Dream Job - Feature
Gayle Cooper’s dad was in the military so she was used to constantly moving around. The thought of a nine-to-five job made her skin crawl. She craved something more: adventure, flexibility and freedom.
Cooper found all of these qualities and more as a flight attendant. Her job provides a flexible schedule and the ability to travel anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice. Although it can be a challenging job to secure, it has the potential to be an exciting and rewarding career.
Cooper says she “always knew [she] wanted to work in order to live,” not the other way around. She grew up in Pensacola, Florida, where she attended high school and college. She majored in Sports Science, a major that she has not used to this day.
After she graduated, she worked as a waitress on the beach for three years and loved it. During that time, by a stroke of luck, she waited on a large table of Delta pilots.
The pilots complimented Cooper on her sharp customer service skills and bubbly personality and mentioned that a flight attendant would be the perfect fit for her.
Cooper, age 25, knew that she needed to get a job soon to cover her health insurance. She applied for American and Delta airlines but was eventually hired by Delta.
Cooper is lucky enough to work with her friend, Kathy Spencer. “Kathy is my best flying pal,” said Cooper.
Spencer grew up in Brooklyn, New York. She has always had the urge to travel, which is why she went all the way to Auburn University to study Public Administration.
Her father was a police officer, giving her a passion for justice and public policy. She originally wanted to be an FBI agent and had a job waiting at the FBI headquarters in Birmingham after she graduated.
Before she could start that job, she needed to have one year of work experience upon graduation. She was frustrated about not being able to join the FBI immediately, but her dad advised her to view the situation as an opportunity, not a setback.
He told her to get a job that was fun and exciting. She applied to be a flight attendant at the Birmingham airport and later started her first “big girl” job.
“When I started flying, I thought this is the dream job, why would I ever leave this,” said Spencer. For over thirty years, she has never regretted choosing the flight attendent job over the FBI.
Cooper might be having more fun now as a flight attendant than she was when she was 25, now that her kids are grown-up and she is divorced. “I am having the time of my life,” said Cooper.
Cooper and Spencer’s dream jobs screeched to a halt in March of 2020. The outbreak of COVID-19 and the global pandemic put the airlines out of business for months.
To avoid firing employees, Delta allowed the flight attendents and pilots to choose a break from work instead. Because of this, Spencer was out of work for 9 months. She enjoyed the break because it allowed her to take care of her elderly parents.
Cooper was out of work for 10 months. She did not realize how unhappy she was away from her job until she returned in January of 2021.
The airport has created strict rules and guidelines for safe travel during the pandemic. Cooper is very excited to come back to work, considering she “feels safer working at the airport than working at Walmart,” since the airport has more precautions.
Even during a pandemic, there are many benefits to being a flight attendant.
The beauty of the job is flexibility. The job is unsupervised and nobody is breathing down your neck. Spencer’s favorite part is being able to travel to different places during layovers.
Of course with every job, there are downsides. With the job comes flying weekends and holidays, missing important life events and feeling lonely.
“Standing on the Eiffel Tower is no fun when there is no one there to share it with,” said Cooper.
Cooper only flies internationally. This allows her to see foreign countries but it also means working long days.
Sometimes Cooper works 12 to 15 hour days for an eight to 15 hour flight. Although her job is not hard work, it is emotionally and physically draining.
Spencer’s least favorite part of the job is the unruly passengers. One of the craziest things she has seen on the job is a lady who put her baby in the overhead bin because she did not want to hold her. When the woman refused, Spencer had to call the police on her.
To become a flight attendant, you need to be persistent and patient. The job is much more competitive than it was when Spencer and Cooper landed it by chance.
A Forbes article that was issued a few years ago claims that it is harder to get a job working for Delta than it is to get into Harvard. “It is not just a job or a career, it’s a lifestyle,” said Cooper.
Learning a second language can give you a competitive edge. Another skill that will distinguish candidates is nursing or paramedic training. This will be useful if an accident occurs during a flight.
When looking for a job as a flight attendant, it is important to remember that appearance is everything. Spencer suggests not to get tattoos or piercings.
After getting a job as a flight attendant, the fun begins. Transcontinental travel, gourmet cuisine, and new friendships are just some of the benefits that come with the job.
While a flight attendant’s job may not be a party that pays, it does have its perks. Spencer is focused throughout the flight but when she lands, she says “the only thing I have to think about is where I am going to get dinner tonight.”
