During the presidential and general elections, the media made a stink about the Millennials. They went from crybabies (due to not letting go of Bernie Sanders’s loss) to slackers that didn’t go out to the polls to vote. It seems the adults in the room can’t stop complaining about, and have borderline bullied, an entire generation because they arent living to their expectations. They took offense when the kids charged to the polls and streets to protest the bigotry and closed mindness of their new elected leader, ironic because their Boomer parents took to the streets to protest as well. Their children are rekindling the civil rights movement their parents dropped when they joined corporate America to do more of the same oppression and discrimination they fought against. Capitalism at its best.
Maybe people didn’t realize the oldest Millenials, now 35-25, are already the doctors, lawyers, tradespeople and blue colar workers of “the future”. We ARE the progress…
With a slight edge over the Boomer population, 75.4 million to 74.9, the 18-35 year olds are taking the biggest piece of the working class as of 2015. 😀 If you are wondering, the Gen Xers are not as many, and they never had the ability to fully commandeer the traditional industries run by their parents. What did they do? They built new ones with their no nonsense attitude and penchant for getting things done efficiently and effectively. Companies like Tesla, SpaceX, Google, Amazon and Facebook are overrun with kids who program apps and create processes and tools to make your life easier while shooting for the stars, literally. – Self driving car, anyone? -Geeks with PCs and Macs created this virtual environment we live in and now their kids and siblings, and in some cases grandkids, optimize and rule it supreme.
The contributions of the Boomers and Traditionalists are invaluable but it is time they stepped down and handed over the reigns. This generation is ready to take the next step and find the solutions they seek in their own people and in those adults that can appreciate the doors opened by our way of thinking and what our life experiences bring to the table: aspiring to obtain work-life balance in a world where people don’t have to go broke to keep their families safe and healthy.
Millennials In The Workplace: They Don’t Need Trophies But They Want Reinforcement – Forbes
To add insult to injury, many Boomers still believe we are lazy bums that switch jobs every 2 to 3 years. Well…those projections were made before the kids hit the ground running career wise. Even though there is truth to the job flip flop statement, it is not because Gen Yers are not loyal to the companies that hired them. The phenomenon arrises from the discontent they feel when the companies that they are loyal to do not provide growth opportunities nor protect their job security. When you are new to adulting or worse, newly married with kids, the last thing you want is a pink slip or the burden of more responsibility for the same amount of pay. This generation refuses to repeat the failures and mistakes of their parents and require a healthy work-life balance schedule. It is no secret that compensation and flexibility are key to retaining this generation who was coached by their Boomer parents (irony again) to demand special treatment and consideration. Heck, even my Boomer counterparts enjoy the benefits of alternate work schedules and days off with pay! Hehe
Millennials are more than unique snowflakes that get their feelings hurt; they are agents of change. It is their ability to sympathize with others and form activist movements that enables them to become the change they want to see in the world. You think they recycle or drive a Prius because it is trendy? No! They were taught to conserve energy and resources since their first day in Kindergarten and are extremely savvy when it comes to upcycling and reuse. Captain planet and Bob the Builder where their heroes…did you expect any less of them?
Yes, they may be annoying to anyone over 45 but that is because #1 we remind them of their children or siblings and #2 between the whining and moaning we make some good arguments and points. Student loan debt taught us that education should be affordable, especially when we can’t expect the salary our parents got and a cheap housing market. Not being able to afford health care made us empathize with the poor and hard working classes who are in the same boat with us in this respect. Even when we work we can barely afford the luxuries the generations before us enjoyed. The picket fence, a dog and 2.5 kids American Dream is no longer feasible, so we adapted and endure.
Fight it all you want but there is absolutely no proof that the Millennials are rotten apples or a bad deal. They said that about the Gen Xers and they opened the internet for us and sent goods directly to our homes! Imagine what we could achieve if you cheered them on instead of berating them. It is the age of the Millennials. Step aside and let them prove you wrong. (After all, momma didn’t raise no quitters or losers. Am I right?)
Mrs. Enginerd - Nerd Whisperer 