Anyoe get along well with degree holders AND blue collars?

[Leigh 87]

Do many people here have plenty of white and blue collar friends?

 

 

................I literally get along well with college degree holders AND blue collar workers. I do not speak differently ( in real life!) to people who have college degrees, I grew up in a family of degree holders, yet when I was in my teens I become accustomed to people who were blue collar.

I get along well with people with college ( or Uni ) degrees. We talk with the same vobabulary, and I can hold my own with them and they are interested in me.

I can also get along well with blue collar workers. Growing up, I was only around university educated people, and was more inclined that way, in terms of my social circle.

 

When I was 17 I started smoking pot, got a little dumb, and had a boyfriend who was not ambitious and was a chronic pot smoker. He was not into studying or reading at all; the only connection we had was when I was stoned.

I can be lazy and stupid when I am doing nothing worthwhile with my life; when I am not learning, or even interested in learning new things, and establishing a worthwhile career.

I can see why I get along with people with no education. I am of average intelligent and am well above socially ( I am very adept at getting along well with a varity of people)

 

...........Now, since I have gone back to school, and did well, and am on my way to a respectable career path, I find that I get along very well with both college educated people AND blue collar workers.

People on here, at least SOME of them, talk about how they have college degrees, and notice something different about people who DON'T: about blue colar workers, and their inability to really hold their own and be captivating and that interesting to these " degree holders".

 

I understand that people who have been more highly educated have a very differnet vocabulary to those who have left school earlier and picked a trade.

Yet, I adjust my vobabulary to the two types of people.

It really was a learning curve for me - to grow up around primarily degree holders, and then go on to date and mingle with blue collar workers.

I just find I get along equally well with BOTH types of people.

 

Are there many people like me, who have mixed friends, some with college degrees, and others who are not into studying or reading?

I love reading, where as my boyfriend HATES it, yet loves learning new things in other ways.

[darkmoon]

it's possible, i do it, talk to everybody, crosses my mind here that i'd be a stuck-up so-and-so if i didn't

[Arabella]

I don't see why this is difficult for anyone, honestly. I'm a college educated, professional woman, and yet one of my closest friends is a blue-collar worker (who is currently working on getting a college degree also). We get along famously.

 

My ex-husband went to college, but dropped out before completion. One significant reason why our relationship ended was because of his lack of ambition and shared interests. He was content with working two part-time jobs for the rest of his life... I did not want that life for us.

 

I have personally been called arrogant when I asked a plumber if he had read a certain book when we were having a conversation about the movie it sprung. I never meant to imply anything, and yet he responded defensively with "Some of us actually work for a living and don't have that kinda time to waste reading". I was speechless.

 

I think that some of the tension perceived between both groups come from stereotyping each other. Many blue-collar workers think college-educated people are stuck-up and resent their (often) higher social status their careers afford them. Likewise, degree holders often view blue collar workers as uninteresting and feel like they resent them (which is often true).

 

Of course, this is very much not always the case, but the perception that it might be often causes some hesitance when dealing with each other.

 

 

-A

[StrangeBehaviors]

In contact with all demographics weekly.

 

In my opinion, some of the dumbest people I come in contact with are individuals with 4 year degrees.

 

Some of the most intelligent people I have been in contact with have education no higher than Community College.

 

Based on experience, the weight that society has placed on a person's intelligence because they have degree(s) is incorrect to assume.

 

In short, each person is different, and the "education" received and applied is different. The fact they have a piece of paper from any place doesn't hold much impress much upon me.

[turnera]

The only people I wouldn't have anything in common with are those who won't work and expect the government or family to support them. Tons of blue collar jobs pay far more than mine; work is just a choice.

[carhill]

My social circle is a mix, which is common for my age group. TBH, the subject of education rarely comes up. That said, only a few hold advanced degrees, generally in business or medicine, so perhaps aren't representative of what you're describing as white collar. I grew up in a white collar family and have owned a blue collar business since a young age, dropping out of university to pursue my love of building things, so I'd say, historically, I've spent more time with blue collar people in the course of daily life. People are people. Everyone's different. My exW often described me as 'blue collar hands with a white collar mind'. Mixed bag. That's about it.

