Posted on May 15, 2017
What's the most helpful thing you've learned since returning from service? What do you wish you learned sooner?
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I wish I could have stayed in the Army. The civilian world ain't what it's cracked up to be. I well remember the troops dreaming wistfully of life once they returned to "the real world". In those days Phillips Petroleum was an icon of American corporate culture and one of the networks aired a special "White Paper" to extol their virtues. I made viewing it a mandatory event. The men were astounded at how much like the Army Phillips ran their corporation (maybe more so). The white collar workers all wore the same uniform (suits, shirts and ties of acceptable cut and color). Wives were expected to join the appropriate cultural clubs and associations to further their husbands careers. (Yes, this was prior to the feminist movement) Those with regional accents had to learn to speak standard American English and idiom (no parallel in the Army for that one). You can well imagine their reaction. Many other corporations had similar cultures (especially IBM). No, the "real world" really ain't what it's cracked up to be...
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CPT Jack Durish Phillips Petroleum Company was headquartered in my hometown of Bartlesville, OK (well, I lived in the small bedroom community of Dewey, OK, about 4 miles outside Bartlesville). There was a corporate culture in a sense, but there wasn't anything about wives joining clubs or anything, except at the executive ranks. Most people spoke standard American speech and idiom because most employees were from Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, and the surrounding regions. So they all pretty much spoke the same anyway, having been taught standard English in school during the 50s, 60s, and 70s. It never seemed abnormal to me, but maybe just because I lived with it and grew up with it. It sure didn't remind me of the Army culture once I hit BCT at Fort Leonard Wood in April 1973! In fact, today, a high school classmate of mine is married to the CEO of the new Phillips 66. While the company is headquartered in Houston, it maintains a thriving presence in Bartlesville, with a growing number of employees that probably exceeds the number it had back when the company was headquartered there. Many of my friends still work there, or their kids work there now!
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