One of the biggest incentives and influences for young people who live outside of the United States is knowing they can come here and be successful. They know that many immigrants who found success in the US would never have done so in their home country. As an example, Zaire is probably not the best place to become be a real estate tycoon. The opportunity to make famous movies is most likely a lot better in the US than in Finland. And Arnold Schwarzenegger—an immigrant from the beautiful country of Austria—became a world-famous bodybuilding champion, a box office superstar, and the governor of one of the largest and most-populated, non-country geographic regions. Where? In the United States.
Schwarzenegger’s Success
Schwarzenegger fell in love with powerlifting as a youth in Austria and knew if he wanted to be among the best in the world, he needed to relocate to Southern California. After making a name for himself there, Hollywood came calling for this good-looking muscleman. Decades later, when the state needed someone who could balance the area’s socially liberal attitude with a fiscally conservative handling of money, he took the governorship by a landslide.
Imagine if he had stayed in Austria. Not much information is available about bodybuilding in Austria, aside from a little competition or two. Odds are, Schwarzenegger would have entered the workforce and worked at a job that he knew wasn’t his calling. He might have ended up working in a factory or being a farmer. Perhaps he would have ended up in politics, but it’s not likely he would have been at the top of the national scene.
Arnold Schwarzenegger could never have known about the Hollywood and political opportunities that would come his way. Still, he understood that the US was the land of opportunity, as most immigrants do. Unfortunately, many native-born Americans don’t know how lucky they are to have been born here. They don’t understand what it’s like living in a place where too many obstacles, not of their own making, hinder most of the population.
Other Successful Immigrants
In looking through a list of successful immigrants the other day, I found myself surprised by some of the names on the list. Many hadn’t been born here. Some who had moved to and lived in the United States had also become citizens.
Hopefully, if you were born and raised here, you will recognize someone on this list and appreciate the hard work they had to put in to become a success.
Actors/Actresses:
Natalie Portman (Israel)
Mila Kunis (Ukraine)
Sofia Vergara (Colombia)
Penelope Cruz (Spain)
Bruce Willis (Germany)
Audrey Hepburn (Belgium)
Liam Neeson (Northern Ireland)
Charlize Theron (South Africa)
Anthony Hopkins and Bob Hope (England)
Politicians:
Henry Kissinger (Germany)
Madeleine Albright (Czech Republic)
Arianna Huffington (Greece)
Scientists:
Albert Einstein (Germany)
Nikola Tesla (Croatia)
Enrico Fermi (Italy)
Musicians:
Bob Marley (Jamaica)
Carlos Santana (Mexico)
Gloria Estefan (Cuba)
Neil Young (Canada)
Irving Berlin (Russia)
Eddie Van Halen (Netherlands)
Personalities:
Alex Trebek (Canada)
Ayn Rand (Russia)
Elon Musk (South Africa)
It would have been easy to add 100 additional names to the list above, but here is the point: it doesn’t matter where you’re from or what your calling is.
In America, anyone can become a success.