Chasing the American Dream
When I was in college, I remember a depressing theme coming up in one class. Granted, I majored in Writing - in literature classes, they tackle a lot of depressing themes, but I remember this one especially: Is the American Dream dead?
The answer to that question is simple: no. And no. And no and no and no.
Why am I bringing this up? For one, it’s good to remind readers of the pick-yourself-up-by-the-bootstraps attitude that seems to be overshadowed by gloomy economic news these days. With great respect for the late Heath Ledger and the underrated movie “A Knight’s Tale,” a man (or woman) can still change his stars:
And the other reason for bringing this up. I actually have a specific example of two future American-Dreamers: my friends Phil Burghgraef and Aaron Robertson (both of whom frequenters of BPN might be familiar with).
Back in November of 2007, Aaron and Phil founded Intrepid Innovations, Inc., a Web/graphic design and consulting company. The picture above is them (holding the scissors), along with some community leaders in Muskego, WI, at the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
It’s still basically a start-up, but they’ve done enough business to rent some office space in Hales Corners, WI, (near Muskego), and all I’ve been seeing from them is growth. The business even traces its roots back to a trip Phil, Aaron and I took to Chicago back in 2006 to a Learning Annex event: I don’t know that we took anything tangible from that event, but we did come back with a renewed sense of determination for setting our own lots in life and working together to do it.
All three of us, at least, emerged from a negative student culture at Cardinal Stritch University with a positive attitude about the potential of the future. I don’t know if most colleges are like that, but at least among classmates, there was this weird sense of impending doom. Talk of future success and riches in the cafeteria was often met with rolled eyes.
As Aaron put it recently in a blog post at the Boldly Innovative Blog:
Now look at me…at age 25 I’m an author, journalist, business owner, and candidate for state-level office…and I’ve only been out of college for just over a year.
I serve on the City of Muskego’s Zoning Board of Appeals. I belong to two chambers of commerce and another networking organization in addition. I am a member of the Marketing/Promotion Study Group of the Mayor’s Task Force on Economic Development, City of Muskego. I have an estate worth over $500,000 (thanks largely to life insurance policies I picked up). Again, all at age 25 and out of college for just over a year.
Phil, too, has come a long way and is leveraging his considerable graphic design talents into side projects and into income for Intrepid Innovations.
Are they Rockefellers yet? No. It’s just a reminder that amid all of the economic craziness, there are still people out there setting their own standards for what life has to offer rather than lay back and let life be dictated to them.
We need more of that these days.
Visit the BPN Political Discussion Boards
Did you like this post? Subscribe to the BipolarNation feed.
You can also receive the latest BipolarNation.com posts delivered to your e-mail inbox! Subscribe here.
The BipolarNation Robots Say You Might Also Like These Posts:
