Mike Rowe

“The skills gap is a reflection of what we value.”

“Every bad joke, every endorsement deal, all of the things that a typical host would normally get creamed for, people don't mind, because they know I don't cheat when it comes to the work I actually try. I'm a lab rat. I'm a perpetual apprentice. The joke is on me if there is one.”

“Work ethic is important because, unlike intelligence, athleticism, charisma, or any other natural attribute, it's a choice.”

“'Dirty Jobs' is a fun, simple little show with huge themes under it. For me, it's penance, it's redemption, it's a sweaty mess.”

“It really wasn't until I was 15 or 16 years old that I realized that the church was always there; it was always a part of what we were doing, even if it wasn't at the center of everything we did.”

“Dirt used to be a badge of honor. Dirt used to look like work. But we've scrubbed the dirt off the face of work, and consequently we've created this suspicion of anything that's too dirty.”

“I wouldn't wish any specific thing for any specific person - it's none of my business. But the idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane. It's insane.”

“At the risk of being glib, I would say if you really want to make America great again, you have to make work cool again.”

“What you do, who you're with, and how you feel about the world around you is completely up to you.”

“For me, what's the old expression, 'Comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable,' that's really what religion is good at when it is done right. And the truth is, so is television.”

“Stop looking for the 'right' career, and start looking for a job. Any job. Forget about what you like. Focus on what's available. Get yourself hired. Show up early. Stay late. Volunteer for the scut work. Become indispensable. You can always quit later, and be no worse off than you are today.”

“The one thing that TV is bad at doing is preaching. There are two extremes, you either turn the people into a punchline or turn them into hero, and both of those things suck, because most people are neither in real life.”

“I'm looking forward to the future, and feeling grateful for the past.”

“'Bloody do-gooders' is my expression for people who are nicer than me, who are better than me.”

“We don't need American Idols. We need American icons. Icons of work.”

“To me, we're living in a non-linear world... But the truth is we are linear creatures. Everything unfolds one after the next. And that's the thing we've become disconnected from.”

“I'm not disinterested in the rest of the world, but studies show the rest of the world is really freaking far away.”

“I'm from Baltimore.”

“One of the things that continually surprised people with the kind of shows I do, is that we try and find people who aren't doing jobs that are traditionally aspirational but who have nevertheless prospered and found real contentment doing it.”

“There's a belief... in the country that we can cure unemployment by creating opportunity. The skills gap proves that opportunity along is not enough to get people employed.”