Why is owning a business the essence of the American Dream for many people?
The phrase ‘The American Dream’ means different things to different people. It’s one of those phrases like ‘family values’ that politicians use without ever really defining, so everyone in the crowd thinks the politician is talking about -his- idea of the American Dream. But I think one popular definition is getting rich. These days our culture heroises (if that’s a word) wealth. Someone who makes a lot of money must be wise and worthy, even if he made it in an unsavory way. If you want to get rich, you can’t do it working at a job. Whatever wealth you create in a job, most of it goes to your employer. Plus the employer tells you when you have to get up, when you can leave for lunch, when you have to be back, sometimes how you have to dress, etc. Your boss makes promises in your name and you’re a bum if you can’t keep them. Often you have no control over your work. If you come up with a good idea you might be told ‘you’re not paid to think’. In your own business, you make your own deci
