Many hotel owners began their careers by starting as bellboys. Many others started by checking in customers, working in the kitchen, bringing in luggage, or bringing up room service. There are many different part-time jobs and entry-level jobs in the hotel industry that will help you learn all about what makes hotels work well.
Also, just like in any other business, by starting in the business you want to end in, you make all kinds of connections. There are great networking opportunities for ambitious bellhops or customer service representatives. This people will constantly be working with managers, supervisors, or the concierge and will have plenty of opportunities to ask them questions about the operations of the hotel as well as about their own aspirations. Perhaps they are interested in starting their own hotel as well. Maybe they have something to offer that you do not and together you could partner up and create a successful hotel chain. If you are working with people who have similar aspirations, you will push each other to reach new goals together. Perhaps, you will even compete against each other to see who gets promoted first and who starts their hotel resort first. If you are not competing and you are both helping each other out, then you might find out about hotel resort jobs or hotel management jobs through your new friend. Maybe he will tell out about new job openings he found out about. So you both prepare each other for the job, or if it is a position he is not so interested in, he simply helps you prepare and hopes you get the job.
Working in the environment you hope to end up in later will also help you decide if it is really the right environment for you. Perhaps you will decide that after having worked at a hotel you no longer are interested in pursuing a career in that field and enter a different one. There are all kinds of management jobs out there, and perhaps a different industry would better suit you. You will never know what suits you until you try it and get a feel for the atmosphere and the system of operations. On the other hand, you might come across a newfound passion once you start working at a hotel. You might become even more motivated to take on a hotel management job after having seen how things work. By seeing the system of operations, perhaps you will increase your excitement and that excitement will help propel you to great heights in the hotel industry.
Part-time jobs in hotels also have other networking benefits. If you are working in a five-star hotel, you are bound to meet all kinds of wealthy people. These wealthy people might be the very kinds of investors you need to help start your own chain. If you establish a few friendships with some wealthy people, you will already have a few people you can pitch your business model to when the time comes. Or if you are not interested in owning a hotel, but simply wish to manage one, it still benefits you to establish these friendships so these wealthy patrons continue to stay at your hotel. If your boss finds out that you are helping the hotel keep some of their wealthy customers, he or she is bound to promote you or give you a bigger bonus. It helps to have great people skills in the hotel business and to go above and beyond the call of duty when helping those staying at your hotel. Customers remember great service and will return more frequently to your hotel if you give them a good reason to.
Most entry-level jobs will put you in positions to meet all kinds of new people. You might really enjoy meeting people from all over the world, so this will be a huge perk for you. Once again, the more people you know and the more people you tell your goals and aspirations to, the sooner you will find people who will join you in your journey and help you achieve your dreams. If you keep to yourself and wait for the right moment, you might lose it to someone who is looking out for opportunities.
So if you are good with people and enjoy being around new people, you are more likely to open the door to all kinds of new prospects you never even imagined. Any time you are around people from all over the world, the possibilities are endless. You might find employment opportunities in the most unexpected places, and they all came from those relationships you established as a part-time employee in a hotel. So think outside the box. You will receive employment prospects from every possibly employment industry. If you only want to work a management job in a hotel, then that is probably what you will find, but do not dismiss the other possibilities that will arise from working part-time in a hotel.
