There are those around the country, perhaps even here in North Dakota, who would probably be stunned to read Minot Daily News’ Sept. 14-15 edition story “Off to work we go” (https://www.minotdailynews.com/news/local-news/2019/09/wallethub-study-shows-nd-hardest-working/) which cites a study by WalletHub asserting that our state is the hardest working.

Certainly there are caveats to the study results, since “hardest working” is subjective by definition and an algorithm that takes data from various sources and attempts to come to a scientific conclusion can only be so accurate.

Still, it seems pretty easy to believe.

WalletHub cited plenty of facts: everything from factors such as hours worked, multiple jobs, vacation time left on the table and volunteer hours to employment and idle youth rates, and to a number of indirect considerations.

However, it is more than just statistics and rankings.

The state’s history and legacy of its people can’t be ignored. Consider the challenges faced by early settlers here. Our environment is not one from which it is easy to carve out a state.

Also consider the agriculture heritage of North Dakota. Working the land is hardly easy work so there is no way that kind of ethic hasn’t been ingrained in our culture and passed down from generation to generation. A strong work ethic is among the traits that define us as a people. This is not to say the same isn’t true of other states, but for the sake of WalletHub’s analysis, there were a multitude of different factors considered and the results are completely understandable.

Good for the people of North Dakota.