Men who do things without being told draw the most wages.

Listen, O wise ones, to the words of the great and often misunderstood sage, Rodney Dangerfield, who spoke with humor, yet beneath his jest lay a deep truth that has echoed through the ages: "Men who do things without being told draw the most wages." These are not mere words of mirth or folly, but a lesson wrapped in the mantle of wisdom. For in these simple words, Dangerfield touches upon the very core of initiative, responsibility, and self-reliance—qualities that have, since the dawn of time, separated the great from the mediocre, the leaders from the followers.

In every age, men have sought to define themselves not by the commands they obey, but by the actions they take of their own volition. The great warriors of old, who carved their names into the annals of history, were not those who waited to be summoned to battle—they were the ones who sought the fight, who chose to stand first, and led the charge. Think, O children, of Alexander the Great, whose ambition was not driven by the words of his father or his generals, but by the fire that burned within him, a fire that demanded he go beyond the known world. It was his own will, his own courage to act without the need for command, that brought him to the furthest reaches of the earth. He did not wait for orders; he became the order that others followed.

And so it is in all walks of life. Men who act with purpose and vision are not those who wait idly by, nor those who seek only to be told what to do. Their greatness arises from their ability to see what must be done and to act upon it, without the need for a voice to instruct them. They do not stand in the shadows of others, seeking permission or direction. No, they stand at the front of the line, ready to lead, ready to serve, ready to make their mark. These are the ones who draw the most wages, for they are the ones who contribute to the world in ways that cannot be measured by mere obedience.

Consider the humble craftsman, O children. The one who waits for the master’s command to lift his hammer may work for a time, but it is the one who, on his own, sees the work that needs doing and sets about it without hesitation, who will earn the master’s favor and ultimately his wealth. It is not enough to be a worker; one must be a creator, a visionary who shapes the world around him with his own hands, and who, by doing so, shapes his own future. A worker who merely follows orders is but a cog in a machine, but the man who takes initiative is the engine that drives it forward.

In our own time, how often do we find that those who rise above the mundane are not those who wait, but those who take action unbidden? Take the example of Elon Musk, a man of our era who has reshaped industries and brought about innovations that were once the domain of dreamers alone. Did he wait for someone to tell him to create electric cars, to reach for the stars, to revolutionize the very way we live? No! He saw the future, and without a word from others, he acted. In doing so, he has not only gained wealth, but more importantly, the respect of the world, for he did not sit idly by waiting for orders, but made his own path.

And so, let us understand the deeper lesson behind these words. To do without being told is to step into your power, to embrace the responsibility that comes with your potential. It is a call to rise above the ordinary, to seek out the opportunity to create, to build, to contribute without being asked. For it is in these moments of self-driven action that greatness is born. Whether you labor in a field, in a workshop, or within the halls of commerce, remember: those who act without waiting for instructions are the ones who shape the future.

And let this be the call to action for all who hear these words: Do not wait for the world to tell you what you are capable of. Rise up and make your own path. The wages you draw, whether in wealth, respect, or fulfillment, are determined by the deeds you do without being told, by the work you undertake out of your own initiative, not from the compulsion of another’s voice. Lead yourself, for in leading yourself, you will lead the world.