How Meghan Markle’s Teen Years And Her First Job Prepared Her To Be Princess Meghan, Wife Of Prince Harry
When Meghan Markle got her first job as a teenager in Los Angeles, she had no idea she was already in training to be a princess. Humphrey Yogart, a popular frozen yogurt restaurant, is a long way from Buckingham Palace, but Markle’s years of working for peanuts as she served customers yummy frozen yogurt treats taught her skills that she will need as Prince Harry’s wife and a member of the royal family.
Meghan figured out early on that a smile and a little patience can go a long way, and she never forgot that lesson. According to the Mirror, Meghan Markle impressed customers, her bosses, and her coworkers with how well she handled the pressure of impatient customers lining up on a hot day for some cool yogurt.
Prince Harry’s fiancee was super-chill as she scooped desserts, cleaned up, and even emptied bins for a mere $4 an hour. Meghan managed to keep her cool, smile at everyone, get the job done superbly, even though she was only 13-years-old.
In fact, Markle did her work so well that her old boss, Paula Sheftel, still remembers her now-famous employee the way she was more than 20 years ago.
Sheftel, who had the foresight to hire Meghan all those years ago, remembers that the future princess was “very popular” with everyone at the store and customers loved her.
The store only kept staff with an “outgoing personality,” who showed they could get along with coworkers and customers. Meghan worked hard to prove herself, and all that attention to the details of good manners has paid off with a royal title and a fairytale romance.
Meghan Markle’s boss explained that there’s a lot of pressure in the restaurant industry. Everyone wants to be served immediately, everyone’s in a rush, and a lot of people don’t think it’s important to treat their servers well.
“It takes a special personality for somebody that young to deal with it,” she said. “Meghan had that early on.”
The yogurt shop managers knew they might have a Hollywood star on their hands, but they didn’t expect her to become British royalty as well. Fortunately, they gave Meghan exactly the training she needed to be the perfect princess.
Prince Harry’s future wife learned how to be personable even when she didn’t feel like it, how to “have great eye contact,” and how to be be “very” genuine. Those skills and traits are all part of Meghan’s charismatic and down-to-earth personality that made Prince Harry fall in love with her, and they’re also part of the modern royal family’s tool-kit.
The fact that as a 13-yo #MeghanMarkle worked in a frozen yoghurt shop called Humphrey Yogart fills me with optimism
— Adam Lechmere (@AdamLechmere) December 2, 2017
While Meghan Markle worked at the L.A. fixture, she had lots of opportunities to meet some of her idols and role models in the acting world. The Guardian previously reported that on one occasion, Baywatch star Yasmine Bleeth dropped in for a frozen yogurt, and Markle managed to meet her face-to-face in the parking lot.
Young Meghan was still awkward enough to blurt out how much she loved Bleeth in a Soft & Dri commercial, but Yasmine was completely courteous and gracious. The star said “Thank you” to her young admirer, shook her hand, and made a point of asking her name. Markle said that moment is “exactly what I base every interaction with fans on.”
No wonder Meghan Markle has such a warm presence with her fans and audience. She’s spent her life learning to be the best person she can be and she started with a great example.
Now the store is planning to make a special royal yogurt dessert to commemorate Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s engagement and wedding. The general manager, Vanessa Salazar, has some ideas for a Meghan Special that “thrilled” Humphrey Yogart staff are looking forward to creating.
Sheftel said there was one thing that she and Markle’s coworkers always tried to do for Meghan that never worked out. Everyone always wanted to play cupid and set up the cheerful, even-tempered teenager.
“I’m glad we didn’t set her up,” said Paula.
