Entitlement Is Killing Us
What are we going to do about it?
America, our country is digressing due to our culture of entitlement. It is important for us as a country to realize why this is happening and take action.
Traveling around the world twice gave me the unique opportunity to gain alternate perspectives. Traveling to places like Myanmar, Ghana and Kashmir gave me tangible examples of how other people define happiness.
As Americans, we have it pretty damn good.
There is something interesting about the developing world. Despite impoverished conditions people are generally happy. With a lack of basic amenities like drinking water, sewer systems and sufficient infrastructure how are people in places like Myanmar so happy?
Myanmar’s government is a repressive militant regime. Ethnic cleansing and persecution of Muslims is common practice. Despite these hardships Burmese people are incredibly happy. The same holds true for the peaceful people of Kashmir. They have endured a long history of corruption and oppression by India. The people of Kashmir remain grateful and appreciative. I could continue for days with examples like this from around the world. People in places like Myanmar and Kashmir are content despite their circumstances. While in America, it is common to find individuals with lethargic attitudes taking things and people for granted. In his book, Leaders Eat Last, Simon Sinek provides evidence why this is true.
The following is an excerpt from Simon Sinek’s Leaders Eat Last:
“This Be the Verse”
They fuck you up, your mum and dad. They may not mean to, but they do. They fill you with the faults they had And add some extra, just for you. But they were fucked up in their turn By fools in old-style hats and coats, Who half the time were soppy-stern And half at one another’s throats. Man hands on misery to man. It deepens like a coastal shelf. Get out as early as you can, And don’t have any kids yourself.
Philip Larkin’s 1971 poem paints a bit of a dreary picture of parenting. But, sadly, there is some truth in it. The period of Destructive Abundance in which we are currently living is due in large part to the good intentions of our parents and their parents before them.
The Greatest Generation, raised during the Great Depression and wartime rationing, wanted to ensure that their children did not suffer or miss out on their youth as they did. This is good. This is what all parents want — for their children to avoid their hardships and prosper. And so that’s how the Boomers were raised — to believe that they shouldn’t have to go without. Which, as a philosophy, is perfectly fine and reasonable. But given the size of the generation and the abundance of resources that surrounded them, the philosophy got a little distorted. When you consider the rising wealth and affluence of their childhood, combined (for good reasons) with a cynicism toward government in the 1970s, followed by the boom years of the 1980s and 1990s, it’s easy to see how the Boomers earned their reputation as the Me Generation. Me before We.
The baby boomer culture of entitlement gives proof why group dynamics are so important for organizations to understand. The evidence supports Sinek’s argument which is aimed at improving leadership in business. This baby boomer cultivation of entitlement example also supports my argument:
It is hard for Americans to truly appreciate how good we have it.
The United States of America is the greatest country in the world, we should own that shit and take full advantage of this amazing opportunity we have. We need to take it upon ourselves to shift our culture to one where a yearn for radical improvement and collaboration is baked-in to everything we do.
For example, on Earth Day, most Americans get out their checkbook. In Australia, the majority of the country gets off their ass, goes outside, and picks up trash. It is not easy to change behaviors that have existed for years but a simple shift in our perspective could pay big dividends for generations to come.
It is up to us to help shape the belief system of the next generation. By challenging each other to experience the developing world we can generate a new perspective. This can start with getting involved in social organizations in our own back yard.
We can’t give the next generation this new perspective unless we first take a serious look at our own culture and our attitude towards expectations. If we do this we can RE: Define what it means to be an American for generations to come.
As the Videographer for Semester at Sea, I had the opportunity to portray this deep appreciation I developed from traveling & gaining a new perspective in a short film:
I am currently a student in BDW’s 50 week program.
Follow RE: Write for more articles from BDW Students
This post supports my mission to empower people to get out and immerse themselves within the things that drive their purpose and passions.
