A change in perspective
The e-mail that accompanied this post made me really appreciate the many kind and wonderful people I’ve met with this blog… and there’s a lot of them! Of course there were some jerks in the beginning, but I don’t even remember their names. It’s the good ones that make a lasting impression on me and this guy, Sean, is one of them! Here’s an excerpt from his e-mail:
“I don’t even have the time or money to invest into the website I was building, but I checked yours and saw that you were sick. It reminded me that money isn’t everything and health is the most precious thing. I wanted to pay my respect by making a post. I know this economy is full of negativity. It only takes a change in prospective for people to appreciate what was right there in front of them from the start.”
This guest post is a thought provoking op-ed (opinion editorial) about America in a time when it’s so easy to feel negative about our circumstances. After the touching e-mail, I had to know more about Sean and I asked for a bio. As it turns out, Sean’s bio is an interesting story all on it’s own. He was a successful day trader who lost EVERYTHING in this economic downturn! He’s only 22 and full of ambition, with an attitude like his I have no doubt Sean will succeed in whatever path he chooses.
Thanks Sean, I’m so glad to have met you!
America: A change in perspective
by Sean Sweeney
America is beautiful.. America is dandy.. America is like a baby reaching for candy.. Now I understand that this is a make money online blog, but I think a post of this nature is suitable for any blog. Sometimes it takes a dramatic fall for us to appreciate all that works around us. And even then, do we appreciate it as much as we should? I love you America.. I just don’t realize what we have here.. CHALLENGE: Lets 360 our lives for a second. Lets trade places with a 3rd world country.
Lets live in a place where government is against us. Lets not choose what we do for a living, how we eat and when. Lets have no choice but to stand on our own. If Americans were stripped of the only lifestyle they know, do you think they could survive? When did the distinction of being American grow hand-in-hand with being dependent? In such a fast paced world of innovations and free will, it gets too easy to lean. To lean on family, friends, the government, and even the simple tradition of visiting your favorite corner store every morning. What has been seen for decades as advancements, and convenience, and giving to our lives. What has been conceived as a right of passage to grow with everything that is offered to us, has finally shown to be a front. A front to something ugly and something purposely overlooked.
While all this time we indulged in the fruits of new-aged living.. we as Americans were losing. The more we were given, the more we wanted. The more we wanted, the less satisfied we were with the “average” of today. The less satisfied we were, the more delusional we became to what really mattered. In a place where it is more than accepted to have our own face. We chose not to. In a place where individuality and freedom cemented the foundation of our existence, we chose not to remember. Instead we followed one another. We lean so easily on those that lean on us. While the rest of the world is born with two legs, Americans should be born with three or four, if not more. With all the power in the world granted to us.. we have the power to choose our paths and the power to live freely. Yet we are born crippled. Crippled by our inability to reinforce where we come from. Crippled by the over indulgences that we familiarize with common practice.
In the spirits of a 360 with a 3rd world country. Is it at all fair to think that these new Americans would appreciate what we take for granted? These people that appreciate a blade of grass and a roof. Would they willingly work tooth and nail day in and day out to maintain this new found lifestyle? Would they let freedom be lost? Would they? I’d love to hear your views on the current economic turmoil which American and the rest of the world is facing.
I hope you get well in a hurry JJ.
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Comments
JJ, Sean sounds very nice. Is he single?
Wow, that really made me think. As an American I think about how bad other countries have it. But at the same time blind by the troubles we face on a daily bases. I am happy to be born in the U.S.A.
While I appreciate the sentiment that those who “have” too often take for granted that they will always “have”, I would like to defend the majority of Americans who work quietly and sensibly for prosperity. They don’t get the media attention that the bad boys do, and maybe they spend too much time watching mindless things on television, but I don’t think they deserve to be painted as four legged zombies devouring the Earth for no other reason than to satisfy their endless hunger. Most Americans just want their children to have a better life – just like the parents of all nations.
I gotta agree with Zach. There are many Americans out there that are still paid by the hour, still finding ways to make an extra buck or save an extra buck and not waiting on a “bailout or handout”.
And Sean makes me have a little hope for our future that some of the younger generation is still willing and able to do what it takes to forge ahead and find a way to make something of themselves.
