I grew up in a blue collar working class family. Actually back in the 1970’s this was the middle class. Since the 1980’s the middle class has evolved to include mostly corporate jobs with the working class falling behind; even though they are the backbone of society and are the ones who create the wealth in society that the upper classes live off of.  

It kind of reminds me of a line from the movie Good Will Hunting where Matt Damon was telling his counselor Sean, played by the late Robin Williams, that there was honor in doing construction work. While many people will look down on someone who waits tables or works as a retail clerk in a store or a gas station, it is good to note that there is no such things as a dead end job.  

The Bible even says that there is profit in all labor. Although it seems as if the better paying jobs involve dealing with more bullshit; not to mention the lower paying jobs tend to be funner and less monotonous.  

Just because I returned to my first job in my fourth company at 40 years of age doesn’t mean I will stay there forever. Even if I stay with the same company, I will likely end up as a store manager or at corporate.  I even talk to the bread vendors who deliver to the store; this is the highest paying outside vendor that we deal with and they are the only vendors who work as independent contractors. Imagine the luxury of smelling fresh bread every morning.  

Also, the last few years I have seen more retail space opening up in shopping centers while corporate jobs decline. The private sector is the backbone of the economy and this is why I feel we have nothing to worry about if the economy were to collapse. It would just go back to the way it was before with smaller family owned businesses. And there would likely be a lot more community.  

I am not ready for it yet but every time I pass by a vacant store for lease, I can almost envision seeing myself owning my own store. I love buying stuff from the local store owners as opposed to corporate chain stores as it feels like I am supporting a greater purpose.  

As much as I miss driving at the auto auction, I have looked into the possibility of acquiring a dealer’s license and flipping used cars.  

It’s not conflicted to have options. As long as you are content where you are at while you dream big.  Of course you can get so content that you end up not doing anything.