Younger generations: not the best or the worst
Millennials prove to be no different from generations before them
Millennials are lazy.
Millennials are irresponsible.
Millennials are hands down the worst generation.
But that’s not the whole story.
Millennials are not the worst, nor are they the best. Millennials are just like everyone else.
Yes, millennials have a bad reputation, but not all of it is true.
Math teacher Andy Ramroth, a millennial, said, “I think each older generation finds ways to criticize younger generations. My grandpa was part of the World War II era ‘Greatest Generation,’ and he remembers being a little kid and his parents and teachers labeling that generation lazy and entitled.”
Still, there is a lot of data that supports the idea that millennials are lagging behind the generations before them.
Many people, especially from previous generations, argue that millennials postpone important life decisions. A study done by Goldman Sachs Investment Research shows that millennials are slow to move out of their parent’s home and wait longer to marry and have kids. In the 2010s, the median marriage age is 30 compared to 23 in the 1970s, according to the study.
But by far, one of the greatest complaints against millennials is that they are narcissistic and entitled. So much so that millennials have been dubbed “Generation Me.” This complaint is not completely unwarranted.
In his article “Millennials: The Me Me Me Generation,” Joel Stein, a contributor to TIME magazine, wrote, “Fifty-eight percent more college students scored higher on a narcissism scale in 2009 than in 1982. Millennials got so many participation trophies growing up that a recent study showed that 40 percent believe they should be promoted every two years, regardless of performance.”
Many people place part of the blame on the parents, who in their effort to boost their children’s self-esteem, have ingrained in their children a belief that they are special.
In fact, in his speech to the 2012 graduating class, Wellesley High School teacher David McCullough reminded the students that they are not special. The speech has since been part of the English curriculum for Carlmont freshmen, and is commonly referred to by students as the “You Are Not Special” speech.
Edison Bai, a senior, said, “[The speech] made me realize just how much we’ve been coddled. We’ve always been assured of our importance and guaranteed success. Yes, we are all different, but that doesn’t make us all special. We need to work to achieve.”
Another common belief is that technology and social media have exacerbated millennials self-importance and that millennials are a generation of instant gratification, screen-obsessed people.
However, it’s hard to determine whether previous generations wouldn’t have acted like millennials if they had smartphones when they grew up.
“Previous generations would be just as addicted [to phones] as millennials and younger generations. Millennials are not a different breed of human beings; they have just been raised with more screens in front of them, and of course addictions will occur. I always find it odd when parents complain about their kids being spoiled and addicted to their phones. Who spoiled them? Who paid for the phone plan?” said Ramroth.
In response to the criticism that millennials are conceited, many people question whether it's millennials who are self-centered, or rather young people in general who are narcissistic.
Elspeth Reeve, a writer for the Atlantic, counters Stein’s article, “Basically, it's not that people born after 1980 are narcissists, it's that young people are narcissists, and they get over themselves as they get older. It's like doing a study of toddlers and declaring those born since 2010 are Generation Sociopath: Kids These Days Will Pull Your Hair, Pee On Walls, Throw Full Bowls of Cereal Without Even Thinking of the Consequences.”
Still, the often unrecognized side of millennials is that, in some aspects, they are doing better than expected.
Millennials have been more generous than many people give them credit for. According to the Millennial Impact Report by the research group Achieve, 84 percent of millennials made a charitable contribution in 2014.
Millennials also take initiative. Oftentimes, they disregard traditional job pathways and conventions in order to open opportunities for themselves. Millennials are starting businesses at younger ages than their counterparts in previous generations, according to the 2016 Global Entrepreneur Report by banking group BNP Paribas. Millennials start their first business around age 27 compared to 35 for Baby Boomers, the generation born after World War II.
Jane Buckingham, who studies workplace changes, said to TIMES, “I hear story after story of people high up in an organization saying, 'Well, this person just emailed me and asked me for an hour of my time, and for whatever reason, I gave it to them.' So the great thing is that [millennials] feel entitled to all of this, so they'll be more innovative and more willing to try new things, and they'll do all this cool stuff."
Also, despite claims that millennials are job-hoppers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that today's 22 to 29 year-olds are no more likely than their peers in previous generations to quit their jobs.
“The facts and figures in favor of millennials aren’t mind blowing. Millennials and future generations, including us, are lacking in many areas and doing well in only a few. So while I wouldn’t say we are the worst generation to ever walk the earth, we are far from the best. I think the best descriptor of millennials is a shoulder shrug and a ‘meh,’” said Andrew Luna, a senior.
Millennials right now are in their 20s and 30s; they are growing up and entering the workforce. As time passes and Generation Z takes the spotlight, it will become clearer who millennials are, not as children and teens, but as adults in society.
Ramroth said, “When we were kids, we were called lazy, spoiled, and self-centered. That's because we were kids! Now, most of the older part of the millennial generation I know are educated, employed, and moving on with their lives and participating in society and the economy just like every generation before them.”
Carlmont students represent the end of the millennials and the beginning of Generation Z. Raised in the “Information Age,” current teens are exposed to all the influences and more that older generations say make millennials a disappointing generation.
Bai said, “I think we need to be aware of our faults and willing to address them. It would be so easy for us to be just a narcissistic and entitled as the stereotype portrays us as. But if we continue to do what we are doing right, even if it’s not conventional, and learn and avoid what we’re doing wrong, I think this generation could be pretty great.”