[Leigh 87]

I don't see why this is difficult for anyone, honestly. I'm a college educated, professional woman, and yet one of my closest friends is a blue-collar worker (who is currently working on getting a college degree also). We get along famously.

 

My ex-husband went to college, but dropped out before completion. One significant reason why our relationship ended was because of his lack of ambition and shared interests. He was content with working two part-time jobs for the rest of his life... I did not want that life for us.

 

I have personally been called arrogant when I asked a plumber if he had read a certain book when we were having a conversation about the movie it sprung. I never meant to imply anything, and yet he responded defensively with "Some of us actually work for a living and don't have that kinda time to waste reading". I was speechless.

 

I think that some of the tension perceived between both groups come from stereotyping each other. Many blue-collar workers think college-educated people are stuck-up and resent their (often) higher social status their careers afford them. Likewise, degree holders often view blue collar workers as uninteresting and feel like they resent them (which is often true).

 

Of course, this is very much not always the case, but the perception that it might be often causes some hesitance when dealing with each other.

 

 

-A

 

 

Wow that plumber sounds like an idiot..... I cannot believe he retorted with that, when you simply said " I read that book"........... .. I am sort of blown away buy such..... people:sick: I have EVER encounterd that!

Same goes for degree holder who assume they are more interesting and more ambitious than me.

 

............I want to be a personaltrainer ( I am actively getting intot he industry now) and also a travel agent, who travels a lot, and my end goal is to be a tour guide in South America. I love learning languages and have immersed myself in that lately, more than int he past.

I read a lot, work out five days a week at the gym, and like to come online to boraden my horizons by talking with a bunch of people from all walks of life, and at various levels of education.

I consider myself a lovely person, and i do not think I have any" less" going for me, than a degree holder.

I will earn the same or only a little less, and still be able to travel and have a nice life for myself, if I save and work hard!

 

I read, I watch the news, it is not like I have NO common ground to degree holders..... I fact, I hang out with them and they enjoy my company:eek:

............... I really like having a mixture of both types of characters. I am not very highly educated but am as intelligent as the basic bachelor degree holder, in terms of my critical thinking and vocab.

I am not too smart for blue collars, or too dumb for degree holders! Haha.

[Leigh 87]

My social circle is a mix, which is common for my age group. TBH, the subject of education rarely comes up. That said, only a few hold advanced degrees, generally in business or medicine, so perhaps aren't representative of what you're describing as white collar. I grew up in a white collar family and have owned a blue collar business since a young age, dropping out of university to pursue my love of building things, so I'd say, historically, I've spent more time with blue collar people in the course of daily life. People are people. Everyone's different. My exW often described me as 'blue collar hands with a white collar mind'. Mixed bag. That's about it.

 

 

 

Wow that is really great, about having a white collar mind, with blue collar hands!

I guess most people tend to be good in one area!

 

I think it reads as: blue collars are GENERALLY more adept at fixing problems in the house, garden, or car..... on average they read less and have a lower level of grammar and vocab than white collar folkes.

 

I am not sure how rare it is, for a blue collar to also love reading and studying? I love reading and studying and get along with blue collars.

[Silly_Girl]

I'm from the UK and have never ever heard anyone speak in such terms or define people so clearly.

 

I work with, and socialise with, people from all backgrounds from non-working parents, to people in between jobs, to academics with many degrees, to educated multi-millionaires and entirely UN-educated multi-millionaires.

 

And I can't specifically think of anyone I know who would say 'I can mix with As but not with Bs...'.

 

This has left me so intrigued. It's a whole concept or school of thought that I have never come across.

[SpiralOut]

What do you mean when you say that you adjust your vocabulary according to who you're speaking to? I've never heard of that before. Aren't you worried that they'll see what you're doing and feel patronized?

