We ran a story yesterday that suggested Generation Y or the Millennials (the generation of people born between 1980 and 2000) were being unfairly branded as lazy. From the response to the piece it is clear that many disagree. ‘Lazy’ is a subjective assessment anyway.
I recently learned that this generation is of the belief that they will not be as successful as their parents. So perhaps they are more resigned than lazy.
At last month’s ASTRA Women in TV breakfast, Viacom Media Networks Executive Vice President and Chief Research Officer Colleen Fahey Rush presented the highlights of a global research project on Millennials.
Teenagers across the globe were surveyed as part of this study in 2012. The Millennials who were interviewed for the research project expressed their hopes and fears for their future.
Of most concern to me was their belief that they wouldn’t succeed, before their careers had even begun. This wasn’t a gender issue. Both young men and women believed they would be unlikely to be as successful in their careers as their parents.
Perhaps this speaks to the visible success of the post-war Baby Boomers and Generation X who are their parents. Have our achievements really put our children off? What happened to success inspiring success?
After seeing this presentation I asked my teenage son if he thought he would be more successful than his parents and he said “no way” without hesitation. I tried to convince him that he could be but to no avail. That doesn’t stop him from aspiring to be successful. He certainly wants to be, and he believes he will be. Just not as successful.
There were a number of other concerns that united the participants of this study including terrorism, the economy and major disasters. My son has concerns about the state of the world’s economy too and that contributes to his belief in limited opportunity for career success.
Regardless of this the Millennial generation described themselves as “very happy”, as does my son. They expressed hope about world peace and bringing happiness to others. Their thoughts on limited personal career success doesn’t appear to cause them any real distress. And that’s because most of them are still living at home without the urgent need to earn a decent income to pay for rent and food.
The fact is that the majority of Millennials get on with their parents. Unlike their parents’ generation they are not rebelling against strict rules or vastly different views. Their parents are more likely to be their friends than their disciplinarians.
A friend shared recently her concern that the generation of our children will miss the struggle that has led to the creativity of generations before. And I think here is something in that. It’s not laziness that characterizes this group but possibly a lack of drive.
Do you agree?