So my friends, where did you develop your skills and work ethics? A trait that seem to be lacking by many younger folks these days? My dad had me working for the neighbors when I was 6 or 7 years old. Picking up apples. After that it was more yard work, shoveling snow, you name it. I did janitorial work at places he worked at, worked on my cousin's ranch, the list is long.

Anyone remember paper routes?

Every male in my family had a great work ethic. Work or school you should be doing one. I guess that came naturally. As far as skills, growing up Gen X both parents worked so I would get bored/curious about something and take it apart to see how it worked or fix something. My family was always more hands on and maintenance oriented as opposed to paying someone else to do projects. Both of my boys work across the street bagging groceries and collecting carts part time. They have bad days like anyone else but they always manage to show up and sometimes volunteer for covering someone or extra shifts so I’m proud they have learned a good work ethic. I’ve known enough people that have poor work ethics and it always causes problems and worries parents.

I learned it from my Dad. He grew up on a farm and DIY's most things. Dad retired from autobody, and prior to retirement never owned a car that hadn't been in an accident. At one point he bought two cars (one with damaged front and other with damaged rear), sawed both in half at same point, welded back together, and made one good car which he drove for several years. He's late 70s and outworks his 30-something neighbors.

from a young age I was working alongside him. For example, Dad taught me how to mow the lawn, and I took over lawnmowing at age 10. When I turned 12, he had me mowing all of the neighbors lawns for money. My first vehicle was truck-like (i.e. Dodge Rampage) and that summer he had me loading the lawnmower in the bed and driving around town mowing mowing 3 different friend's businesses.

My highschool football coach is another influence. We were Top 8 in state both junior and senior year, and we both outhustled and outtechniqued the opponents who generally had more top speed than us. Learning that you can excel by hustling more than the competition and having better technique than the competition has stuck with me. Also, things like if you're not on time unless you're 5 minutes early has stuck with me.

Surprisingly I never learned from anyone, it came natural to me in my first job that wasn’t mowing yards. I hated being late so I was always early, if they needed someone to work I volunteered. If they had odd jobs I would take them (like shampooing the offices or working on holidays when everyone else was off, or jobs nobody else wanted to do). I did what my bosses told me to do - especially when it meant extra money. When I was poor I did all I could to make money.

It wasn’t until much later that I realized that the bosses always gave me more work than they thought I would do. I thought I had to so I did it all in within my work shift. I remember now how they would be surprised when I got everything they gave me done. I worked hard, was never late, was never sick and was honest even when other co-workers were not.

When I became a supervisor much later in life one boss warned me that I could not expect everyone working for me to work like I did. That was when I was 40 and really started thinking about work ethics.

My mom was lazy and my dad was an average worker but never passed down any expectations on how my brothers and I were to work. My parents divorced when I was young so I grew up having to fend for myself. Poverty motivated me to work hard and helped build my work ethics. I have close family that poverty affected much differently.

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Originally posted by tatortodd:
For example, Dad taught me how to mow the lawn, and I took over lawnmowing at age 10.

Same, at 10 yo I was handling a large professional gas mower, the kind that Japanese landscapers were using at the time, with a hand clutch and everything, working for no money. We had a large front lawn and back lawn as well. I was also doing odd jobs for various friends parents and neighbors, I had the knack of picking up on different skills fairly quickly. I got my first hourly job when I was 14 yo, pay was under the table from a local business since work laws required me to be 16 yo.

But my work ethic came from my father, who always had busy hands all of his life.

The example of all the adults in my family. My dad was the main influence.

1st legit job was sacking groceries. I learned quick that the more groceries I sacked, the more tip money ended up in my pocket. $35-40 extra bucks in your pocket everyday you worked as a 16yr old was a big deal. I would say that formed my work ethic early.

Second grade in Ann Arbor Michigan, I was packing supply boxes for Ann Arbor Clinical Labs, where my Dad was a Cytologist. I remember receiving my first $10.00 bill and then $20.00 bill. I was so stoked, it motivated me. Been working ever since.

Was a Caddy at Kenwood Country Club for 4 years, worked formal gardens at Red Barn Acres for several years, worked on ground crew for Losantiville Country Club for 4 years. worked for UPS for 18 years. Was a Tech Recruiter for a few years, worked for a Customs Home Builder for 4 years, a Land Developer for 10 years and a Service Related business for the past 15 years. Some of these job overlapped. As I approach retirement, I have no regrets.

I started a grass cutting business in 1974 at the age of 9. By the time I was in hightschool, my parents had joined the business, we had two trucks, a trailer, 3 John Deere commercial mowers, gas trimmers, generator, and commercial hedge trimming gear. We did 56 lawns per week, plus leaves, hedges, house painting, light carpentry, and other stuff. We made more money in the May, June, July, August, September time frame than my parents made as school teachers the rest of the year.

One summer I got hired to move 15 yards of 1 inch gravel from the street to a guy's seawall. It was about 200' and I used a shovel and a wheelbarrow. It was August, with attendant heat and humidity. That was the day that I knew for dead certain I was going to college.

My mom (5'2") and my dad (5'8") worked just as hard as I did in that business, and there is no way I was going to get outworked by either of them.