[Leigh 87]

I'm from the UK and have never ever heard anyone speak in such terms or define people so clearly.

 

I work with, and socialise with, people from all backgrounds from non-working parents, to people in between jobs, to academics with many degrees, to educated multi-millionaires and entirely UN-educated multi-millionaires.

 

And I can't specifically think of anyone I know who would say 'I can mix with As but not with Bs...'.

 

This has left me so intrigued. It's a whole concept or school of thought that I have never come across.

 

 

 

 

 

My thread is based on a few people on here, who cite that their dating prospects MUST have degrees.

 

They act like people without degrees are mostly different types of people; they talk differently, and have less ambition.

[Leigh 87]

What do you mean when you say that you adjust your vocabulary according to who you're speaking to? I've never heard of that before. Aren't you worried that they'll see what you're doing and feel patronized?

 

 

 

What I mean is, although I get along equally with white and blue collar types, I do change the way I talk to suit the culture and types of vocabulary that is demonstrated by each types of characters.

 

My boyfriend and his mates use more basic words, and use a lot of slang and talk in a way that highly educated people who have a good handle on grammar, would NOT speak like.

 

That said, I do NOT think the fact they talk differently means they ARE DUMB. Or less clever than degree holder, white collar, academic types.But there ARE blue collar workers, in some areas of Australia ( where I live), that talk significantly differently to white collar folkes who pay more attention to the official grammar rules.

[123321]

I do, in fact I'm one of the first and the few in my family to be white collar.

[Leigh 87]

I do, in fact I'm one of the first and the few in my family to be white collar.

 

 

And I am the first person on my mothers side who is a BLUE collar! You know - I am about to become a travel agent and personal trainer within a year or less.

I just consider travelling and being a tour guide in some far flung country to be my dream ( Africa or South America), so I am following it.

 

People in my family, like my adult cousins who have finance degrees, still talk to me and get along with me just fine - but I can tell they think less of my career path. That it is beneath them:sick:

On the other hand, my aunts and uncles all think I am clever though and do not think I speak or act any different to me cousins. They knew me growing up to be a intelligent and bright child. Although some of them probably would think less of my NON degree career path.

 

I would rather earn less and earn a living doing what I enjoy, than getting a degree for a job I am less passionate about.

I really believe that learning can take place in a myriad of differnt forms; eve this website is educational ( your learning about what a varity of people from all walks of life think! Of course, it is not indivative or society as a whole)

 

 

 

 

 

....I think it comes down to the fact that some college educated people do not see eye to eye with blue collar workers who use a lot of slang and sound uneducated; when really, those people can have interesting hobbies and interests. They probably do not read as much, hence their vocabulary, but they would learn things in other ways.

[Leigh 87]

I am aware there are plumbers and tradesmen who do read a lot and are well educated! I. am talking about the sterotype in the area I live in - the tradesmen, a lot of them do not have a good vocabulary ( not that my grammar or vocab are a sign of higher education either!)

 

I am refering to the fact that many people with degrees, had to write a lot of essays, where as people who did not focus in school are more often tradesmen tha university graduates who read extensively.

I guess the stero types put off the white collar workers, when really, a lot of tradesmen and blue bollar guys are really wonderful and bright people.

 

I want to meet more blue collar workers, as I only know A FEW stero types, and while I have heard of very educated firemen, I have yet to meet them personally, as I do not have a very large social circle where I live now...

[Silly_Girl]

And I am the first person on my mothers side who is a BLUE collar! You know - I am about to become a travel agent and personal trainer within a year or less.

I just consider travelling and being a tour guide in some far flung country to be my dream ( Africa or South America), so I am following it.

 

People in my family, like my adult cousins who have finance degrees, still talk to me and get along with me just fine - but I can tell they think less of my career path. That it is beneath them:sick:

On the other hand, my aunts and uncles all think I am clever though and do not think I speak or act any different to me cousins. They knew me growing up to be a intelligent and bright child. Although some of them probably would think less of my NON degree career path.

