Recently, I came across this article from Inc. titled “5 Surprising Things Millennials Really Want at Work.” Like most articles generalizing my generation, the story didn’t list anything even remotely surprising or anything that could truly be attributed as a unique factor to us “Millenials.” Don’t all age groups want competitive salaries from their place of work? Shouldn’t all generations enjoy working for companies that allow them to give back and get involved with local charities? To speak on behalf of my generation: what we want the most is an end to the Millenial generalization.
In defense of Inc, this article did make a point to say that my generation has consistently been unfairly portrayed as spoiled, lazy and entitled, and that this stereotype simply isn’t the case. In fact, considering the fact that most of my generation was greeted with an economic recession following college graduation and as a result has often had to take unconventional and untraditional routes to find success, I find it strange that we don’t have the reputation as being the most savvy generation. But time and time again, I read article after article about alleged attributes of Millenials, characteristics of Millenials, failures of Millenials, etc. Yet somehow as a true blue Millenial I can rarely ever actually relate – most likely because 99% of the time, these articles are written by a 45 year old.
Overall, it seems that in reality, most people just fear a generation that is so comfortable refuting tradition, sparking conversation about topics feared by most others and taking a stand for what they truly believe. Millenials, like myself, are about making change that will inspire a population ready to break from conformity and make a difference in a world that is challenging us to constantly use our minds to drive change and progression. In a nutshell, don’t try to box us in.