These lessons last a lifetime, and shape how you think and act.

Growing up, we had chores to do, mostly aligned with our ages.

Any kid can dry dishes. We sure did.
Any kid can use a rake. We sure did.
As we were able, routine chores got added. I made a LOT of money mowing grass and shoveling snow. I maintained as many as 10 yards in the summer, a couple of them across town in opposite directions. “Sure you can go play. After you finish your work.”

After high school it was grunt work for the utility (and still mowing), then grocery work and tire store work during college. Then the “real” jobs, with extended shifts and the occasional overnighters.

I’ll admit that I’m not as driven lately as I used to be, but I do still try to put in solid effort, and to help others with their tasks as I go. I do take on a bit of side work. That keeps things fun!

Back to the topic: our parents caused/encouraged our work ethic. As for the skills, those have been picked up all along the path — home, school, Boy Scouts, jobs, and learning from others along the way.

quote:

Anyone remember paper routes?

I delivered newspapers from age 12 to 17. First on a bicycle then on a Vespa. During the summer a friend and I mowed lawns. My parents had the means but I never took a penny from them until college. During college I worked summers at Tennessee Eastman & bought my first car. Everyone I knew worked the same way. McDonalds and most stores only hired 18 year olds & older due to insurance restrictions and state laws. Of course things changed when I got my draft notice in Sep 1966.

Learned from Dad.
And yes, I had a paper route from age 12-16 at which time I got my first REAL job (dishwasher) @$1.60 pr hr

From dad. I shoveled snow, then got a paper route, then a job at 16, then the Navy. Dad taught me, catholic school and the Navy reinforced what he taught me.

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Originally posted by smschulz:
Anyone remember paper routes?

How about pinsetters?

I wasn’t one, but my dad was and he also had a paper route. We lived in the sticks in my early years, so paper route was not an option, but detasseling corn was. At 16 with a driver’s license, busboy at the local country club became an option at $2.01/hour.

The work ethic is parent to children in my family as well.

If I wanted any spending money I earned it. Want to play golf in the summer? How are going to pay for it. My parents weren't going to.
Early jobs were detasseling corn, walking beans, caddy at the Country Club, bagging groceries, general labor at the gun club.
Then there was mowing my grandmother's yard. I was fourth in line but somehow became the default choice for that task. She did pay me and always had some amazing desert. But dang was she particular. Did teach me attention to detail.

Moved sprinkler irrigation pipe on farms in southeast Idaho (age 12). Then got "forced" into working at my dad's lumber yard at age 14. At the time you could get a daytime drivers license at 14 in Idaho. Farm communities are great places for a kid to learn how to work.

Paper route. Turned out to be quite educational. Learned how to deal with dead beats who wouldnt pay. And how to run a small business. Most of my customers wanted me to bring the paper into the house and in those days, no one locked their doors. I saw several my of customers having sex, even though I would loudly announce "paperboy" as I came in the door. Very educational! And my old man was an example of work ethic. Out the door at 6AM sharp and back in the door at 4:30PM. For 35 years!

My work ethic was from both my parents. I am from modest financial means as were both my parents. My mom and dad both worked. My mom was a nurse, my dad a steelworker turned postal employee. They worked offsetting shifts to ensure one parent was home at any given time. I watched them work hard with no complaints. My dad was a DIY guy and I inherited that from him, along with a high mechanical aptitude.

I understood that if I wanted spending money, I needed to work. Paper routes starting at age 12, part time starting at age 16 and full-time at age 18. I went to vo-tech for drafting and upon graduation I went to work for a land planning company drawing maps and doing graphics for reports. That segued into a job at the local electric company preparing maps to show facility siting for power lines, substations and generating facilities. That eventually turned into preparing maps for a new Geographic Information System (GIS). I learned the new system and found my career, computers. I went to school in the evening and moved into a job as a computer systems programmer. 41 years later I retired as a Senior Vice President at a Fortune 200 company where I managed IT Infrastructure Architects.

So the short answer, my work ethic came from my parents. My skills came from taking every opportunity to learn about my chosen area of focus and everything that went with it.

A side note on work ethic. Years ago I interviewed for a position in IT. The interviewer and person I would report to lived across the street from my brother. The interview went well and at the end, he asked if I knew a Mark xxxxx. I said, yes, he is my brother. He said if your work ethic is anything like his, you're hired. That's how I wound up working for one of the best managers in my career.

My "first job" was making deliveries for my band's lead guitarist's uncle. He was a big, buff, handsome guy in his 30's who sold Avon door-to-door. The lonely housewives swooned over him, and at least some of them intended to reward him when their products arrived. Fortunately, I was clueless enough, and probably too skinny to generate the same desires. I believe he was paying me $2.50/hr., but only if I finished a route in the time he expected which was usually 2-3 hours after school. I usually had to hustle to meet the deadline, and had to use my own car (actually my parent's car, my dad made me fill the gas tank for the privilege).

Next job was also deliveries, for Domino's #2 in Ann Arbor. Again, had to hustle so people didn't get their pizzas cold (there were no insulated bags back then). Cold pizza == no tip. At least they provided transportation, for a few months a barely-running VW, then a decrepit old pickup. Neither were any good in the snowy Ann Arbor winters.