People who earn our respect.

In my line(s) of work I am fortunate to meet a wide variety of people. Most of them good, others well... I would rather forget I ever met them, except that they painted a clear picture of what I don't want to be like. I have to say a small thank you for that.
One thing that almost all of them have in common is money, lets face it their outings are not cheap. Some of them are wealthy, others are good at saving and going after what they want, none of them are poor.
One thing that generally separates them first, is how they came about their money. Many of them simply inherited money. Others inherited some money, but then made their own out of what they got handed to them. The last are self made men, who acquired all they have from good fortune, hard work, and risk. Not necessarily in that order.
I would like to tell you that most of the time the self made men are the most respectable. Not the case at all. Life is full of surprises, and sometimes they turn out to be good surprises. I am generally surprised when people who inherit their wealth turn out to be very kind and respectful, especially when they are from back east, or California. (Lets face it, they think differently than we do.)
Lately I have been surprised a lot. Most wealthy "trust-funders" treat me like a servant and use only manners for public display. They feel entitled to everything, and are rarely genuine. This past year I have had the privilege to meet a lot of "trust-funders" that are very genuine and polite, some who even help out. It has been a real breath of fresh air.
I have also had my fill of self made people who are so full of their own shit that it seeps from every orifice. I respect that they made themselves what they are, but they need a dose of reality to remember that they are just people. I am very honest and open with people like this, some of them appreciate my outlook on life, and others are offended. I remind them that money has very little influence on me. My pride goes beyond pushing and shoving.
I met one man in particular last year who immediately earned my respect with a hand-shake and a smile. Sometimes you can tell an awful lot about someone by your first impression. His name was Bryce and he had the look of a man with a lot of money, but a very strong grip and a kind eye.
Bryce is a fit man in his sixties. He was born and raised in an Indian village in utmost North Sasketchewan. His father was a "bush pilot" who learned to fly in WWII. Bryce was raised in very humble means with a sister. He grew up fighting with the natives almost every day of his life. When he refused to fight with them, they threatened to hurt his sister. Anyone who knows what it is like to have your butt kicked can only imagine a tiny glimpse of what he went through. Daily.
School was the only thing that mattered where he grew up, he said there was no such thing as sports, or electives like music. He earned a scholarship to Purdue, where he went on to study Nuclear engineering. When he finished his undergrad he moved to texas to pursue a doctorate in his early twenties.
To pay for his schooling, he began working for a man who painted parking lots. He soon started his own business painting parking lots. Next he began painting streets in subdivisions, and later started painting Hi-ways.
He quit pursuing his doctorate once his business really took off. After years of hard work he built a business that painted 70% of America's Hi-ways. Now they have 80% of the world market!!!!!!!!!
They have factories in nearly every country that produces the paint, as well as reflector posts and signs. Bryce built a Multi-billion dollar business from scratch. It took knowlege, luck, grit, risk, and most of all sacrifice. He worked everyday except christmas and half of thanksgiving for almost his whole life. He missed out on a lot of his family and their lives. I could see pain in his eyes and obvious regret when he talked about what he gave up.
Bryce never once told me about this on his own, it was on the third day of the trip before I knew anything about what he did for a living. He never acted like he had money, but to one who knows it is easy to tell. He was truly a prince of a man. Very grateful and polite, charming and respectful. He never complained, even though it poured rain for four straight days and the fishing stunk.
What I admired most about Bryce was not his money. It is easy to say that you want money like that, but very few are willing to make the sacrifices it takes to get it. I don't have it in me, quality of life is worth more than billions to me.
I admired how honest and respectful Bryce was. He was what I like to call a "real" person. He didn't let the money change who he was, and how he treated people. He had a ton of knowlege, and real ability. He was the kind of man you would go to when you needed advice or help. That wouldn't change even if he didn't have wealth.
I still don't know what I want to do when I grow up. I do however know what kind of Man I want to be. I want to be the kind of man people call when they need help, because they know that they can rely on you, and you will be there for them. I want to be the kind of guy that will find a way, even if I'm not sure. I want to be the kind of man who backs down to no one, and is honest to a fault. I also want to be the man who gives his whole life to his family and friends, afterall money is not the only wealth.