Millennials compared to your generation
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xFunctionalStrengthx wrote: »Worthless degrees are putting millennials in debt. There has been a big push for people going to college and getting a degree that they then can not apply in the workforce. Liberal arts degree for one. Beyond that, far too many are getting master's degrees when they don't need to.
Research disagrees actually. As mentioned for millennials, they tend to focus on immediate feedback, satisfaction and return on everything they put effort into. There is plenty of research that college degrees more than pay for themselves over a 10 year period, and very valuable beyond. It is a longer term investment than many people want to consider, but that is nothing new. Just seems to very prominent in discussions now. It took me nearly 7 years to pay off my degree debt, but having my degrees has served me very well past that, allowing many more opportunities for employment and advancement. There are plenty of students that do not do enough research into their areas of interest and career choices though (liberal arts, English, etc) and do end up incurring larger debt for what their industry will support. They will have a longer payback period, but all the reports I have read pay out after no more than 10 years. Ironically, politicians love to place blame directly on colleges and universities that they didn't warn students of their choices, but almost all campus's have career research tools and resources that are free, but students rarely use them except to find work while going to school. Colleges are doing better to provide industry forecast information links directly on program pages now though so it helps queue students into maybe doing that research.
I remember sitting through all the "our magical degree will get you the job you want" speeches when looking into college options as a jr/sr and thinking "well of coarse you are going to say that, you are trying to sell me something". I think we may have gotten suckered in a bit and forgot that while they are there to educate, they also have to make money and they want your money. Make sure you think about weather you are spending it well.
I think we also got lost in the "name brand schools" and thinking the big universities degree is better. It may be the case in certain fields, but definitely not all of them. In my experience, once you get the first couple years of being in the workforce under you belt just having the degree is all that matters and your reputation and experience become more important than what school you went to.2 -
sportychic87 wrote: »Apparently 30 is considered a ‘millennial’?
I had an interview with a lady 2X my age and she seriously asked me if I knew what an I9 was...for an HR spot
I stared at her for a good two minutes and busting up laughing...
This whole ‘millennial’ thing is over the top. People are just people. Everything else is superficial stuff IMO.
I'm at the top of millennial and I'm 30. Baby Boomers can't seem to grasp the difference between a millennial and a Gen Z.
they overlap alot though0 -
Seems like we were punished a bit harsher for violating the rules of the house. More of emphasis on spankings and other harsh punitive measures. My parents would have me and brother kneel down on a hard wood floor covered with raw rice if we were being disrespectful. I guess parents these days can't get away with doing any of that for fear of having the police or CPS getting involved.0
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4legsRbetterthan2 wrote: »xFunctionalStrengthx wrote: »Worthless degrees are putting millennials in debt. There has been a big push for people going to college and getting a degree that they then can not apply in the workforce. Liberal arts degree for one. Beyond that, far too many are getting master's degrees when they don't need to.
Research disagrees actually. As mentioned for millennials, they tend to focus on immediate feedback, satisfaction and return on everything they put effort into. There is plenty of research that college degrees more than pay for themselves over a 10 year period, and very valuable beyond. It is a longer term investment than many people want to consider, but that is nothing new. Just seems to very prominent in discussions now. It took me nearly 7 years to pay off my degree debt, but having my degrees has served me very well past that, allowing many more opportunities for employment and advancement. There are plenty of students that do not do enough research into their areas of interest and career choices though (liberal arts, English, etc) and do end up incurring larger debt for what their industry will support. They will have a longer payback period, but all the reports I have read pay out after no more than 10 years. Ironically, politicians love to place blame directly on colleges and universities that they didn't warn students of their choices, but almost all campus's have career research tools and resources that are free, but students rarely use them except to find work while going to school. Colleges are doing better to provide industry forecast information links directly on program pages now though so it helps queue students into maybe doing that research.
I remember sitting through all the "our magical degree will get you the job you want" speeches when looking into college options as a jr/sr and thinking "well of coarse you are going to say that, you are trying to sell me something". I think we may have gotten suckered in a bit and forgot that while they are there to educate, they also have to make money and they want your money. Make sure you think about weather you are spending it well.
I think we also got lost in the "name brand schools" and thinking the big universities degree is better. It may be the case in certain fields, but definitely not all of them. In my experience, once you get the first couple years of being in the workforce under you belt just having the degree is all that matters and your reputation and experience become more important than what school you went to.
I would tell most youths to get a associates degree until they figure out what they actually care about doing. It applies to a 4 year and is more valuable out of the gate. Also, many people decide to do something different after they been working for awhile. (How can a 17/18 year old make a decision that will impact the majority of their life at that age?)
The thing that's valuable now is a Masters degree. Which would be the only reason I would suggest a 4 year degree.
Also, for some reason, many businesses requires a 4 year degree but it doesn't have to relate to the actual business, which is weird. I don't understand the point of that. Also it doesn't matter if you have the experience.
Plus the weird business catch-22 of we want experience, but college kids can't get experience unless they get the job.0 -
TeacupsAndToning wrote: »I hope that when I am older I don't feel as negatively towards the younger generation as some other people.
