Millennials- lost or foraging their own path?

To the millennials

The term “Millennials” generally refers to the generation of people born between the early 1980s and 1990s. This is according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Some people also include children born in the early 2000s. The Millennial Generation is also known as Generation Y, because it comes after Generation X — those people born between the early 1960s and the 1980s. So I guess we obviously can guess who the generation Z is. Yeah, that smart little cousin you might be having who is already way more addicted and dependent on the internet than you are.

Ours is the generation which is accused of being not so politically and morally uptight. The ones who don’t have to struggle to get things done, who are too stubborn, disrespectful and lazy. You are free to add on to the list because we all know people who have the habit of addressing as ‘you people’. So why are things this way and how did we end up earning such a bad reputation for ourselves?

A 2012 study by USA Today found Millennials to be “more civically and politically disengaged, more focused on materialistic values, and less concerned about helping the larger community than were GenX (born 1962-1981) and Baby Boomers (born 1946 to about 1961) at the same ages”. “The trend is more of an emphasis on extrinsic values such as money, fame, and image, and less emphasis on intrinsic values such as self-acceptance, group affiliation and community.”

We are considered the ungrateful lot and I don’t know what to say about it cause honestly, we’ve all had moments where we felt that our parents made sacrifices for us which were completely unnecessary and then we feel guilty about the same and honestly it scares me too.

Personally, I believe that the only fault of ours is that we think being irresponsible is cool. The candidness is obvious when it comes to youth, but up to what extent is this callous nature acceptable. The problem is that apparently too much is talked about what is wrong and too little is done to make it right. When someone tries to make things change that person is crushed and hushed by all that is evil and prevalent. And that is when it is time to prove your metal and go on with the fight. Nothing good comes easy and what’s good is always worth a fight.

We did not have to face wars or fight for independence yet we have many other day to day struggles which probably no Baby Boomer (born between 1950’s-70’s) will understand. The self-centered life approach may be due to the rise of individualism in society. “There is a very consistent and reliable trend where all indicators of individualism [have] been on the rise over the course of the last 100 years,” Igor Grossman, a psychologist at the University of Waterloo, told an audience at the SPSP meeting.

Hard it is for them to keep up with the stress of being socially acceptable and the concept of cyber bullying or virtual stalking. It is not easy for them to understand the kind of embarrassments kids go through these days just because there are some people who feed on peace of mind of others. Despite all the security checks and everything, ours is the generation which is the most vulnerable to crime.

Talking about commitments, it won’t be wrong to say that we all are emotionally messed up no matter how much we deny it. Everyone is heartbroken and everyone is trying to protect themselves from heartache and lest do we acknowledge the pain we cause by denying ourselves the little pleasures of affection and trust. We are bold and vocal and yet most of us harbour insecurities. The Tinder generation tell itself that it is easy to be this way because there are many options available. Well, call me old fashioned but a youth sans actual romance is youth wasted.

It is sometimes scary to know that you will be part of future which might be dark and cynical. Hard it is to ignore the infamous cases that we have seen like Nirbhaya’s or Aarushi Talwar’s and the current Pradyuman murder case.

If that is not enough then apparently the environment won’t be kind to us either. With the latest pollution scare over northern India it is hard to think that the millennials would enjoy much golden years of their lives (just saying). Introspection is required to see where are we going or where do we want to go with this lifestyle which won’t sustain us for long.

Though all is not bad in the world. Studies have shown that Millennials are more liberal and independent than any other generation. A simple example to quote would be that today couples prefer to keep their jobs even after marriage even if it means they have to live part. They are more career and goal oriented. Sometimes personal life has to take a backseat to make ends meet. But that is an open secret.

So yes, maybe we are cool headed. Yes, we are candid. And yes, we are open minded but word needs to get out that we are no fools. When our parents had their youth, they rebelled in their own ways. They had their own ways of enjoying their time and now it is ours. So what if we take selfies or Snapchat everything? We are born in this time and it is our responsibility to make most of what luxury this time is providing us and don’t forget to prove it wrong that youth is not wasted on the young.

-Armaan Sandhu

Edited by Mrinaal Datt

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