Early Lessons on the Job Site

The Book of Ron · 4 of 48 · 2 minute read

Early in life, I was probably nine, ten, or eleven years old. By then, it was obvious that I had a job, especially my older brother and I. For some reason, we bore the brunt of Dad's work ethic, his frustration, his anger. My job was to go on the job site with my father. If his nail apron needed nails, they had to be placed in the nail apron, all pointing in the same direction. If the chalk line was low on chalk, it had to be filled. If a utility knife blade was dull, it had to be changed. If a cord needed moved, it had to be moved. If a floor needed swept, a mark needed to be done, a piece of lumber moved, a ladder moved, a flashlight held in the right direction—anything he had to ask for meant that I potentially would feel the wrath of his anger. I quickly learned to pay attention.

This started as long as I could remember, seven or eight, nine or ten years old. I can remember being on the job site with my father. His boss recognized the diligence I had, and productivity increased dramatically when I was there. It was a six- or seven-man crew. Individually, a couple guys would walk to the nail box, get nails, smoke a cigarette, chit-chat, etc. When I was on the job site, they stayed up on the wall hanging rafters. I brought nails to them, facing the same direction. I got their chalk lines and filled them. I sharpened their pencils. I made sure everything that would stop them from production, I did. Dad's boss recognized that and rewarded Dad or compensated him for my being there.

I quickly learned throughout life to just pay attention. It was a way to avoid being abused. It was a way to earn respect from those around you. And at the job site with the other guys, I never faced the harshness that I did when Dad was by himself. I think Dad saw in me the ability to proudly serve the entire crew and increase productivity. And again, the compensation did not hurt anything.