For people in high school, college and even in jobs a few years after, a stereotype surrounds them – they supposedly think they “know it all.”
Do teens and twenty-somethings bother those older than them, perhaps come off as overly confident or rebellious or expressive? This surely isn’t news.Those who are fresh and green in the world are sure to come with new ideas and ways of living. Is this egotistical or just the way society progresses and develops…decade after decade, generation after generation?
A recent post and now trending story on the anonymous blog Wait But Why (WBW) got me thinking about this and much more.
WBW has posted items such as “7 Asinine Things About Society” and “7 Ways to Be Insufferable on Facebook”. One recent post though has flooded my timelines and news feeds and been featured on Huffington Post.
WBW decided to lay down some insight about my generation, Gen Y, through Microsoft Paint and stick figures, titling the post “Why Generation Y Yuppies Are Unhappy”. The article goes on to explain the unhappiness of Gen Y Protagonists & Special Yuppies. A short term for this group? GYPSY.
(Side note: Gypsy, really?)
It seems my generation are all kids from Lake Woebegone where children are above average – so special and ready to conquer the world. Of course not everyone in my generation is likely a protagonist or special yuppie but that’s beside the point of the WBW post.
Those in my generation are apparently unhappy, and unrightfully so!
WBW makes the point that a GYPSY thinks they are “unusually wonderful”. Somehow my generation is going into adulthood thinking great jobs are just going to happen to us. When they don’t, we are sad and it’s wrong to be that way. The op-ed even used Google Ngram to note the rise of certain phrases like “follow your passion” and “fulfilling career”. Apparently, their increased usage is evidence that my generation thinks the perfect job will just happen. We deserve it because we are just so darn cute and perfect.
But Google Ngram can only show what has been said and the increases/decreases – no information as to which generation is using it. I’ll add here that phrases like “financial stability” and “stable career” are also going up. So perhaps…people in general are now wanting to be fulfilled by a career in ways those long before did not think about as much.
From what I have learned from my parents (Baby Boomers), they took what their parents (G.I. generation) instilled in them and pushed to be even more successful. They grew up in a world of optimism. America was excelling – something their parents didn’t really have. So yes, they did better than they thought.
WBW is pretty spot on when noting happiness is the difference between reality and expectation.
My parents had careers that were rising as the country was – right until when Lehman fell. Boomers all around were getting to the peak of their income and stretched still for more, thus not saving or prepping for retirement. That issue has bled into my generation and for very valid reasons, is making us unhappy.
Let’s look at some hard facts, shall we?
Over a third of Americans aged 18 to 31 are living at home with their parents. For those not doing that, it’s most likely they are bunking with a roommate (or two or three) to make it work.
So that’s a bit of a bummer. We can at least look to getting a good job out of college, right? All those unpaid internships and lots of student debt will be soon be OK… Actually, maybe not.
Only about 40% of my generation have a full-time job. 12% are unemployed. The numbers aren’t ridiculously high but they’re still not great.
However, there could be a light at the end of the tunnel for those who have a full-time position, that they are getting somewhere with their goals. And again, hard fact. Only 30% of Millennials feel the job they have is part of their long-term career plan. My generation is unhappy for all those reasons above. Telling us to “just dive in” to a crowded job market and “ignore everyone” may not be the best way to fix things.
What we can do though is to strive to find something good and positive and possibly unique about ourselves. We can use this to push forward, stick out amongst the crowd, and get a chance to move forward to the job we want one day. I am in no way saying we should all think we’re super special, sparkly unicorns. We are NOT.
We are doing what we can despite all the daunting facts and realities… Success, being special, and wanting your “own personal dream”, not just a generalized one, are thoughts and issues people will always think about. Whether one chooses to act on their goals and dreams or remain pessimistic about the world is their decision.
Some of us have it easier than others. Some of us don’t.
There is going to be hard work no matter what. It’s tough to know that in your 20s and maybe much longer than that – you will not have things as easy as you see in the movies or on TV. Reality bites and you pay rent pay rent, buy groceries, go through years of unpaid internships and part-time work to finally get something that could be slightly fulfilling. We are trying though. If some optimism shines through or a unique idea bubbles to the service – is that so horrible?
I have never looked at my parents and thought that their desire for steady employment, a successful career, and hopes to get what they want as pointless or irresponsible or thinking they’re better than everyone else. I would hope they have never seen those same things in me and thought that either.
Gen Y didn’t get the economy to where it is at this point. Our anxieties when it comes to jobs, careers, and our future are justified.
But the big surprise here is that we do have something to offer and we know it. That doesn’t mean we think we’re all super special. We know we’re not CEOs or President yet, but to think because we’re young means we have nothing to offer at all is ridiculous.
Despite all the hardships we are being dealt – my generation can find ways to feel good about ourselves and push forward. We can see the realities of the world around us, let it sink in, then decide how to rally the troops and march on.
That is my generation, and I am proud to be a part of it.
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