Millennials are irresponsible.
Millennials are hands down the worst generation.
But that’s not the whole story.
Millennials are not the worst, nor are they the best. Millennials are just like everyone else.
Yes, millennials have a bad reputation, but not all of it is true.
Math teacher Andy Ramroth, a millennial, said, “I think each older generation finds ways to criticize younger generations. My grandpa was part of the World War II era ‘Greatest Generation,’ and he remembers being a little kid and his parents and teachers labeling that generation lazy and entitled.”
Still, there is a lot of data that supports the idea that millennials are lagging behind the generations before them.
Many people, especially from previous generations, argue that millennials postpone important life decisions. A study done by Goldman Sachs Investment Research shows that millennials are slow to move out of their parent’s home and wait longer to marry and have kids. In the 2010s, the median marriage age is 30 compared to 23 in the 1970s, according to the study.
But by far, one of the greatest complaints against millennials is that they are narcissistic and entitled. So much so that millennials have been dubbed “Generation Me.” This complaint is not completely unwarranted.
In his article “Millennials: The Me Me Me Generation,” Joel Stein, a contributor to TIME magazine, wrote, “Fifty-eight percent more college students scored higher on a narcissism scale in 2009 than in 1982. Millennials got so many participation trophies growing up that a recent study showed that 40 percent believe they should be promoted every two years, regardless of performance.”
Many people place part of the blame on the parents, who in their effort to boost their children’s self-esteem, have ingrained in their children a belief that they are special.
In fact, in his speech to the 2012 graduating class, Wellesley High School teacher David McCullough reminded the students that they are not special. The speech has since been part of the English curriculum for Carlmont freshmen, and is commonly referred to by students as the “You Are Not Special” speech.
Edison Bai, a senior, said, “[The speech] made me realize just how much we’ve been coddled. We’ve always been assured of our importance and guaranteed success. Yes, we are all different, but that doesn’t make us all special. We need to work to achieve.”
Another common belief is that technology and social media have exacerbated millennials self-importance and that millennials are a generation of instant gratification, screen-obsessed people.
However, it’s hard to determine whether previous generations wouldn’t have acted like millennials if they had smartphones when they grew up.
“Previous generations would be just as addicted [to phones] as millennials and younger generations. Millennials are not a different breed of human beings; they have just been raised with more screens in front of them, and of course addictions will occur. I always find it odd when parents complain about their kids being spoiled and addicted to their phones. Who spoiled them? Who paid for the phone plan?” said Ramroth.
In response to the criticism that millennials are conceited, many people question whether it's millennials who are self-centered, or rather young people in general who are narcissistic.
Elspeth Reeve, a writer for the Atlantic, counters Stein’s article, “Basically, it's not that people born after 1980 are narcissists, it's that young people are narcissists, and they get over themselves as they get older. It's like doing a study of toddlers and declaring those born since 2010 are Generation Sociopath: Kids These Days Will Pull Your Hair, Pee On Walls, Throw Full Bowls of Cereal Without Even Thinking of the Consequences.”
Still, the often unrecognized side of millennials is that, in some aspects, they are doing better than expected.
Millennials have been more generous than many people give them credit for. According to the Millennial Impact Report by the research group Achieve, 84 percent of millennials made a charitable contribution in 2014.
Millennials also take initiative. Oftentimes, they disregard traditional job pathways and conventions in order to open opportunities for themselves. Millennials are starting businesses at younger ages than their counterparts in previous generations, according to the 2016 Global Entrepreneur Report by banking group BNP Paribas. Millennials start their first business around age 27 compared to 35 for Baby Boomers, the generation born after World War II.
Jane Buckingham, who studies workplace changes, said to TIMES, “I hear story after story of people high up in an organization saying, 'Well, this person just emailed me and asked me for an hour of my time, and for whatever reason, I gave it to them.' So the great thing is that [millennials] feel entitled to all of this, so they'll be more innovative and more willing to try new things, and they'll do all this cool stuff."
Also, despite claims that millennials are job-hoppers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that today's 22 to 29 year-olds are no more likely than their peers in previous generations to quit their jobs.
“The facts and figures in favor of millennials aren’t mind blowing. Millennials and future generations, including us, are lacking in many areas and doing well in only a few. So while I wouldn’t say we are the worst generation to ever walk the earth, we are far from the best. I think the best descriptor of millennials is a shoulder shrug and a ‘meh,’” said Andrew Luna, a senior.
Millennials right now are in their 20s and 30s; they are growing up and entering the workforce. As time passes and Generation Z takes the spotlight, it will become clearer who millennials are, not as children and teens, but as adults in society.
Ramroth said, “When we were kids, we were called lazy, spoiled, and self-centered. That's because we were kids! Now, most of the older part of the millennial generation I know are educated, employed, and moving on with their lives and participating in society and the economy just like every generation before them.”
Carlmont students represent the end of the millennials and the beginning of Generation Z. Raised in the “Information Age,” current teens are exposed to all the influences and more that older generations say make millennials a disappointing generation.
Bai said, “I think we need to be aware of our faults and willing to address them. It would be so easy for us to be just a narcissistic and entitled as the stereotype portrays us as. But if we continue to do what we are doing right, even if it’s not conventional, and learn and avoid what we’re doing wrong, I think this generation could be pretty great.”