It’s satisfying when you’re told that something about you is special. You may do a ton of volunteer work, you’re a kick-ass athlete, you’re insanely intelligent, or you’re a world traveler. Maybe you’re super cool and everyone loves you because you’re such a great person and you have thousands of Instagram followers that tell you that you’re “goals” or your words are “so important.” You feel like you stand out in your friend group or in a professional setting or even on social media and it feels good to feel needed and recognized and appreciated. The truth? You’re not that special. Millennials have this pressing need to feel unique and not only is it stereotypical and completely uncalled for, but it needs to stop.
It may sound harsh, but loving yourself is only okay to a certain extent. You should be at peace with your body and who you are as a person, but thinking that you’re awesome for just existing is ignorant. Sometimes I think to myself, “I’m doing great. I’m so involved and I really have it together.” I do actually do a lot. I manage a team of writers, I write, I’m a full time student, I’m in a sorority, I’m on my university’s competitive shooting team, I’m the captain of my team, I was the first freshman on the executive board for my team, I have a job, I’m in the honors program at my university. I could continue to list the things that make me who I am, but when you look at each thing on the list, none of them are truly unique. Do you have any idea how many people there are out there that are just like you and me? You’re just another fish in the sea. You’re just another statistic. It’s kind of a brutal mindset to have, but imagine how much harder you would try if you didn’t feel entitled.
If you realize that there’s a million other people working just as hard as you, you’ll have so much more motivation to step up your game. That’s the issue with this generation; everybody thinks that they’re so special and things are just going to come their way. That’s not the case. You’re not unique. In fact, you’re very much replaceable. Of course you mean a lot to your family and friends, but do you hold any significance to the rest of the world? Probably not, and I think that’s something that we should all strive for; we should strive to live a life that really matters. We should also know that we aren’t the best, we never will be, and keep trying to better ourselves and contribute to society despite that simple fact.
You’re costing somebody money. You’re taking up space. You’re in a long line of people waiting to take your position and they’re all just like you. Maybe you’re different than the next one in line because you were the captain of your swim team in college or you had a once in a lifetime internship that everyone was jealous of, but your attitude and work ethic say so much more. If you think that you can sit down, think highly of yourself, and slack off, you’re sadly mistaken. Maybe the next one in line was the mediocre athlete that was never captain or they had the crappy internship that they didn’t really want, but they’re prepared to take your spot and kick ass at whatever you can’t manage to put even half of your heart into doing.
Use your intellect to make something of yourself. Don’t be just another entitled millennial waiting for the participation award when you can’t manage to meet the expectations at hand. Be the millennial that knows that you’re not special and continues to work toward achieving greatness anyhow. You will be the one to really stand out.
