A letter to my fellow millennials
One of my English professors this semester (in her mid-forties, used to be a work shop teacher and is pretty awesome) tells our class frequently that she thinks millennials will change the world. She says that we weren’t afraid to stand up for what we believe in and are willing to rock the social norms boat. This is pretty refreshing to hear considering that most of the time, my generation is called out for being too narcissistic and ungrateful. The professor told the class that we should revel in our generation and to not let the Gen ‘X-ers’ take away from our time as the youth.
I really liked this notion. Times change, it’s inevitable, so why fight it and make an entire generation feel bad about enjoying the newness of our ingenuity.
But here’s the kicker; we're never going to be this amazing generation that changes the world and cures cancer and solves world hunger if we don’t stop quitting.
My little brother called me the other day and told me that one of his friends quit the football team. He was a fourth string something on the varsity team as a junior and knew he wouldn’t get any playing time. He just wasn’t having fun.
This irked me. Because sometimes, the commitments we make aren’t about having fun. He made a commitment to be the fourth string linebacker and now he was backing out? Does he think he is going to get better by quitting? Because even though he wasn’t getting playing time on the field, he was still practicing every day and still had the coaches respect. What happens when he tries out next year, does he think being a senior will solve all his problems? No. Because he is going to be out of practice and the coach will only view him as a kid who doesn’t care enough to stick around and get better.
Sometimes, its not about having fun. You make a commitment, you stick with it. I know other people have quit jobs because of the management but then complain about not having money. If you want something bad enough, you’ll grit through the pain of having to respect someone we don't like and do it anyway because that’s how you get it done.
And as much as I and the next person appreciate technology and all that it has done to improve our lives, we’re not going to get things done by raging on social media behind our computers. In order to make a real change, we will have to go out there and be active in the change. We will have to work hard for this change. Maybe it would do us some good to learn some lessons in dedication and commitment.
So in order to be the generation that changes the world for the better, we have to start stepping up and proving we can do more than just take selfies. It won't be easy but we can do it, we can change the world. And pretty soon, it'll be us in charge.
