A lot has happened since I last updated the blog.
First and foremost, there was an unprecedented pandemic that through the world, and specifically, the USA into a sort of tense, silent chaos.
Personally, I registered a company- called Ascension Educational Services and Travel Network – in February of 2020. I had intended for it to be a travel company, but God had different ideas.
After even the gyms were shut down in the greater Boston area, I spent a few months in New Hampshire (for those of you who are reading from other countries, go to the Eastern part of Canada, look down, and next to Maine.) and virtual education blew up. I found myself managing a six-figure virtual, company that navigated the complexities of education during a pandemic, and ultimately, responded quickly to the market demands of the suburban communities outside of Boston.
Now, we have pivoted into test preparation, and I build partnerships with private schools in NYC and New England, and help families find schools that are the best fit for their students. I am so grateful for the opportunity to impact schools and families, while creating opportunity for highly qualified educators to see growth and impact outside of traditional schools.
On being in the United States
After spending so much time traveling around the world and learning about other cultures, other beliefs and working in low-income communities, I am so disappointed in the way facts are presented in the American Media. Articles abound about companies outsourcing their talent abroad, and headlines talking about inflation, a recession and the growing economic disparity between the wealthiest people in the USA and the people simply hanging on.
But what people aren’t talking about is why. Which policies have contributed to the lack of economic mobility and the outsourcing of jobs. Here is some food for thought:
- Did you know credit scores didn’t exist until the early 1990s?
- That the Supreme Court overturned corporate lobbying limits during President Obama’s administration?
- That prior to the housing bubble pop of 2008 (a direct result of the American Dream Act passed during President Clinton’s administration) lead to corporations like Blackstone buying up property, artificially inflating the prices, and turning home ownership into an impossible dream for most middle-class Americans?
- Tax and insurance laws heavily favor large corporations, in lieu of small businesses- perhaps this could be due to the removal of lobbying limits?
- Millennial homeownership stands at ” 48.6 percent, more than 20 percentage points lower than the rate for Gen X and almost 30 percentage points lower than Baby Boomers. Millennial homeownership lags even after adjusting for age,” per the 2021 census data.
- Most small businesses want to hire local talent; however, the regulations within the country, as well as the growing inflation create a situation where small businesses simply can’t afford to pay employees what they’re worth: and inflation is only exacerbating this. After all, does anyone past 30 want to work for a company that can’t (or won’t) pay them enough to afford a one-bedroom apartment?
I having a moment today, and I am asking myself, what would make me happy, right now? Truthfully, I left the United States in part because I saw the policies passed between 2004 and 2017 and didn’t think the USA was going to be a great place for families, or middle-class Americans. It’s still the best place for corporations and businesses, but the shrinking middle class and lack of opportunity needs to be addressed. Rather than passing short-sighted policies and continuing to allow the top ten percent to pass legislation impacting the ninety percent, what we need now is fresh, new leadership across the country. Americans of all races, all ages and all faiths should be disgusted at the way we have allowed the wealth disparity to increase, with no regard for individuals.
I read in a book that CEOs in the 1950s made twenty times as much as the lowest paid employees at their business and now, corporate CEOs make thousands of times more money than their lowest paid employee. Think about Jeff Bezos and the lowest paid employee at Amazon. Or Elon Musk and his lowest paid employee at SpaceX.
America needs to engage with the majority of its’ citizens and pass policies thinking of the one hundred percent. And, the impact these policies will have on future Americans. I think about this a lot.
I think what makes someone truly happy is using their voice. And I want to do more of this in the coming days.
1wanderingcuriously 