Editor’s Note: All opinion section content reflects the views of the individual author only and does not represent a stance taken by The Collegian or its editorial board.

The American dream has long been shown to be a false reality — it’s unlikely you’ll become Jeff Bezos in your lifetime. There are many factors that contribute to whether or not you’ll make a ton of money, and it’s stressful to know you have no control over some of them. 

Instead of prioritizing profit, why can’t we switch the conversation to, “How can I be happy?” It’s clear that even if we do prioritize profit, it’s hard to get a foot in the door and actually become successful that way. 

Capitalism has promised us that if we just work a little harder and sacrifice a little more, we can get a foothold that will lead us into a hugely successful — profitable — future. You may even feel pressure to monetize your hobbies to make cash on the side, potentially hurting your relationship with the hobby. 

When Generation Z looks to the future, what are we seeing? The American dream often involves owning your own home and paying it off, but average income in the United States has not kept up with home prices. 

In a study done by Rocket Mortgage, 40.3% of Gen Z respondents believed they could only afford a home if it was less than $100,000 — with 39.5% estimating they could afford a little higher between $100,001-200,000. 

Zillow estimates the price of an average Colorado home to be around $530,389.

Instead of fighting for individual gains, would it not make more sense to mutually support those in our communities and country in an effort to promote happiness and contentment with life? 

The pressure to plan your life around money will always exist — you still need to make money to eat and live — but we could lessen that strain by providing people with the basics, such as access to health care and nutritious food and paying them a livable wage. 

“We should replace the ideology that if you just work harder you can someday achieve a life like the one described in the American dream. The U.S. workforce system itself promotes detaching oneself from happiness as motivation — it’s not like we can just decide to stop working to be happy.”

The American dream can include having a family for some. With the climate crisis and several other factors affecting our future, birth rates in the United States have dropped in recent years.

According to the Peterson-Kaiser Family Foundation Health System Tracker, giving birth in a United States hospital costs an average of $14,768 assuming you don’t need extra drugs or a cesarean section. If you have insurance, you can expect to pay less, but the dollar amount will still be in the thousands. 

Working on Colorado’s minimum wage, which currently sits at $13.65, it would take months and months to save that kind of money. Plus, you have to pay bills outside of saving, so it could be years until you could see yourself having enough money to give birth, let alone support a child.

We should replace the ideology that if you just work harder, you can someday achieve a life like the one described in the American dream. The U.S. workforce system promotes detaching oneself from happiness as motivation — it’s not like we can just decide to stop working to be happy.

One of the best ways to address these systemic issues is to use your voice and vote for representatives both at the state and federal levels that are committed to change to alleviate the stressors that come from living and working in this country. We’ve had enough of working ourselves to the bone until we die. Maybe the money means we’re successful, but it rarely means we’re happy.

Reach Bella Eckburg at letters@collegian.com or on Twitter @yaycolor.