The Millennials I Know

Ok, we’ve all seen the headlines: “Millennials are killing this, Millennials are killing that”. Technically, a millennial is someone born between 1981 and 1996, but, what does that mean exactly? Well, I think it depends on who you ask.

If you’re asking a baby boomer or Gen Xer,  you might hear them say something along the lines of calling the entire group lazy, entitled, ungrateful and “killing” any number of industries (read this BuzzFeed article with an updated list of what died in 2018!!) or in need of instant gratification. 

But, if you ask a fellow millennial (like myself), you might hear something a little different. I went to Instagram and asked my friends for a few words they would use to describe our generation:

These were some of the things that came back, and I have to agree.

The millennials I know are hard working and, in my opinion, the most accepting generation to date. We care about the environment and don’t care about how you identify. Older generations may call us “snowflakes” for being aware of others’ feelings. But what’s wrong with that? Caring about other people?

Millennials are trying to live and work in a world that was arguably made harder to live in by previous generations, and not to mention more expensive.

According to businessinsider.com, millennials will pay 39% more than baby boomers who bought their first homes in the 1980s. Since millennials aren’t buying homes, that means they’re renting spaces, and those costs are increasing, too.

Rent increased 46% from the 1960s to the 2000s, and according to Zillow.com, the median rent for an apartment in 2018 was $1,600. And, of course, I have to mention…student loan debt.

From the 1980s to the 2017-2018 school year, there was a tuition increase of 213% at public universities, when adjusted for inflation, according to Student Loan Hero. Also, due to the higher rates of student loan debt and cost of living, millennial parents have to pay more for childcare so they can work in jobs to pay off the previously accrued debt. 

We’ve had to adapt quickly to constantly changing technological and societal standards. We’re reducing our plastic intake and overall carbon footprint because for the last 60 years single-use plastic has been -- quite literally -- thrown to the wind and into our oceans. 

Yes, we spend “too much time” on our phones and online. But guess what...the internet has made the world smaller for us, allowing for our entire generation to connect with more people who are part of different cultures allowing for more universal acceptance. 

We’re forward thinking. Because of what we want for the generations coming after us, we’re changing how investors are using their money. According to an NBC News article written late 2018, when millennials “were asked what’s more important — making money or making an impact — the majority of all investors (67 percent) said they would prioritize having an impact.” As a generation, we would rather have a lower return on our investment knowing that the company or product we were investing in had a positive overall impact. That’s pretty incredible.

When I took to Instagram to ask my friends how they would describe being a millennial, I also asked, “What do you like about being a millennial?” and there were so many things I didn’t even think of:

So, sure. There are some entitled and overly sensitive bad seeds grouped in with us, but aren’t there some of those in every generation? I am eager to see where our generation takes us in the future.