AUGUST 6, 2019 – The most reliable barometer of America’s future is the desire of people to come here to forge a better life. The stronger the desire, the more hope for our future. If the day comes, however, when ambitious people no longer view America as a beacon of opportunity, then know that we are in decline.
Consider my encounter yesterday with one “Idriss.” He rents an office in my new co-working space. At the elevator, I introduced myself and asked this man about himself and his business. We wound up talking for over a half hour. I walked away feeling a whole lot more positive about this country and inspired to help make it an even better place.
Idriss is from Somalia. His parents died there before he was a teenager. With an older brother and a cousin, he came to this country when he was 13. His older brother got a job driving a truck, and “by osmosis,” Idriss explained to me, he learned all about dispatching and other aspects of over-the-road transport. He went on to get a degree in business at the University of Minnesota and studied electronics at St. Cloud State University. He and a business partner are now launching a truck-driving school to help meet a burgeoning demand for trained over-the-road tractor-trailer operators.
In addition to being knowledgeable, Idriss is an analytical thinker—describing, among other things, the intricate, indirect effect that tariffs on Chinese goods have on domestic transport decisions in the U.S. I was impressed by his raw intelligence, articulate explanations, and entrepreneurial disposition. Idriss also revealed maturity, a quick sense of humor, and a very likable personality.
We enjoyed an extended, far-ranging conversation about a number of topics. At one point I recommended the acclaimed work of Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Laureate (economics), Thinking Fast, Thinking Slow. Idriss expressed genuine interest in the book, and added that he loved to read good, interesting books recommended by people he knows.
Idriss is all of 27.
It occurred to me that a good client of mine, the COO of a sizable regional trucking firm, would be a great connection for Idriss. And likewise, Idriss would be a great connection for my client, a staunch, my-age, white-guy Republican. I know my client well enough, and I was able to size up Idriss quickly enough to conclude that the two will immediately appreciate each other. The connection will be mutually rewarding.
The resilience of a guy—an immigrant—like Idriss is what will “keep America great” in the same fashion that previous generations of immigrants made America great in the first place.
You see, Idriss “gets it.” He knows that America’s “greatness” lies in a simple concept: whoever you are, from wherever you came, if you can find your way here and apply yourself, you can have a better life and make this a better place in the process—for everyone else. My client “gets” this concept too. I know he does.
What a concept. What a country.
© 2019 Eric Nilsson
