Take Pride in Your Work
It doesn’t seem like much, that statement. Hell seems simple enough to take pride in what you do, no matter what you do. Still, when you look around the world today and the lack of work ethic most people seem to have, well, it’s a different story altogether.
I used to work at Mt Carmel Cemetery in El Paso, Texas. During my three years there, I can recall the attitude towards work most guys had—one guy in particular.
“They don’t pay me enough to care,” he said.
His work was sloppy, half-assed, and he would be rude to those who came to say goodbye to family or friends.
I had another friend who worked at Walmart until he was fired. Even though he showed up late most days, he put in the bare minimum amount of work to get by.
Or look at those who work in the fast-food industry. They want to earn $15.00. Seeing as how they get far too many orders wrong or are just rude to you, I can’t see them ever making more than minimum wage.
It seems that very few people take pride in their work. Far too often, we are left to purchase shoddy products with minimal effort because the workers may not pay enough or don’t care enough.
How many of us remember when we were Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts, and we had to make something. For me, it was making my first pinewood derby car.
I spent almost two weeks of my summer on that car. Designing what it would look like, painting it, getting it ready to run down that track.
When it was finished and I showed it to my family, I was beaming with pride over what I had made. I had a sense of accomplishment. From that moment on, I took pride in everything I did.
Here I am, fifty years old, and I’m still taking pride in my work. I take the time to do the best, no matter what or what I’m getting paid. I want what I make to last, to do its job without fail. If what I’m working on is for someone else, I don’t want them to worry that it will fail them. I want them not to have to worry about quality or performance.
It’s sad that the younger generation only cares about themselves or what they are getting paid to do a job. It disgusts me that we have to be treated rudely simply because we stopped a grocery store employee to ask them where something was.
Parents, I challenge you to teach your kids to take pride in everything they do. Not only will it make them better people by strengthening their self-confidence, but it will also give them the determination to succeed.
Make America Great Again; take pride in your work.