Why is success deemed quite difficult in the eyes of the average American? What

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   gmwilliamsposted 10 years ago

   Why is success deemed quite difficult in the eyes of the average American? What makes some
   
   Americans contend that only the lucky ones can obtain success, not realizing that successful people oftentimes are like them-doing what it takes to become successful via making sacrifices, planning, organizing, strategizing, & working smart.  Many people loudly proclaim that they want to be successful but they refuse to walk THAT WALK, only doing THAT TALK!  It is akin to wanting to go to heaven but not wanting to die. 
   
   

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   lawdoctorleeposted 10 years ago

   I guess it depends on what is one person's idea of success:  money, family, prestige, power or position, etc.  Add to that the notion that a person is not satisfied or grateful for where he or she is in that moment of time.
   
   I've heard many people say they want to make the kind of money an attorney does but they have no idea.  First of all, not all attorneys are making 6 figures, only a small percentage are.  Most make about 30-50k per year, especially if they are working for the state or legal aid.  When an attorney does a case pro bono, then that is for zero dollars. 
   
   I'll give you another example, I often comment that anyone can get a law degree.  You just have to be willing to go to school for 8 years, study for 12-14 hours a day, and be willing to pay the money.
   
   Everyone has to pay their dues to get what they want.

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      Rod Marsdenposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      There is willing to pay the money and not ever having the kind of money that will do the trick.

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      lawdoctorleeposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I had no money.  I paid for school with grants, scholarships and student loans....ay yi yi...the debt! And was married with 3 kids to boot.

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      Rod Marsdenposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      And you got through it all lawdoctorlee? Now that did take determination. Good for you.

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   Fred Arnoldposted 10 years ago

   That's not entirely true. As for successful people from other generations, yes. In today's America, that is not the case. The wealth gap is extraordinary now. The inflation to tuition keeps middle and poor class citizens away from education. There is a bigger grass roots movement today than there is an "American Dream" movement like back in the day. Motivation has switched from "being successful" to living a comfortable life. Some may argue that a simple life is success. In any case, the changes in Americas economy and outlook bring about the difficulty of achieving that amount of success. And what is success to you? A middle class living or breaking the 1%?

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      Rod Marsdenposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Agreed.

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   Rod Marsdenposted 10 years ago

   Not everyone can be in the position to make the kind of sacrifices needed for great monetary success. A family man or woman has to think of the family first, especially if it is a large family. In fact those who do make it big usually start early before marriage and also after marriage only have a few offspring.
   
   Then there is education. Always to be reviewed in two parts. There is street-wise. Those who can read people well or learn to read them well can have great success with very little formal education. Street-wise education for most people, however, consists of a lot of hard knocks before you figure out what information from the street works best for you. Yes. There is working and working smart. It isn't always easy to tell the difference. Sometimes working harder than most still isn't working smart. A lot of people don't get that.
   
   Formal education is not that easy to come by in the USA. As in Australia a lot of High Schools (or I should say the American equivalent) have difficulty with students who have English as a second language and of course you have students who battle to come to grips with English as it is their secondary language. Result? There can be and too often are social divides thus created. Part of the answer of course is the employment of more teachers that are great with more than one language. Finding said teachers isn't always an easy task for an education department. Also there are parts of the USA that have reverted to gangland mentality and once you are in a gang you are basically cut off from the rest of society and your future is bleaker than it might otherwise be.
   
   It is not easy to get into college or university in either the USA or Australia and usually there is a debt hanging over the person that must eventually be paid. 
   
   Health is another issue. The health system in the USA is not very good. Sick or injured people who cannot get medical help are not likely to be big future money makers. Unfortunately there are people in Australia that want the Australian public to go down the American path.
   
   And so if you can be street-smart, formerly well educated and have some start money you are very lucky. You might just become rich if your luck holds out and you don't go under when the next financial wave of disaster hits the western world.

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      gmwilliamsposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      You are correct as usual.  I was referring to those who start on the road to success in their formative years.  Those who become successful after marriage & family are very, very few.  You are also right that those w/ large families are STUCK ...

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