House Painters and Prozac

HPMD Quotes & Sources

"I have a friend who's a house painter. He doesn't gulp down Mylanta. He doesn't pop Prozac. And he doesn't have a future, at least not by my dad's standards.
My dad worked for one outfit, Baltimore Gas & Electric Co., for 41 years. He was pretty sure, from one year to the next (from one decade to the next), what door on Lexington Street he'd enter at 8:30 a.m. any given Monday through Friday, Despite the job security, the work gave him an occasional first-class bellyache. "

. . .

" I believe traditional job security is gone, and not just in my Silicon Valley environs. I believe, along with British management guru Charles Handy, that a 'career' tomorrow will most likely consist of a dozen jobs, on and off payrolls of large and small firms, in two or three industries.
And I believe that people can cope with these changes. Millions, like my friend, already are. "

. . .

"My life, my house painter friend's life, the life of any independent contractor looms as a positively unnerving prospect to [my Dad]. As a nation, we ought to do a lot more to help that fellow and his several hundred thousand dislocated -- discarded? -- kin."

. . .

"Real stability is my house painter friend's fabulous reputation. Truth is (I'm not kidding), I envy him. Not only does he get to work outdoors much of the time, but I think he's got a more secure future than I do: He seems able to keep on top of his game more readily than I can.
Want to avoid Mylanta and Prozac? Quit your job at General Electric and learn to paint houses in a way that delights two lifetimes worth of prospective clients."

Short Quote:

"I believe traditional job security is gone, and not just in my Silicon Valley environs. I believe, along with British management guru Charles Handy, that a 'career' tomorrow will most likely consist of a dozen jobs, on and off payrolls of large and small firms, in two or three industries." --Tom Peters

Author:	Peters, Tom
Title:	House Painters and Prozac
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Publication Date:	8/12/94
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Quote Number:	24
Categories:	Jobs, Personal