By: Richard Block

From a very early age, working was a given. It was simply what you did. In reflecting on these early experiences and contrasting them with the lives of my children and grandchildren, I see a significant divide. The loss isn’t just in the paycheck; it is in the “patterns of behavior” that only develop when a young person is forced to confront intensity.

I’ve realized that these jobs did something more than teach me skills…they removed the damaging power of fear. Because I had already faced the “worst” of manual labor and high-pressure environments, I was able to function at a higher level in later life. When intense situations arose, the anxiety that paralyzes others simply wasn’t present.

The Patterns of Performance

• Systems Thinking (The Paper Route): I learned that a moment of calm preparation prevents hours of frantic, low-quality effort. By rubber-banding my papers before I started, I cut my delivery time in half.

• The Courage to Pivot (Sorting Eggs): Clearing “crap” off a conveyor belt taught me the visceral feeling of being in the wrong place. This gave me the courage to jump out of the window—literally—and walk away from situations that offered no growth.

• The Power of Staying (The Dairy Farm): When 17 out of 20 coworkers quit a grueling 3:30 AM milking job, I stayed. I learned that intensity is temporary, and there is a quiet, powerful authority that comes to those who refuse to quit.

• Negotiating for Value (The Hot Dog Ring): I refused to play football without a scholarship. I held my ground and negotiated a “Presidential Honor Grant” and a hot dog concession. That concession paid for my wife Freya’s wedding ring—we still call it “The Hot Dog Ring.”

Conclusion: The Absence of Fear

Looking back in my 80s, the most valuable product of these jobs wasn’t the money. It was the psychological foundation. By the time I reached the intense stages of my professional career, I was operating with a distinct advantage: a damaging amount of fear simply was not present. When you have already hand-milked cows in the dark or stood on a derrick in a Texas oil field, you don’t panic when the stakes get high. You simply function. These early jobs didn’t just teach me how to work; they taught me how to be calm when the world is in a rush.

Author Bio

Richard Block is a Senior Advisor at Potomac International Partners. With a career spanning over six decades, Richard has navigated the complexities of business and leadership by applying the grit and resilience he forged in the oil fields and farms of his youth. He continues to consult and mentor, focusing on high-level performance and the development of the next generation of leaders.