Dad, parents, and lessons learned

As I think back about the influence my parents had on me, particular my father, I'm struck by many of his "motivational"one liners that I still remember. A sampling of a few follow on the page below. While some seem very trite, many are in fact very profound. I hope you enjoy.

On the subject of work ethic…
 "No one ever died from hard work" (appeared close at times)
"if you can't or won't do it, don't offer it up"

On the subject of intellect…
"it's not so bad to be dumb and know it, but it's hell to be dumb and not know it"
"You have to be smarter than the cow" (usually muttered to me after the cow got around me)

On the subject of trust…
"Watch what they do rather than listen to what they say"
"You can tell a lot about a person, by the way they treat their dogs or animals"
"if they can't look in the eye..."(fill in the blank)
"Your word is all you have"

On the subject of money
"You can't ( or shouldn't) spend what you don't have"
"To get ahead ...make more and spend less" (seems obvious unless in government)

On the subject of motivation & style (and other misc topics)...
"you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink… But you can salt the hell out of their oats"
"you can't push a rope"
"Haste makes waste"

I have said many of the same things to my kids...and they rolled their eyes at me the same way I did with my parents; however, I did remember, and am very glad I did.  For those of you who know my dad you will note some literary license and obvious sanitizing!

Your assignment is as follows....thank your parents or mentors if still living, AND keep passing your wisdom along even if met with eye rolls....just because the eyes are rolling does not mean the ears and subconscious mind are malfunctioning! 😉