We need more gratitude

by MPA30 May 2016

This week in the United States, we celebrated Memorial Day as a national holiday during which we typically remember those who have served to protect our freedoms in the military. Like everything else, though, celebration of such a holiday has often become politicized. Some have argued that we shouldn't have been in certain wars in the first place, so we shouldn't be celebrating those who fought in such wars.

Here's the thing, though: we can celebrate the service of soldiers in the military and still disagree with the decision-makers who sent them into battle. Their commanding officers said, "Go," and they went -- without question. And some of them paid the ultimate sacrifice for their loyalty and commitment. Personally, I think that's something worth remembering, celebrating, and being grateful for -- regardless of what we believe about the politics of war.

I think there's something deeper at the heart of why people get all up in arms about things like this: I sometimes think we've lost our ability to be grateful. Even in the workplace, when we're going through a difficult situation, the first thing we often look for is someone to blame or something to complain about. In our dissatisfaction with our situation, we quickly forget all of the resources we've been blessed enough to have at our disposal.

We forget our gracious customers, the investors who to took a chance on us, the employees who show up everyday with their best effort, and so on. And if we forget these things for too long, we run the risk of losing them all. So let's all do the best we can to be more grateful for the gifts we've been given. We're all privileged in one way or another.


Is TILA-RESPA a good or bad thing long term?