I would define the American Dream as "everyone having the ability/opportunity to work hard to achieve their goals through self sufficiency". Basically everybody having the equal chance to do what they love and prosper from that. Prosperity doesn't have to be a monetary value like many people believe.
Our society is very monetary driven. Some people get the jobs that they do, just for the money that they will make, despite the fact that they will be miserable. Some people are so infatuated by money that they are willing to go into jobs that they don't enjoy because they have high paying salaries. However, others get jobs because it is what they are passionate about. They might not make a lot of money, but they are driven in their chosen profession.
These two mindsets are also correlated how people help others and donate to others. The people that are in careers simply for the monetary gains are less likely to donate their money to people that are less fortunate. But, people that are more passionate about their careers are more likely to donate. (Hence the Gatsby meme). People that have more money might not want to donate it to others...which just increases the wealth/poverty gap.
Despite most people defining wealth as a monetary value, I define it as something that makes working worth working (if that makes sense). Wealth is the benefits that you get from working. It might be monetary. It might be the happiness/good feelings you get by helping people. But I believe that it is what you gain from working.
Who I am: Job-wise, I work in retail purely for a monetary gain. I need to put gas in the car and I need to go to college. I don't despise my job, but I definitely don't love it. Who I want to become: I want to create a career for myself that I will be passionate about and that I will love. I want a job where I can make people happy, which in return will make me happy. To me, improving somebody else's life is the ultimate gain.