 

I would rather earn less and earn a living doing what I enjoy, than getting a degree for a job I am less passionate about.

I really believe that learning can take place in a myriad of differnt forms; eve this website is educational ( your learning about what a varity of people from all walks of life think! Of course, it is not indivative or society as a whole)

 

 

 

 

 

....I think it comes down to the fact that some college educated people do not see eye to eye with blue collar workers who use a lot of slang and sound uneducated; when really, those people can have interesting hobbies and interests. They probably do not read as much, hence their vocabulary, but they would learn things in other ways.

 

Leigh, this thread suggests people DON'T have an issue with mixing with all types and backgrounds. It seems as though you're struggling with people's reactions to you.

[SpiralOut]

My thread is based on a few people on here, who cite that their dating prospects MUST have degrees.

 

They act like people without degrees are mostly different types of people; they talk differently, and have less ambition.

 

I understand being annoyed by stereotypes but so far in this thread you're the only one to actually say that people without degrees talk differently. Nobody responding has said anything judgemental.

 

 

People in my family, like my adult cousins who have finance degrees, still talk to me and get along with me just fine - but I can tell they think less of my career path. That it is beneath them:sick:

On the other hand, my aunts and uncles all think I am clever though and do not think I speak or act any different to me cousins. They knew me growing up to be a intelligent and bright child. Although some of them probably would think less of my NON degree career path.

 

How do you know that they think that?

 

 

 

....I think it comes down to the fact that some college educated people do not see eye to eye with blue collar workers who use a lot of slang and sound uneducated; when really, those people can have interesting hobbies and interests. They probably do not read as much, hence their vocabulary, but they would learn things in other ways.

 

Is this your opinion, or is this what you think other people think? Just want to make sure I'm understanding you properly.

Edited July 26, 2012 by SpiralOut

[2sure]

I ended up what I call "over educated" because I couldnt decide what I wanted to do.

 

With all that, I would say that most of my education or intelligence comes from life experience. Granted...my career path has been a huge part of my life experience and my degrees started me on that path.

 

Here is where I have to admit: Im more clever than "smart" & was never a very good student. Still, I have an excellent career. I hesitate sometimes to tell people much about my academic background...first because it might seem like bragging , and more importantly - I dont want them to expect me to be brilliant. Cuz I aint.

 

Currently I have a contactor and his crew working on my home.

His is a small business...roofing, remodeling, additions.

I have opportunity to speak with every day...and he has been there almost 2 months...That guy, is Brilliant. ( And has real class in my opinion.)

 

But why wouldnt he be? These days he could have a Phd and make out better at Blue Collar labor.

[Els]

I do talk to people without college degrees whenever I have the opportunity, but honestly that doesn't tend to arise much in my social circles. I guess the bf and I mostly socialize in our work/ex-college circles, so those are all people who do have degrees. I don't really see why anyone would make a point of making someone else's education or lack thereof the deciding factor in whether or not they want to talk to them.

[2sure]

[QUOTE=Elswyth;4145636]. I don't really see why anyone would make a point of making someone else's education or lack thereof the deciding factor in whether or not they want to talk to them.

 

Agreed, and now that you mention it...it really doesnt come up.

[carhill]

I am not sure how rare it is, for a blue collar to also love reading and studying?

Reflecting upon historical interactions, I'd say there is commonly a boundary of social discourse and common interest amongst the workers and employees I interface with. Within that boundary, the specifics vary greatly. As an example, my best friend and I can talk for hours (did so yesterday) on a myriad of subjects. He's similar to me, except far more successful, being responsible for and impacting the lives of dozens of employees and their families. He never went to high school, much less college. To exemplify the juxtaposition of 'white collar' and blue collar, we ended up on his roof yesterday morning fixing his air conditioner and, while up in the air 20ft twirling tools, he takes a call on a major business decision for the company, as well as a couple of calls from friends who needed his advice on business deals. All while we're turning wrenches. My role is the 'idea man', using my engineering background for advice and options. Of those callers I knew, all had education and 'degrees' attesting their academic performance and they still came to the guy with the 8th grade education for advice.

