My American Dream is dead

Without a doubt, I realized my American Dream. My cliche American Dream : mastery of my skill sets, good pay for good work, and financial freedom. Along the way, it would be nice to help the world and my community to be in a better place (aka, don’t be evil). Working in tech for the last 30 years and catching the major technology waves from the internet, enterprise data, and AI has propelled my skills and pay in a good direction. With amazing support of my spouse and family, I leaned into achievements at work and achieving our financial freedom. But all good things must come to an end. Tech has matured to greatly prioritize shareholder value, and regulation advocacy. The growth of tech talent has achieved a new equilibrium and we are in a tech recession (Yahoo Finance, Forbes, Business Insider : some sites need paid subscription). Not all is lost, all trends are on a pendulum, examining former innovators such as Boeing, we all know what will eventually happen when innovators over prioritize away from their core and essential skills and workforce. 

As a whole, I don’t see college education and STEM skills mastery as sufficient for good pay (but as a mandatory ticket of entry). I don’t see a growth industry that would balance employee needs and retention as tech did in the early 21th century. I doubt my slow and steady path with smart saving and smart asset allocation as viable means to financial freedom. Watching “I Was An MIT Educated Neurosurgeon Now I'm Unemployed And Alone In The Mountains How Did I Get Here?” and “Why Everyone Is Quitting The 40 Hour Work Week”, I realized that there are many others who also feel this way. 

Credit: Google Gemini

In summary, my American Dream is dead and wouldn’t work for my children. I don’t have any grand theory about why and how we got here. What really matters is how do I help my children and maybe others of the same generation. I don’t have any answers, but I believe as parents we have the benefits of wisdom to guide our children in a meta discovery process. We can encourage exploration and ask the big questions.

1. What is a good life? 
2. Who is part of your community? 
3. What do you want to change most in your community for the better? 
4. How do you become that change maker? 

As parents, I often make the mistake of skipping question #1 through #3, and assume our children will have the same set of answers as we do. We unintentionally and narrowly focus on #4.  We ask questions such as: What do you want to be when you grow up? What major do you want to study in college? Or what’s your favorite subject in school? Or how do you want to make money? The answer to these questions without the larger context short changes our children’s future and possibilities. I can do better! 

I, an immigrant, greatly benefited from the American way. There is a part of me that still holds on to the American Dream. My version of the American Dream is dead and a new social contract must be discovered. My children will redefine and rediscover their American Dream that will benefit them and the world. 

What is your American Dream?