisor, I was there all hours and sometimes a truck would roll in to be unloaded but we had no one at the store fork lift certified.  I signed up to become fork lift certified so these trucks would not have to wait until morning to be unloaded.  A forty year old woman at 115 pounds driving the forklift.  They thought I was crazy.  As I soon found that the company I worked for would not ever become a position where I could live comfortable I began my search for new job.

I found the perfect job with a great salary, great benefits, and only five minutes from home.  The problem is, so did everybody else.  I called to follow up on my resume, and the General Manager had already received over 200 and this was only two days into the ad.  Unbelievably, I received a call for a phone interview.

It was a produce company and was I familiar with the produce PLU codes.  Why yes, I was.  The codes were used to enter every Sales Order and every Purchase Order and I knew 10-Key, making it possible for me to enter a 6 page order in less than five minutes.  The job was mine.  Curious, I asked why he picked my resume out of over 200.  He said he wanted to see this 115 pound woman who was... you got it... forklift certified.

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