CEOs value lessons from teen jobs

When he was 18, CEO David Haffner of manufacturer Leggett & Platt worked the graveyard shift at a Hercules explosives plant in Missouri.

Each night, Haffner and two others loaded 200,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate onto a railroad boxcar, one 50-pound bag at a time, hustling to finish early to squeeze in an hour of sleep at 6 a.m. before heading to classes at Missouri Southern State University. Haffner says he developed Popeye forearms making $3.86 an hour in 1971, moving enough explosive each shift to blow up 300 acres in Vietnam.

By Del Jones, USA TODAY

Full Story: http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2008-06-05-summer-jobs-ceos_N.htm