The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1906-02-17
BUILDING A CAREER

While it is true that distinction is
sometimes thrust upon one, the sur
est way to attain either fame or for
tune is to work for it. There are
men who have found easier routes,
but, as they are exceptions to the
rule, their experiences are not safe
guides for the average man to follow.
To be on the safe side he should make
up his mind that he will be compell-
ed to work for everything he is to
have. Moreover, he must be inspir-
ed with the determination to work
for it properly.
To accomplish this feat two or
three things are necessary. Of these
the nost important point is that he
must be willing to begin at the bot
tom. To do anything we'll it is ne
cessary that one should know how to
do il. In this respect at least the
learning of trade is like mastering
the art of house building. To con-
struct house properly one cannot
begin at the roof or even at the Sec
ond or third story. The first point
that must be considered is the laying
of the foundation, and upon the ma
ture of this foundation depends the
character of the structure that is
placed upon it.
To master an art, a trade or busi-
ness. therefore, the pupil must put
himself in a thoroughly receptive con-
dition. He must be ignorant, just as
child is ignorant, for he has yet to
master the A. B. C's of his profess
sion. In other words, before he can
hope to be somebody he must be
willing to be an absolute nobody, a
seeker after information at the bot
tom of the ladder
Afterward his ascent of the ladder
depends largely upon his own efforts.
If he is quick at the labor of master
ing details the period of his nonentity
WILL be correspondingly brief, for it
is in mans capacity to absorb such
details that his right to progress as
serts itself. The success of struc-
ture is largely due to the attention
which is given to details which in
themselves may seem unimportant.
Mans success in life just as largely
depends upon his appreciation of the
little details upon which even the
largest venture is dependent
AS one climbs, of course the hori-
zon widens to view and opportunities
present themselves that are undream-
ed of solong as one remains on the
lower rungs of the ladder To COM
prehend their possibilities, however,
one must be capable of appreciating
such perspective. In this respect
experience is just as important fac
tor as genius. Genius is the intui-
tive ability to grasp possibility, but
experience is necessary to that condi-
ton Of perfect appreciation without
which any great achievement is i'm
possible. To the perfect completion
of any great attainment, therefore,
the words of one and two syllables
which one learns at the bottom of the
ladder are just as important, looked
at from comparative point of view,
as are the intricate distinctions be-
tween harmony and discord which
one cannot comprehend until he has
climbed to one of the higher rungs.
The foundation stones may be of
rougher material and of less artistic
conception than the gargoyles that
beautify the top of the structure, but
if the rough hewn foundations are
not laid securely even the most artis-
tic of gargoyles will not save the
building from the disaster that is in
evitable.
1t is the same way with man s ca
reer. If he is willing to begin at the
bottom, where, as mere nobody, he
may take his first lesson in the art of
climbing, there is nothing, unless it
be his own lack Of industry, that need
prevent him from finally attaining
position where he will be very much
/ a somebody. Graham Hood.