Read this yesterday. I think more people need to read and heed...
What politicians and policymakers really ought to be telling
struggling Americans is this: You're on your own. The government is running out
of money and is borderline dysfunctional besides. Instead of new policies that
will make the economy more fair, we need more self-sufficient workers who
aren't looking to government for answers.
The trick is figuring out what ordinary people can do to
make themselves better off. To do that, it helps to understand the real
problem, which isn't income inequality in itself. It's a decline in economic mobility
which means
it's getting harder for people to boost their earnings, move up the
socioeconomic ladder, and improve their living standards.
The economy is changing rapidly, and it's not completely clear why it's
gotten so much harder to get ahead. But there are certainly clues. Education
has a lot to do with it: There are very limited opportunities these days for
people who don't have a college degree, or whose training is outdated. Technology
is another
factor. People whose careers are tied to the digital revolution enjoy the good
fortune of working in a burgeoning field, while many others work in shrinking
fields being decimated by new technology. Workers able to ride the wave of
globalization, at companies that do business
around the
world, have an edge others don't.
Attitude is another factor. Too many American workers rely on somebody else
for their livelihood, without the grit that it takes to adapt and recover when
something goes wrong. This is the natural byproduct of a long era of prosperity
in which living standards rose for nearly everybody, just because the economy
was booming. It didn't take extraordinary fortitude to get ahead. Often, all
you had to do was show up.
Things are different now, and the bar for success is higher.
Instead of arguing over the abstract causes of income inequality or hoping for
miracles from Washington, national leaders ought to be sending this message to
America's workers: Get smarter. Work harder. Go where the opportunity is.
Prosperity isn't going to trickle down from the wealthy, or arrive in the form
of a government check. The only person looking out for you is you.
Rick Newman is the author of Rebounders: How Winners Pivot From
Setback To Success.
Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman.
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