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Hit 20 years with the same company last week and still can't believe it

I started trimming trees back in 2004 for a small local outfit, figured I'd do it a year or two until something better came along. Twenty years later I'm still there, now running my own crew and watching kids I hired fresh out of high school become foremen themselves. What got me was my boss pulled out my original W2 form and showed me I made $11,000 my first full year. That number just hit me different. Has anyone else stuck around somewhere way longer than you ever planned, and what changed besides the paycheck?
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3 Comments
kevin_dixon
What made you stick through those first few tough years?
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sean_johnson16
Man, you actually went through all that without quitting?
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danielhenderson
danielhenderson14d agoMost Upvoted
That "what made you stick through those first few tough years" question hits home because I've noticed a weird pattern where the jobs or relationships that suck the hardest at the start are the ones that end up meaning the most down the road. It's like that initial struggle forces you to build real grit and figure out if you actually care about the work or the people, not just the easy paycheck. Once you survive the rough patch and see things start clicking, leaving feels like abandoning something you helped build with your own hands.
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