My First Job

I grew up on a tractor but not on a farm. My dad was a golf professional. My first job was helping weekly to clean and maintain our fleet of golf carts. I was eight. It took most of the day and was hard work. I had to check the multiple battery cells in each cart to ensure they had enough water. It was an important job and from an early age I knew I couldn’t shirk my responsibility, or the golf carts may not work. In addition to weekly washing and maintaining the carts, I would sweep the cart shed where they were stored. This job was only finished when my dad checked the work. I used to dread asking him to check it out, because I knew if it wasn’t perfect I’d be at it again. He was not inclined to tolerate whining or excuses. With him there were no shortcuts; a job wasn’t done until it was done right.

Another job I did on the golf course was picking up the golf balls on the driving range. We did this with an old Oliver 69 tractor. Before we picked up the balls, I would have to walk the entire perimeter of the driving range with a golf club and hit the striped golf balls pack to the center of the field. So the tractor could get them all. Before I was big enough to drive the tractor, I would stand on the back of the tractor watching the ground to see if the tractor missed a ball. When it would, I would hop off and use my golf club to hit the stray ball back to where the tractor had not yet been. Then I'd run and hop back on the tractor. It was kind of fun to be honest. Getting up at 5:30 a.m. to get the carts ready for a tournament, not fun.

In hindsight, it was a real benefit to me to learn to work when I was so young. I learned valuable life skills like showing up, being reliable, working with others, and working until a job is done and done right. By the time I was fourteen, I had already had a job for six years and knew how to work. I never had a hard time working for anyone after I worked for my dad. Those life lessons paid way more dividends than the small wage I earned. I know how fortunate I am as an adult to not only have a job but to love the job I have. I am grateful I don't have to check golf cart batteries or get up at 5:30 anymore; I’m especially grateful I know how to work.