No Rhyme or Reason

Yes, it does still exist. Since 9/11, this question has been asked by pundits over and over, in large because of the increasing social and economic gaps between the top earners and the middle-class in America. The white picket fence, American Dream of working at one place your entire career and earning a fat pension probably does not exist. Yet, I still believe that the American Dream is right around the corner for each and every one of us with planned a course of actions.

At an early age, my parents instilled in me to be the 1 in 1,000,000 and that obstacles are like puddles of water (or potholes in Detroit) that you try to avoid or dry off after water through it. The only thing that will to stop me from achieving the American Dream would be me. Not even death. You make say, how can’t death stop you and I would say because I’m living the American Dream daily. Optimism is truly the American Dream and I’m excited for what the next day brings.

The American Dream is a journey that often goes off course, down roads that you never envisioned journeying down. There should not be an end point to your dream because as you explore life, your dreams should evolve with the circumstances of your life. If you were to win the lotto tomorrow, your middle-class American dream of a nice American car, a summer vacation and sending your kids off to college, would probably go out the window of your yacht while in the Hawaii.

People need to start enjoying the journey and stop worrying about what they don’t have or not getting there fast enough. I see too many stories of people with college degrees and without degrees achieving their dream just as people did generations ago. Some may say, I work hard and I haven’t come close to reaching my dream and that I’m always going to be a have not. I’m a believer that working smart and strategically will garner the American Dream more likely than working hard. Ask others for help in achieving your American Dream because few have achieved their dreams without the help of others. Steve Jobs once said, that many don’t achieve because they don’t ask for help. The American Dream isn’t easy to grab, so throw your pride out of the window and utilize all of your resources while on your journey.

Times are nowhere near perfect in America, but truly, has there ever been a PERFECT time in America. The greatest generation ever, which I consider the fulcrum of the American Dream, was a time when people that did not look like the inside of an Oreo were not living a dream. I’m sure many would have called it an American Nightmare. However, they soldiered on and enjoyed life as well as possible. Some like my grandfather even operated their own business in the south, which was not common for African Americans in the south or anywhere in America. There have always been social and economic gaps and every generation tends to believe that their issues are worse than previous generations.

We are a nation of dreamers but far too often, we daydream of living someone else life with a few cosmetic change to make it more our own. Networks such as MTV, E!, VH1 and others, produce a plethora of useless but efficacious content that drives people away from chasing their own dreams to chasing the lives of others. The American Dream, sometimes seems like the reality show or pop culture dream. As a result, people get become discombobulated as to why their dreams are not coming to fruition but their dreams actually are, just in someone else life.

For the American Dream to live on inside of your mind and soul, you need to unclutter your mind of purposeless information that creates the anxiety of being left behind. Once you remove this overcast, you may realize that opportunities exist in America just as they did decades ago. Life wasn’t perfect but people adapted to the times and found opportunities within their situations. And this was before the internet existed, so you have no excuse to not be living your dream regardless of the economy. There are just far too many opportunities in American for you not to believe that your American Dream is possible. Don’t stop dreaming, use your imagination and enjoy the journey as you chase your American Dream.

@chiokemcrae