Grubbing for Money is Now Cool

By Will Brackenbury on May 30, 2012

My new summer job is the manager of a pool, which is owned by the country club next door. On my first day there, I realized that there was a massive amount of work, but I just got straight to it. What was more impressive was when the owners of the country club came from next door, and started helping me by ripping out lockers, repainting floors, and cleaning out the bathrooms. The pool had been closed for a year, and so it was in poor condition, but it didn’t matter to these people: they came in, and they just did the work.

I think we can take a lesson from these guys. They may own a country club, manage another tennis club, and wear polos and khaki shorts, but they aren’t afraid to get down and do the dirty work. Essentially, they were willing to do whatever it took to get the pool up and running efficiently for their members.

 

They looked nicer than this guy. {Image by Shawn Allen on flickr.com}

Every day I come in to the pool, I may check water chemistry and get my tan in the lifeguard chair, but, in the end, I still clean bathrooms and wipe bird droppings off the deck. I may have other employees who might be able to do it for me, but I’ll often do it myself just to make sure it’s done right.

In life, the more responsibility you take on, the higher you get paid. But, even once you’re at the top, your job is still to make sure that the task gets done, and that it gets done well. You may hire scores of people to work under you who you trust to get the task done, but, in the end, if someone can’t come in to work one day, you’ll be the one taking their place if no one else can: because that’s your job.

 

Dirty work--of or related to dirt. {Image by RJL20 on flickr.com}

In the end, it all comes down to doing the dirty work. So don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty to earn the extra dollars.

 

“Even the highest king is obliged to sit upon his own arse”

 

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