Dad started working as soon as he dropped out of school when he was around fourteen. While going door to door as a salesperson he discovered that people liked his personality and that began to give him increasing confidence in himself.
Early on Dad learned to work very hard and for himself.
I would hear those who worked for others say about him that “everyone that runs their own business works much harder”. He started at 5:30 AM and his day did not end until 9:00 PM or later.
Early on he worked on Saturdays.
He would come home with his ear still ringing from all the number of phone calls he had answered and yet he insisted on having a small antique table with a telephone on it where he ate his meals with us and would answer phone calls during most all of his meals.
One of his favorite Italian proverbs was: “(Hard) Work makes a man noble”.