"Millennials are lazy, entitled, incompetent..."
We've all heard an adult go on this sort of tirade about the inadequacy of the younger generation. To the amusement of the internet, Australian millionaire Tim Gurner even went so far as to blame Millennials' failure to buy homes on their propensity to spend too much money on avocado toast.
Whatever the reason for the differences between older folks and today's young adults, individuals who reached adulthood before the turn of the century seem to agree that Millennials just don't cut it. Baby boomers and members of Generation X are quick to point out how they paid their own way through college, bought a house by the age of 23, and lived by "old-fashioned values."
These self-righteous assertions from older generations, however, are ignoring one very important fact: the times have changed.
If you attended college during the Reagan era of the 1980s, odds are you could feasibly pay for your education working an entry-level job. What's more, you graduated college during a time in which the economy gained between 150,000 and 250,000 jobs a month. While achieving success in the late 20th century did require hard work and dedication, it could also be chalked up to a factor beyond anyone's control: luck.
Fast forward to the 2000s and the economic climate of the Bush and Obama administrations had painted a much different picture. This time period saw astronomical tuition fees for four-year colleges, an abysmal housing market, and one of the sharpest economic downturns since the Great Depression - circumstances entirely different from those experienced by older generations.
Growing up in this era certainly created a sense of economic cynicism among Millennials, not to mention an attitude of resignation to a severe lack of economic opportunity. But we millennials have not allowed the circumstances of our upbringing to affect our determination to change the world.
According to The Holmes Report, Millennials are actually one of the most "talented, energized and creative generations," while Time Magazine stated in 2013 that Millennials pose "a great force for positive change."
Furthermore, the Pew Research Center characterized the Millennial generation as "confident, self-expressive, liberal, upbeat and open to change" as well as being more ethnically and racially diverse than their predecessors. Additionally, Millennials are on their way to becoming "the most educated generation in American history."
If these factors don't create a perfect formula for positive social, political, and economic change, I don't know what does.
Millennials might not be paying their way through college, but that's because to do so in the 21st century is nearly impossible. We might not be homeowners, but that's because we can barely afford a college education let alone property. And maybe we don't live by "old-fashioned values," but that's because we've created a new set of values all our own - more modern, more inclusive, and more open-minded.
Together, our generation has the power to change everything... And that's exactly what we're going to do.
