I grew up on a 40 acre vegetable farm. My sisters and I had to work twice as hard to accomplish the same amount of work that a man could do. Most of our work days started at 8:00 a.m. and easily went to 10:00 p.m. during summer and fall harvests. Daddy paid us $1.00 per hour for certain jobs on the farm and deducted any time used for bathroom breaks or getting water, etc. If we were gone for 20 minutes, he would deduct 30 minutes off of our pay. We learned quickly to watch our time very closely.
Now fast forward to my first job away from the farm. All was going well on that first day until something out of the ordinary happened to me that I had never experienced before. Sometime around mid-morning, everyone in that work area quietly got up from their desks and walked toward one of the exit doors.
I didn't know what to think. I listened carefully for an alarm but could hear nothing. I studied the worker's faces and saw no panicked looks. There didn't seem to be a fire. I was unaware of any meetings that we were supposed to attend but started looking in my desk for my notebook. Maybe I should get prepared to take notes and just follow the rest of the group. Then I noticed that no one was carrying a notepad. WHERE COULD THEY BE GOING?
I finally got up the courage to ask one of the people passing by my desk what was going on. He was an old man that had worked for the company many years. He looked at me in bewilderment and replied, "We are going on our coffee break."
I didn't know what he was talking about. I looked around to see if someone was going to get out their watch and time me. That is the first time I had ever experienced a break that I was actually paid for.
I worked for that company for 2-1/2 years and when I gave my notice they called me almost daily asking me to return. I took nothing for granted. I did the best possible job I could. I tried to be to work early, did not go over my break time, and was always willing to take on new responsibilities. The more I learned, the more I enjoyed my job. I kept getting promoted while others were being laid off.
If you want to be successful at a job, be more concerned about what you are giving than what you are getting.
Now fast forward to my first job away from the farm. All was going well on that first day until something out of the ordinary happened to me that I had never experienced before. Sometime around mid-morning, everyone in that work area quietly got up from their desks and walked toward one of the exit doors.
I didn't know what to think. I listened carefully for an alarm but could hear nothing. I studied the worker's faces and saw no panicked looks. There didn't seem to be a fire. I was unaware of any meetings that we were supposed to attend but started looking in my desk for my notebook. Maybe I should get prepared to take notes and just follow the rest of the group. Then I noticed that no one was carrying a notepad. WHERE COULD THEY BE GOING?
I finally got up the courage to ask one of the people passing by my desk what was going on. He was an old man that had worked for the company many years. He looked at me in bewilderment and replied, "We are going on our coffee break."
I didn't know what he was talking about. I looked around to see if someone was going to get out their watch and time me. That is the first time I had ever experienced a break that I was actually paid for.
I worked for that company for 2-1/2 years and when I gave my notice they called me almost daily asking me to return. I took nothing for granted. I did the best possible job I could. I tried to be to work early, did not go over my break time, and was always willing to take on new responsibilities. The more I learned, the more I enjoyed my job. I kept getting promoted while others were being laid off.
If you want to be successful at a job, be more concerned about what you are giving than what you are getting.
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