Tag Archives: professional

Are you more professional than my grandfather?

My grandfather was a modern farmer in 1930.  Stubborn too.  The local farm bureau agent came by and said, “The government will pay you to rotate your crops.”  Grandpa replied, “That is the stupidest thing I ever heard.  I already rotate my crops because I can grow more that way.  My land doesn’t get worn out.  It gets renewed.”

Grandpa was stubborn and wouldn’t take the government’s money to do something he knew he should already be doing.  The guys from the conservation bureau had problems with him.  He always implemented the latest ideas without waiting for them to come up with a program to get him to do it.  Crazy old coot?  Well, really he was a visionary farmer.

Do you have to be paid to prepare yourself to earn more money? 

Reading trade magazines and books is the best way to keep current in your field.  College courses in the evening are a great way to build the basics you need for a foundation for growth.  Enthusiasm will get you into seminars and conventions.  Pay for it yourself if you have to.  It is worth it.

Try to be a better professional than my crazy, successful grandfather.

Something to do today

Try it again. The greatest lunch topic you can talk about with your boss is, “What is the emerging world changing technology, technique or skill in our field?”  Try it today.

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