In the first iteration of this blog, I wrote several posts focused on the American Dream. One of my favorites was titled The American Dream: Myth, Metaphor and Reality.

Therein I wrote, “The recent political economy has brought the paradox of the elements which constitute the American dream into sharp focus: working hard and doing the right things.” I continued, “These elements, which are embedded in the cultural conception of the American Dream, are currently not resulting in the payoffs that Americans historically expected.” Then, I raised some questions that we as a society need to consider: “What does it mean long-term for the cultural compass that tells American who they are and how they should lead their lives? Also, I asked, “What are the social and cultural consequences of Americans becoming untethered from the American Dream.”

In response to the above-mentioned blog post, a reader commented, “If we assume the new paradigm for the American dream is entrepreneurship, by definition is the inclination that fewer people will be able to actually obtain the dream (majority of citizens are corporate, government & small business employees.) Is the obtainability of the dream lessened by global competition or the disparity between the 1% and the 99%.”

There are several concurrent trends occurring in American society. First, technology is changing the nature of how people work and what they do to earn a living. Second, each person is now personally responsible for how she prepares herself for the 21st century world of work. Americans are still deeply aspirational, but reality forces us to update our expectations of how we can achieve the lives that we want and desire for ourselves and our children. Entrepreneurship and/or entrepreneurial skills are merely 21st century updates to help fulfill the aspirational visions inherent in how Americans think about themselves and American society. Every person does not need to be an entrepreneur, but every modern worker must appreciate that you can no longer depend on your employer to protect your interests if those interests do not advance the employer’s business goals.

Your opinion on this important topic would be appreciated by our community; let us know what you think.