Practical Ways to Improve Society and Lead More Fulfilling Lives
There’s no doubt our current society is facing a variety of challenges: racism, a wanting criminal justice system, poverty, unemployment, drugs, crime, and corruption. While citizens in the United States crave change toward a better nation, only a few are willing to do what it takes to bring about the reforms that will improve the lives of over 400 million citizens. Imagine your children and grandchildren facing the same challenges in the future, because you didn’t take action when you had the chance.
Change is a process of patience. It requires a consistent pursuit of practical ways to improve our society. Already, things have begun transforming. People like Robert Reich and Thomas Piketty, have raised awareness about economic inequality in America. Social media is saturated with information about the gaping disparities in health, criminal justice, and other areas of concern within our society.
So, how can you turn information into action? What actions can you take to change our society and avoid a future where your children and grandchildren experience more of the same issues? Here we provide practical ways to secure a better future for your legacy, without sacrificing your present desires. So, what can you do?
1. Know and Understand the Issues
All people experience issues, regardless of race, religion, economic status, sex, or other classification. However, the impact isn’t equal among different groups of people. As we consider some of the key themes for The Biggest Issues to Watch in 2020, the central question to consider is, “what can citizens do to improve the health of society for all people?” While governments have a role in this, focusing on the individual is most critical, because governments consist of citizens.
As you think about issues, consider the World Happiness Report 2020, which identifies six key variables that explain the sources of happiness within a society. Consider the United States Constitution which provides clues for key themes guiding the discussion about the quality of life in America.
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
Let’s be clear; there is no prosperity without problems. What matters is how we approach our problems. Problems plague all areas of our society. Therefore, citizens working for the government may view problems differently from other citizens. This is why we consider issues from both perspectives. However, there are multiple layers of government, and here we’re only considering government issues at the national level. But, as you explore the actions you can take to improve society and lead a more fulfilling life, think about the issues you face in your local community. Those are the issues that must consistently be elevated to your local government until a change occurs.
2. Learn from One Another
You can’t truly fix a problem unless you understand the root cause. When we feel sick, we do everything in our power to eliminate the sickness until we can't do anything else. We call on our grandparents, parents, other relatives, and friends for advice. Once we've hit a wall, we look to our doctors for assistance with information and solutions to aid us in healing as quickly as possible. Those doctors leverage their experience, studies, best practices, and other resources to provide the best solution possible.
What prevents us from doing the same as citizens committed to making our society better? Taking part in the census is one way to take a pulse check on the health of our society. The process is used to collect data about everyone living in the United States, as well as those in US territories, including Puerto Rico, Guam, and American Samoa. The data comprises details about people from various races, professions, genders, and other classifications.
The census provides various outcomes for a number of classifications. This information can be used to learn the root cause of what’s working well for some, and those practices can be utilized for the good of everyone in society. But we have to be willing to learn from one another and teach one another, without feeling like we’re losing something.
3. Think Differently About Your Spending
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) has impacted the global economy in an unprecedented way. Issues with housing, workforce, and pensions compound the recession fears already present in many Americans. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita tells us how prosperous a nation is.
GDP can be determined using three approaches: expenditure, output (or production), and income. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the calculation for GDP in the United States is based on the consumption approach, which is the total sum of the following:
Personal Consumption Expenditures (Consumer Spending)
Investment
Government Spending
Net Exports
There are only two components of this approach that have the greatest potential to increase national income – Investment and Net Exports. However, consumer spending represents approximately 68% of the total GDP this year.
Shifting our spending habits towards investment is a good way to improve GDP as well as our overall prosperity. So, what are some things you can do?
Educate yourself on ways to reduce and avoid debt. Read this article on How debt is used to control people: How to pay off loans and bills to get out of debt. This article discusses a number of topics, including how people have used the Dissolve Your Debt Manual to free themselves from the clutches of debt.
Educate yourself on investing in stocks. Check out My First Stock, a simple book about investing.
Educate yourself on investing in real estate. Take this quiz, Real Estate Investing Assessment: Analyze to Offer, to determine how much you know about researching, analyzing, and submitting offers for residential and commercial property for sale.
4. Answer this question: What value can you provide to other people?
Most of us think about how we can benefit instead of how we can provide value. Providing value is how you become successful. Value is driven by your ability to solve problems that matter to other people. So, as we think about the core issues facing our society, think about the value you can add.
For example,
What value can you provide towards improving the affordability of housing opportunities in America?
What value can you provide in order to reduce the effects of climate change (whether you believe in it or not)?
What value can you provide towards changing a criminal justice system focused on meeting quotas that ultimately lead to inequities in the incarceration and conviction of American citizens?
What value are you adding to society? This is a topic we help people with often. Click the image below to find out more about how you can provide value.
5. Take Action
In health, the cure will never work if you don’t take the medicine. In life, the change will never happen if you don’t take action. But, in order to take action, you have to find a compelling reason to care? By now, you know the cure requires you to:
Know and Understand the Issues,
Learn From One Another,
Think Differently About Your Spending, and
Answer this question: What value can you provide to other people?
Now you have to take the medicine – Action! First, you have to find a compelling reason to care. Is it the health of your finances that will cause you to act? Or, is it improving the lives of your family and friends that will cause you to get in motion? What’s your reason? Let us know!
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