I'm an engineer working side by side in a field dominated by craftsmen. I respect them as professionals in their field but some of them don't see it that way and feel the need to regale me with feats of professional strength. I can't tell you the number of unremarkable men who have claimed a past of wildly successful business surrounded by  celebrities that they abandoned for manual labor. However the ones who are truly good at what they do tend to talk about their daughter's graduation or ask questions about my life.