Good manners still count in business today

Our parents drilled into our heads that saying “please” and “thank you” were not only part of everyday life, but were essential to operating a successful business. They are the basic ingredients of “Good Manners.”

For more than 30 years, our family owned and operated the garbage collection business for Walkerville, a small incorporated Montana city north of Butte. It was part-time operation, which required about 8 hours a week.

In the early 1950s, our family posted a $100 bond and took it over. Previous owners thought it was too small to be profitable given the start-up costs. There were only...