Prev | Current Page 155 | Next

Bok, Edward William, 1863-1930

"A Dutch Boy Fifty Years After"


Bok felt that this constant thought of the wages earned or deserved was
putting the cart before the horse; he had schooled himself into the
belief that if he did his work well, and accomplished more than was
expected of him, the question of wages would take care of itself. But,
according to the talk on every side, it was he who had the cart before
the horse. Bok had not only tried always to fill the particular job
set for him, but had made it a rule at the same time to study the
position just ahead, to see what it was like, what it demanded, and
then, as the opportunity presented itself, do a part of that job in
addition to his own. As a stenographer, he tried always to clear off
the day's work before he closed his desk. This was not always
possible, but he kept it before him as a rule to be followed rather
than violated.
One morning Bok's employer happened to come to the office earlier than
usual, to find the letters he had dictated late in the afternoon before
lying on his desk ready to be signed.
"These are the letters I gave you late yesterday afternoon, are they
not?" asked the employer.


Pages:
143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167