Michael Jordan’s talents were undeniable long before the league. So, his mother landed him a job to keep him level-headed as he continued to become a more prominent name.

The story was told in Roland Lazenby’s book, “Michael Jordan: The Life”.

“As Michael Jordan was rising through the state of North Carolina for his basketball skills, James Jordan and Deloris had their own worries. They wanted their son to learn what it meant to hold a job, so they spent a long time berating their son,” an excerpt read.

The book went on to explain Deloris made a call to hotel and restaurant owner, Whitey Prevatte, in hopes of securing a job for her son.

It worked.

Jordan was hired on to help with hotel maintenance and he found himself doing jobs that included cleaning, painting, and changing AC filters, among others.

“’I was a hotel maintenance man I was cleaning out pools, painting rails, changing air-conditioner filters, and sweeping out the back room,'” Michael Jordan said, according to Lazenby.

Jordan was compensated just $3 an hour for the position and it was the only job he worked before heading into the NBA.

For  Deloris, it was most important to ensure her son was not motivated by the accolades that come with being a star athlete. Additionally, she wanted her son to be a good person before anything else.

“Michael has worked hard. It didn’t come easy. And I say to all parents who say, ‘Well, we are having the next Michael Jordan.’ Just try to encourage your son or daughter to be a good, decent human being and work hard to achieve. Set goals for yourself, have dreams and work hard to fulfill them,” Deloris said in an interview, according to ESPN.