But 44 percent feel the U.S. is not headed in the right direction, which is slightly more than the 40 percent who said the same 10 years ago.
When it comes to defining success, Americans in 2009 ranked “being financially prepared for the future” last out of a list of six. Ten years later, Americans are more conscious about financially preparing for the future and ranked that attribute fourth out of six.
Topping the list of successful attributes in 2009 were spending quality time with family, followed by having a good relationship with a spouse or partner, being healthy, having a good work/life balance, being a good parent and being financially prepared for the future.
In 2019, the ranking is similar with slightly less priority going to having a good work/life balance and more to being financially prepared for the future. There was a first place tie for spending quality time with family and being healthy, followed by having a good relationship with your spouse or partner, being financially prepared for the future, having a good work/life balance, and being a good parent.