point to ponder

during our 30-day challenge the bloke suggested i post something about the sense of entitlement among today's youth. and although i did post about his chosen subject i have had cause of late to consider that blog was far too narrow and specific.

i am still friends with a gentleman i used to work with many years ago. approximately 4 years ago during the economic downturn we both ran into financial difficulties and we were unable to find work in our field.

it is important to note that my friend is a husband, a father with children he needs to put through university and a home-owner.

what i so admire about this man is that he took a job that he was grossly over-qualified for, but it was an honest living and if he was extremely careful he could still care for his family. as time went by he started to rebuild his business by offering his graphic services to the companies on his delivery route.

four years later and he is practically working round the clock. but he has built up a steady client base. he created something from nothing, if you will. and the best part is, it is now a lot easier for him to provide for his family.

let's compare that with yet another man i know who's life fell apart around the same time period.

now the second man is the father of toddler.

he wasn't able to find a job opportunity in his chosen field. and this man was quite content to sit at home waiting for that 'perfect' job.

the toddler's mother suggested that he go out and get a job. would you believe that he was incensed? he was convinced that he couldn't just hold a job. i guess he felt that he was destined for so much more. and anything else was simply beneath him.

in retrospect i wonder if our youth have a false sense of entitlement because their elders do? is it not a learned behaviour.

but the question is, how do we make sure that we have more people in our society like the first man?