I Am A Millennial. I get it | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Politics and Activism

I Am A Millennial. I get it

According to TIME we are lazy narcissists who still live with our parents.

21
I Am A Millennial. I get it
Photograph by Andrew B. Myers for TIME, Styling by Joelle Litt

Millennials, A.K.A anyone born roughly between the 1980’s and 2000’s. The Baby Boom generation and Generation X have a lot to say about us. TIME magazine called Millennials “the Me, Me, Me generation” back in 2013 on the cover of their May 9th issue. Also on that cover they say we are, “lazy, entitled narcissists who still live with their parents.”

Considering that the later Generation Y children are still in high school, yes they are indeed still living with their parents. These are fighting words from a Mr. Joel Stein who isn’t very far off from being a millennial considering he was born in the '70s and is only 44. If a man who was in his 80’s or even his 50's was expressing his concern for this generation maybe I would listen, but at 44 Stein is still younger than my parents.

If you really want to bore yourself by reading the entire article go ahead and click here. I don’t want to go into detail and bash Stein any more than I already have so let's get straight to the point. I am a Millennial, I get it. Our generation has grown up differently than any generation before us because of technology, changes in the government and other life circumstances.

The Baby Boomers and Gen X didn’t have the luxury of owning a cell phone and being able to call or text their friends at any moment. They didn’t have Facebook and Instagram to see what their peers are doing and connect with them. I do agree that social media has made our generation rather unsocial, and I wish I would spend more time actually being with my friends but that is a story for another time.

My issue is with the generation who raised us now saying we are lazy and entitled and it’s all our fault. The same parents who gave out those participation trophies are now angry with us for getting participation trophies. Maybe it’s just me but I never felt proud of getting a participation ribbon, sure it was cool that I didn’t go home empty handed but I never ran around boasting about getting sixth place in a swim meet.

Stein tells us that he now "has proof" that Generation Y is more big headed than any other generation because he has facts and statistics to back it up. He only has statistics on two of the six living generations in the world today. There is no data on the Baby Boom generation or the Greatest Generation who came before them. Only Gen X and Gen Y are being compared. As a science major I know that this data is incomplete, and therefore I don't take much of what he has to say for credit.

As for all of us being lazy, that's based on the individual not the generation. The majority of Millennials are doing what they can with what they have, just like everybody else. Going to school, trying to get good jobs and excel in those jobs. If a person is lazy and entitled get rid of them, do not however label anyone as lazy or entitled because they were born between the 80’s and 00’s. I am so tired of being branded as something I am not. That is ageism and we all know you Boomer and Gen X people don't like being called old.

I would like to be judged by my character and actions, as would most other people regardless of the year they were born. When applying for my first big kid job I hope the manager interviewing me doesn’t consider me to be a lazy narcissist who lives with her parents. Lastly to all you Boomers and Gen X'rs who are so quick to judge, Millennials know that their elders have more life experience.

That’s why I went to my parents and asked for guidance when picking out an apartment or what company I should use for internet. I will be the first to admit that I honestly know nothing, and many of my peers understand they also know nothing. Lastly, all you Boomers and Gen X'rs out there better not forget what the “the Greatest” generation had to say about you (and we're the narcissists!).

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

12 Things I Learned my Freshmen Year of College

When your capability of "adulting" is put to the test

4037
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

302839
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments