Take Pride In Your Work

Everyone has their own definition of blue collar. When I say blue collar some think of early mornings, others think of diesel trucks, and some think of their parents shaming hard work. You heard me right. I see it on the streets. “Do good in school otherwise you’ll end up doing back breaking labor like that guy” they tell their kids walking past a construction site. Or they might ask someone in construction or tree work if they just have a death wish.

Here’s the truth. Few people can or will ever do what you do. No one else wakes up at 4 am and has to defrost their old diesel truck in the morning so they can pull 20 foot trailers. Soccer mom Susie will never understand that. Frankly, I don’t care if she ever does. Bill the lawyer has never driven a vehicle bigger than his Audi or wife’s BMW SUV. Quit trying to impress them.

They will never understand the sense of pride I have when I lace up my heavy ass steel toe boots. They will never feel the excitement I get when I kick the clutch in and turn the key of my 7.3 powerstroke. They will never feel the sense of accomplishment I do when I navigate the tightest of streets pulling big heavy trailers and maneuvering better than anyone else.

So if you listen to these people I have to ask you why? Why bother yourself with such meaningless opinions? There’s stereotypes about being blue collar meaning you’re an uneducated lawless ape. I went to a 4 year accredited private catholic college before I dropped out. Know why? Because I was spending more money per year than what my salary would’ve been in the job I wanted to get at the time. So who’s dumb now? Be true to yourself.

Blue collar people are problem solvers. You have to navigate the impossible every day. Ever seen a guy make carpentry work true when it wasn’t before he got there? Or a tree guy drop a 6 foot wide fur with a spin on it so it goes away from other trees? That’s impossible to anyone else. And we do it every single day. So before you concern yourself with Bob the pencil pusher remember they might be good with numbers or filing paperwork, but if there was an apocalypse how useful would that be? You know what would still be useful if all our technology was gone tomorrow? You. Act like it and take pride in your work. You earn that every single day.