Koodos to you both! And to you, JJ! God bless you girl and you continue to get better. Love your blog.
JJ I wish you all the best. You have offered all your readers plenty of wisdom. I look forward to your comeback!
Sean – an insightful post. More power to you –
This was a very inspirational post. Reflecting helps us prioritize our lives and the way we operate. Sometimes we get lost in the rat race and forget to appreciate the positive things in life. Thank you.
JJ I wish you all the best. Looking forward to see your more posts in the future.
I think that Zach and Deb have misunderstood some of what Sean was trying to say here. They see people who are working hard to make a better life for themselves and their families. Sean is saying that we’ve lost the perspective on what working hard means and what a better life means.
I’ve had friends who complain that immigrants come into this country (I’m in Canada) and take jobs from Canadians. What they don’t say is that they wouldn’t touch the jobs that the immigrants gratefully take — working 12 hours a day in a convenience store or working night shifts as a janitor.
I think that Sean is trying to remind us that as bad as we have things right now in North America, we’ve still got it good. And we need to take advantage of what is remains and what can be gained instead of focusing on what has been lost.
it was so nice for sean to share his insights…and it was indeed a great one…
for jj, still health is wealth we should of course try to give ourselves time to rest…hope you are fine now..:)
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This is a great post. To me, it serves as a reminder to never be satisfied with the status quo. I was particularly struck by Sean’s comment about being dissatisfied with the “average of today”.
In my “day job” I’m a schoolteacher. One trend I’ve noticed an alarming rise in is a sense of entitlement by many of today’s youth. I won’t go into all of the details, as I’m sure many of you have noticed similar behaviors and trends. But have you noticed that those same self-designated recipients of entitlement are generally the ones who are not satisfied? I have, and I think that it that parallel that Sean was speaking of.
This dissatisfaction, or lack of gratitude if you would, I think stems from the feeling that there is no sense of accomplishment because there is no effort in achieving the goal. We’ve all been at that point where we have that great feelng because we have worked hard to get something and it all works out.
I have a feeling, though, that the pendulum will swing back. The last election, regardless of whom you voted for, seemed to bring out a spirit of can-do that has been lacking for awhile. I look forward to seeing if it lasts…..
Hey JJ,
How are you doing?
Thanks for all your sincere comments on my posts, I really appreciate it:)
I think that is the main reason to blog, even if only one post will have a positive effect on one person’s life, it is all worth it:)
This post is similar to a post I made 5 minutes ago, where I made a list of everything I have to be thankful for. Sometimes we forget how much we still have even when things look bad for us or when we have problems which are actually small problems.
As long as we are healthy,free and have no worries about food or shelter, any problems we do have aren’t as big as many many people in the world are experiencing every day.
I hope you have a wonderful week ahead!
Dirk
Hi! You have nice content here. Care to exchange links? Kindly add my blog then let me know so I can add you aswell.
Thanks!
E-Pera
Its so true we need to see what we have and be happy about it money is not everything.
Indeed, money is not everything and health is more important. That was a good post by Sean and it’s enough to make us think about the things we take for granted and how good we really have it. At the same time, I think it also depends on the context. Everything is relative, so for example a good job in a 3rd world country could be regarded as a fairly low job here. That doesn’t necessarily mean that a person in a low job here actually has it pretty good just because in a different country it would be a good job. The standards of living here are different, as are the costs of living. So you’re not really comparing similar things when you compare the standards in different countries. Having said that, I do still agree that we have it pretty good here and often get caught up in wanting more when really we should just be happy with how good we have it.
Very well written post by Sean. We do have a lot to happy about and I guess we often forget that.
This is so cool that I found your blog. I’m a mother also and I’m just learning to trade in the stock market also. I really want to do it because I’ve heard a lot of good about it. I signed up for a membership to http://www.thestockmarketreport.com, and I have a blog in their community where I’m tracking my progress.
Let’s keep tabs on each other and help each other out!
@TraderMom, that sounds like a good idea! I’m afraid that I haven’t been that active lately, but I think you may have just given me the boost to get up and get going that I needed. I’ll come over and check out your blog and see what we can do. Also I’m so glad that you found my blog and that you will be dropping by often I hope. Thanks again and thanks for the comment. jj