As a boy, I learned to do “chores.”  They were every day activities that were my responsibility, and they were expected to be completed.  They were considered “my job,” and I was responsible for doing them routinely, without ever having to be reminded to do them.  I was not alone.  The boy at the house down the road from my house, had his chores to do, also, and so did most of the boys I knew.

At the time I was doing the chores, I sometimes wished I didn’t have to do them.  I would have much rather just gone out and played.  In retrospect, I believe doing those chores was some of the best part of my childhood training.  Employers love a “self-starter,” and someone who can discipline himself to get a job done.  Maybe it is my competitive nature, or maybe it’s those chores, but I do not want to settle for mediocrity in anything I do.  I am willing to discipline myself in order to accomplish goals, and it may just be because of the chores.  I don’t know if my dad was that smart, or if he was just trying to find some help in getting needed things done, but I have to take my hat off to him for giving me the chores.