 

Wrt reading, I'll list the current books on my coffee table in no order of importance:

 

The cat's house - because my cat was killed recently and I want to better understand how to create a healthy indoor environment for a new cat I may adopt. We're also currently looking at this as a new business venture.

 

Man's search for meaning - reflects my interest in the psychology of men

 

No more mr. nice guy - an attempt to better understand my prior failures with women

 

Forever flying - autobiography one one of my favorite flyers and men, Bob Hoover

 

The Myth of male power - suggested by a LS'er, a book about societal dynamics which I did not read during its heyday

 

Winning - biography of a fellow racer, humanitarian, and actor, Paul Newman.

 

 

I can thank my parents for socializing me without clear demarcations between the 'classes' of people, hence my intrinsic mindset when encountering people is one of peer equality. We're all in this together and none of us gets out alive.

[Mme. Chaucer]

I can't even imagine filtering people due to their education levels or what kinds of jobs they have.

 

On the other hand, I think it's perfectly acceptable for someone to have a preference for a mate with a similar educational background as the one they have themselves.

 

Personally, I have a mass of university education and I am married to a truck driver who dropped out of college. Happily. And my friends are all over the map.

[Leigh 87]

I can't even imagine filtering people due to their education levels or what kinds of jobs they have.

 

On the other hand, I think it's perfectly acceptable for someone to have a preference for a mate with a similar educational background as the one they have themselves.

 

Personally, I have a mass of university education and I am married to a truck driver who dropped out of college. Happily. And my friends are all over the map.

 

 

My bf is a truckdriver. He loves learning, but not in the classroom settling. A few people on here have mentioned that they feel a lot of blue collar workers talk differently. That they would not date one.

 

Hence my thread; after a particular poster on here stated " some tradies and blue collar workers are hot and all, but I would not date one, the way they talk just rubs me the wrong way".

 

I thought " I am sure she realizes there ARE exceptions; that there ARE blue collars who have a decent vocabulary. However, it appears that there are enough blue collars who do NOT talk in a way that is college educated, to make the college educated people DETERMINE between the way they speak, and the way their college educated peers speak.

[Leigh 87]

I understand being annoyed by stereotypes but so far in this thread you're the only one to actually say that people without degrees talk differently. Nobody responding has said anything judgemental.

 

And I am glad for it; I do not like judgmental people. My thread came about after a poster commented that she would not date a blue collar worker, because of the way they talk/what they talk about, and compared it to her ow high level of intelligence. This is a really cool poster! I just observed that she did not consider blue collars as a dating prospect.

 

On the other hand, I date both types of men. My conclusion is; I am not TOO clever, or TOO stupid. I do not have some extremel high IQ or super successful, busy career as yet, therefore I can see eye to eye with each type of person.

 

 

How do you know that they think that?

 

Because they tell me. They have commented over the years that they think I am an intelligent girl. I am actually pretty average but have a few strong points regarding studying, but if I was a total moron I doubt I would be able to interact with them, and speak in much the same way as they do.

 

 

 

Is this your opinion, or is this what you think other people think? Just want to make sure I'm understanding you properly.

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[FONT=Times New Roman][sIZE=3]I think many blue collars would love to read. I also think that afew of them exhibit a way of speaking that is not compatible with whitecollars. Not all of them of course, but enough for some white collars to think “tradesmenand blue collars talk different to us college degree educated folks"[/sIZE][/FONT]

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[SpiralOut]

Well there will always be judgemental people out there. They can be hard to ignore. I find it helpful to remember that their attitude comes from one of their own insecurities; they judge others on their education or whatever to make themselves feel better about something they don't like about themselves or their life.