Starting from Scratch
Have you heard about Adam Shepard? He is the author of the book Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25, and the Search for the American Dream, which chronicles his attempt to pull himself up out of self-imposed poverty and live the American Dream. He did this, in part, to disprove Barbara Ehrenreich’s thesis in her book Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America, that the American Dream is dead. He believes that Ehrenreich went into the project with the end in mind — that it’s impossible to pull yourself up out of poverty. And of course, she “proved” her point.
Adam also went into the project with the end in mind — that the American Dream is still alive and well. And he succeeded. He started by living in a homeless shelter with only $25 in his pocket, with the goal of having a car, an apartment and $2,500 saved at the end of a year. After 10 months, he had a car, an apartment and $5,000 saved.
Check out more about Adam (including an interview) HERE.
