The 800-pound gorilla -- aka The connection we're not making...

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by -TW

America is one of the few places on earth where a person CAN change their socio-economic status within their lifetime.

And they can do it, basically, under their own control.

They can decide to do it, and then do it!

But... part of that equation is: They must (first?) develop the ability to clearly see what WILL propel them upwards, and what will NOT.

My point was that it's NOT really a spectrum. There's an EMPTY SPACE between Low-Level Land and REAL SUCCESS (read: majorly big bucks).

Doing low-level stuff does not lead to the big time. Doing LOTS of low-level stuff probably won't even TOTAL big time level success.

Hi TW,

What you wrote made me think of what's been called the "Up Series" of documentary movies...

This is a remarkable series - I highly recommend it! The first program was called "7 Up". They took a bunch of British school kids, who were age 7 in 1964, and interviewed them. The kids were chosen to be from a wide range of socio-economic classes - from the very poor (e.g. kids in an orphanage) to the very rich. One of the guys behind this program was a young Michael Apted (who has gone on to direct films like "Gorillas in the Mist", and the James Bond film, "The World is Not Enough").

What's remarkable is, 7 years later, when the kids were age 14, they went and did a followup program.

Then another, and another... when the "kids" were aged 21, 28, 35, 42, and the latest installment is these individuals at age 49 !

You get the see the "life trajectory" of these individuals! That in itself is remarkable... But...

Given what we're usually interested in on this forum, there's one guy I think who's worth pondering over who is "followed" in this series of documentaries...

That's Tony.

Tony was a poor kid from the East End of London - a poor area with a high crime rate. But, since he was a kid, he had a bit of a "go getter" attitude about him... He dreamed of being a jockey.

Tony did become a jockey for a short time. By age 21, he was working as a runner for a bookie. The director, Michael Apted, apparently later confessed (to Roger Ebert) that he thought Tony would end up becoming a criminal.

However, it turned out that by age 28 Tony had become a taxi driver, owning his own taxi. By age 49, he now owns 3 homes, including a holiday home in Spain.

While that may not be fabulously wealthy, that is quite comfortable!

Anyway, it's a good series of movies... More info here...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up_series

You'll be amazed when you see the trajectory of these people's lives (both good and bad)...

Best wishes,

Dien