Settling For Second Best

First of all I want to thank all of the readers that responded to last weeks article about my Mother. The show of concern, support, and words of encouragement let me know I have a lot of good friends out there. Again thanks, it means a lot to me.

I've been thinking about this week's topic quite a bit over the years. Now seems like a great time to discuss it. When did we in America start settling for second best much less 37th in things like quality of healthcare compared to the rest of the world?

We didn't settle for second best during WWII. It was our superior ability to produce war materials and the best-trained men and women in the world that won the war. We didn't dominate the auto industry for decades because we settled for second best, yet we now find our major car manufacturers going bankrupt. We didn't settle for second best when we went to the moon, found the Titanic, discovered penicillin, the phone, the phonograph, or many hundreds of other first's America is noted for.

But yet we now find ourselves settling for just what we can get as a people. Granted, I'm speaking in a broad generality. We still have some very successful and rich people in our country. How they got there is the subject for another day. It's been my observation that we as individuals have settled for second best cars, advertising, clothing, customer service, politicians, leaders, you name it for far too long. We have also allowed ourselves to become second best on a personal level. We, as a people, have lost our pride in a job well done; we have lost the shame of being less than stellar. We have decided on an individual level to just settle for some instead of all. Again, I'm talking in broad general terms here; if the shoe doesn't fit please don't wear it.

I'm not talking greed here. I'm talking mediocrity. When we do something do we do it with all our ability, talent and energy? Believe me, I'm talking to myself here as well. Do we give or all to our customers, our friends, our family, and our community? Do we give of ourselves 110% no matter what it is? We've become a nation of "used to was". We look back at our glory days and sit on our couches. We have become mesmerized with the vast amounts of entertainment that flows into our heads each day. We have lost the drive that made us once a great nation. We are just coasting now.

It's true, our leaders MUST set the example and lead the way, but we must get off our butts and stop settling for second best and demand better from them. We all can make the choice to be the best we can be. I know that sounds so cliché, but its true. We have the power as individuals to make this nation No. 1 once again. We can dominate the global green movement with new technologies that we invent, develop and market. We can reclaim the auto industry as our own. We can start building things once again in this country that will revolutionize the global lifestyle. We have what it takes we just need to do it! We need to stop making life a tagline we wear on our T-shirts and start living the dream. I challenge each and everyone one of you, as well as myself, to stop settling for second best and start reaching for the stars again.

Michael Irvin is a Creative Project Manager residing in Overland Park, KS a suburb of Kansas City, MO. Michael draws on years of experience in the advertising and marketing field. He's an superb graphic designer and illustrator. He can be reached by email at: mirvin1129@yahoo.com