The American dream

Thinking big. Succeeding. Making money. Staying optimistic. Having confidence in the future. Continuing to believe. The American dream is a bit of all that. A dream firmly installed at the heart of their DNA. We admire them as much as we hate them, partly for that.

Like a train

Optimism and confidence in the future act like a train for Americans. Imagine, this dimension is the second most influential on the perception of their humanity. That is already a lot. But it is also the one that is most strongly evaluated—the strongest in their eyes, all in all. They consider themselves strong in what matters most. That is powerful and explains a lot of things. In comparison to Canada, among others.

A “pep-talk”?

That is somewhat what Canadians would need for this dimension. In comparison with the United States, and you will easily recognize both nations, optimism and confidence arrive in 8th rank of the most influential dimensions among Canadians. And as far as strength is concerned, it arrives in 6th rank. Canadians clearly have an optimism deficit and a lack of confidence in the future, and this deficit undermines their perception of humanity.

To be the best, one must be the strongest in what has the most influence. Let’s be clear, Americans are only so for a single dimension, but Canadians, not a single time for any of the most influential dimensions.

Trust cannot be bought

It is well known. Trust is something to be worked on, developed, and ultimately earned. This assumes, at its core, that a certain trust exists—individually, but also and above all, collectively. It is important then that our leaders display this confidence, that they transmit it to us and prioritize transparency over opacity, openness over closure, authenticity over opportunism, positivism over negativism. In light of this data, this is not what Canadians are seeing.

The best country in the world

It’s simple. Canada will probably become the best country in the world when it evaluates the strength of the generosity dimension as powerfully as it evaluates its influence (1st) on our humanity. When Canadians are just as generous with their listening, their time, their help, and their money as the importance they accord to these values.

Nothing prevents them, by the way, from increasing their optimism and confidence in the future.