Both Oars In Go west, young man?

Jul 22, 2011

Have we become pessimists? Has the economy been bad enough for a long enough time to have damaged our national spirit? Have we become so concerned about the future that we are unable to give even lip service to hope? As a nation, are we depressed?

I wish that my reason for concern over the downturn in our collective national sentiment were simply motivated by the unrelenting stream of dire economic reports and the current circus going on in Washington over the budget. But, it’s not. My concern is prompted by something far more unsettling than the disappointing data on Existing Home Sales and the anemic Consumer Confidence Index. It is based on the mounting evidence, albeit anecdotal, that we have become afraid of the future.

The first indication I observed that we are dangerously close to allowing fear to overtake us occurred unexpectedly at a lunch with a group of businessmen. Those assembled were all financially successful, build-it-and-they-will-come, up-by-their-bootstraps kind of guys. It was a big shoulders group, to be sure. Not the kind of atmosphere one would expect to find fear and pessimism ruling the day.

One member of the group brought along his son, a recent graduate of a prestigious university. He had done well, but the job hunt was going slowly. He mentioned his interest in banking, specifically wealth management. After a cordial exchange of ideas and offers to help with networking, the conversation turned to other topics. Mining came up since the majority of the members, including the young man’s father, own a sizable mining venture out west. 

At the end of the meal, I felt a strong urge to revisit the question of the young man’s future. Prompted by a combination of empathy — I graduated in the spring of 1987 right into Black Monday — and a chance at a 25-year vicarious look-back, I suggested, “Why don’t you forget the Street for now. Go west. Work for your dad’s mining company. Learn something tangible. It is a great opportunity to do something different, something positive.”

You would have thought that I had suggested joining a band of Irish tinkers. The reflexive reasoning of the group concluded that this was not a time to be taking chances or seeking broader experiences. Ironically, these men, who made livelihoods out of seeking opportunity where it lay, sang a dirge for prospecting. They clamored and stomped, “Stick to the job search.”

Only fear could explain why these otherwise make-your-own-way guys would insist that it would be better to spend months looking for a job in the worst job market in years, and in the most negatively impacted field to boot, than to get some actual experience in an industry integral to our economy. There was no support at all for the idea of going west and healing with the country. 

The second glimpse at the shakiness of our state of mind came with an urgent announcement by a fellow volunteer organization. This organization annually places over 350 college graduates as volunteers in long-term, domestic services positions. Due to an inordinately high number of reneges by volunteers who had previously accepted positions, the organization had decided to reopen the application process. The organization, which has placed volunteers right out of college for over fifty years, was, to say the least, a bit flabbergasted by the late in the game change of minds by young people they had screened and scrutinized carefully.

What could make a big-hearted person, who had sufficient compassion to undergo an extensive, protracted application and discernment process, suddenly dump a commitment to serve to continue job hunting? Again, the only explanation that comes to mind is fear of the future. Clearly, we are not just experiencing a bout of “real world” pragmatism — we have fallen into a deep-seated pessimism.

I have to admit that I never thought there would come a point in our national history when the word “tomorrow” would inspire more fear than hope. I also never imagined it would be possible to tell a healthy young man to go west and have the idea fall flat on the table.