We have often joked that if we didn't have out-of-town guests we might have never taken the time to see many of the most interesting things in our own backyard. I've heard others say the same thing. Those attractions that tourists consider "must sees" are often things we have never taken the time to visit in our own hometown.
The same could be said for many Americans and the multitude of opportunities that exist here. Not only do we often not take advantage of them, I think sometimes we don't even fully see them.
Through the years I have watched people who moved to the United States from another country start businesses, work hard and enjoy great success. A friend from India told me he always loved America and wanted to come here. He said in India there were no choices like there are in America. He described it to me in a way I'll probably never forget.
After telling me he used to wait for hours to pay a phone or electric bill, and then may or may not have service when he got home, he said that in America you can go to a store and find dozens of different kinds of chocolate in different forms. He said that if you go shopping in India there is one kind of chocolate bar. Only one kind -- horrors! No Hershey's Almond, Nestle Crunch, Milky Way, Snickers, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, Mr. Goodbar, or Mounds decisions to ponder? Something as simple as a chocolate bar really drove the point home to me.
As limitless as the candy choices are in America, so are the opportunities for those willing to work hard and take risks. He moved here and worked for a big company, then started his own business. He loves America and appreciates more than most how truly limitless the possibilities are here.
If you grow up watching your parents work at one company until they retire, save their money and take very little financial risk, it follows that would be your most likely course as well. It takes a lot of imagination and courage to forego a reliable, steady income to choose a path with no guarantee of success, or even of making a profit. Many of us in America are really comfortable and don't see all the choices that exist outside of our comfort zone.
One man I know who moved to America now owns a multi-million dollar company, employs dozens of people, and enjoys great wealth along with his great success. A short two decades ago he was delivering pizzas. He came to America and saw the great opportunities that exist for those who work hard.
Many others who come to the United States have similar stories. They come with little to lose. They identify a need and they supply a good or service that fills that need. They work long, hard and smart, and they often succeed.
Even though I argue it is sometimes harder for those of us born here to see the opportunities, there are thousands of stories of those born in America doing the same thing. I saw a perfect example in a businessman in my community growing up in Eastern North Carolina.
Bill Ellis started out with a $500 tax refund. He worked at Parker's Barbeque in Wilson, North Carolina and not only learned about the business, but saw that there were enough barbeque eaters to keep another restaurant busy as well. He started out selling hotdogs because they were cheap, and until he could afford to build a restaurant, he opened a drive in. Working from early in the morning until late at night, with his family working alongside him, he gradually expanded to build Bill's Barbeque into a successful barbeque restaurant that has catered events all over the country.
In the current age of bailouts and government assurances, I wonder how many of the future generations of Americans will see the possibilities available to them and will recognize the great reward that often results from great risk. The great success that so many hardworking entrepreneurs have experienced in America started with a mindset and was fostered with hard work.
In our desire to prop up the ailing sectors of the economy with government funding, I hope we don't destroy that attitude and basic foundation of principles that has made this country so great for so many generations.
Lorie Byrd's Bio
Lorie Byrd is a stay-at-home mom from North Carolina with a passion for politics. She is a columnist for Townhall.com and a contributing editor to the Wizbang Blog.com .
Posted
07-09-2009 1:05 AM
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