Skeptics in today’s society love saying that the American Dream has died. That it no longer exists because of fewer jobs in the manufacturing sector, trade jobs, and the outsourcing of jobs overseas. I feel as if this is far too dismal. We are still a very young country, and there is no way that our best days are behind us. I’m assuming the people making these statements are very close minded and are also the same people that shoot down any sort of fresh new idea. America hasn’t become the greatest country in the world because of the leadership of close minded people, so does it make sense for the country to be affected by the pessimism of these people? Absolutely not.
I doubt a lot of us have actually given thought to what the American Dream actually is. History would say that it’s owning your own business or working your way up in the world through dedication and hard work. There are many possibilities of what the actual definition of the American dream really is. In my opinion, the American dream isn’t about what you do, it’s about WHY you do it. I believe the American dream is about identifying a niche in the market and capitalizing on the opportunity.
In the mid 1900’s the best chance of success was being an entrepreneur in your neighborhood. There were plumbers, grocery store owners, butchers, bakers, bar owners, and construction workers in every small town. This didn’t happen by accident, the people in the area recognized an opportunity to capitalize on a section of the market that was in high demand. Owning your own business in those days just made sense, if you did it properly. If the town didn’t have a grocery store, then you open up a grocery store. It was simple. So does that mean in modern society that someone needs to open up a grocery store to capitalize on the American Dream? Of course not, back then the dream was the same as it is now, just in a more primitive form.
These days, it’s more difficult to find that niche market. Being a small business owner isn’t as simple as it used to be. We live in a more competitive economy and consumers are less loyal to actual stores and more loyal to lower prices. What that means is that being an entrepreneur isn’t necessarily the best vehicle for success. Just because you don’t own your own business, doesn’t mean you aren’t realizing the American dream.
We still have the opportunity to go as far as we want in this country, and a majority of the time your best chance of success is through corporate America. In this world, you still need to exercise good judgment and make responsible decisions just as if you were an entrepreneur. Not only do you get compensated well, but you don’t have to deal with the risk of owning your own business. So in today’s society, it makes sense to go to college and get a degree in a field that is in high demand. The fields of healthcare, business, and engineering are always growing and looking for talented new graduates. The point is that you need to be smart in what field you choose. You need to look at the market and figure out where you fit in and have the best chance for success. I doubt someone in the 1950’s would walk into a town with three grocery stores, and open up a grocery store. Like I mentioned earlier, it’s not what you do it’s why you do it. That is the American dream, being able to identify and capitalize on opportunities presented to you. That is something that’s timeless. The American Dream hasn’t died because of the decline of the manufacturing sector and the American dream certainly hasn’t died because there aren’t as many small town butchers as there used to be. The American dream is alive just as much as it was when our families immigrated to the country, and we are faced with the same decisions that they faced but in a more modern context.
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