I personally don't get it. I'm GenX (1974) and I know quite a few millennials...I'm in an executive position at my work, and my star performer is a millennial...she's 26 or 27 I think and she is hands down the hardest worker in our office and does whatever needs doing regardless of whether it's in her "job description." On the other hand, there are a lot of baby boomers and early GenX in my office and they're just collecting a check and counting down to retirement and God help you if you ask them to do something that isn't specifically in their duties description.
My best lady friend (outside of my wife) is a latter end millennial...she and her husband run their own business as personal trainers and own their own gym...they're always working and rarely have time for a long weekend getaway, let alone an actual vacation.
I graduated college when I was 30 and went to work for a regional mid sized CPA firm...I was the old fogie there as staff accountants go...I'd say about 90%+ of the staff accountants at the firm were millennials in their early 20s just out of college...bunch of millennials grinding out 12 hour days 6 days per week and traveling 25 weeks out of the year for basically peanuts (good money didn't come until you made it to senior associate)...bunch of lazy bums I tell ya...7 -
macrologger wrote: »The economy sucks for the millennials....not their fault. The opportunity is still there to achieve as much as they want, they may just have to work a little harder and get a little more creative in doing so.....a majority of them would rather not.....that is their fault. The present time is your reality and if that means if you have to act in a way the previous generation didn't have to....so be it. That's life and it isn't fair.
I was a kid and a young man in the 80s and early 90s. I lived in the projects in the Bronx poor as *kitten* and didn't have the same opportunities as those in other places that were enjoying a great economy. Generation this or that had absolutely no meaning or bearing on me. I went into the Marine Corp as an escape.....and it proved to me how wrong I was about not having the same opportunities. I just had a different path, a harder path, but it was there just the same. It was up to me to take it or not.
Well, it's many years later and I am not poor, don't live in a ghetto, and enjoy all the same privileges as anyone else and then some.
I work with millennials on a daily basis - trust me, they won't work for it. They want it handed to them.
Interesting...some of the hardest working and top performers I know are millennials...2 -
RaeBeeBaby wrote: »CanesGalactica wrote: »rheddmobile wrote: »All my friends couldn't wait to get their driver's license on their 16th birthday, I know several Millennials who are in their 20s and can't drive.
Millennials also have the worst handwriting. My handwriting is terrible compared to most people of my generation, but most Millennials grew up writing everything on a screen and have handwriting like mine before I started grade school. And some can't even read handwriting - one of the things I do as a hobby is transcribe historical documents for NARA, and some of the young people I have encountered are shocked that I can read perfectly legible cursive handwriting, they have never learned.
I'm 32 (nearly 33) and I didn't obtain a driver's license until I was 20. I just had no inclination to learn to drive because where I lived (which was rural, mind you) everything was still completely walkable (for me). Didn't seem like there was much incentive to learn, especially since I couldn't afford a vehicle, had three jobs and was going to school full time (which I was paying for, in part).
I believe I only know one person that waited until after she hit 30 to learn to drive.. and that was because it was a necessity. Everyone else knew how to and/or had cars before they even hit college.
So living rural you walked to 3 jobs and school?! (Not being facetious, that just seems pretty incredible.)
If so, then good for you. Not only time consuming, but great exercise. If mom or dad was your taxi service, then getting the driver's license would have been helpful to them even if you were borrowing the family car.
Yes. And yes, it was time consuming, but.. I didn't have a vehicle and those I knew who did I did not feel comfortable asking constantly for a ride when they had their own jobs/school to worry about.
To be fair, two of the jobs were on campus so only 10 or so minutes from my place at the time. Last job was a bit of a stretch and yep, grocery shopping was a pain. Had to be done in really small intervals or I had to wait until 3AM when my flatmate would go shopping, lol.
My folks lived about 1 hour and 4 hours away (divorced) and worked swing shifts, so no dice there most of the time even though they offered help plenty of times with a weekend grocery shopping trip here or there when they came to visit me. Otherwise, I just managed on my own.
I do really miss the exercise from all that walking.1 -
xFunctionalStrengthx wrote: »Worthless degrees are putting millennials in debt. There has been a big push for people going to college and getting a degree that they then can not apply in the workforce. Liberal arts degree for one. Beyond that, far too many are getting master's degrees when they don't need to.
Research disagrees actually. As mentioned for millennials, they tend to focus on immediate feedback, satisfaction and return on everything they put effort into. There is plenty of research that college degrees more than pay for themselves over a 10 year period, and very valuable beyond. It is a longer term investment than many people want to consider, but that is nothing new. Just seems to very prominent in discussions now. It took me nearly 7 years to pay off my degree debt, but having my degrees has served me very well past that, allowing many more opportunities for employment and advancement. There are plenty of students that do not do enough research into their areas of interest and career choices though (liberal arts, English, etc) and do end up incurring larger debt for what their industry will support. They will have a longer payback period, but all the reports I have read pay out after no more than 10 years. Ironically, politicians love to place blame directly on colleges and universities that they didn't warn students of their choices, but almost all campus's have career research tools and resources that are free, but students rarely use them except to find work while going to school. Colleges are doing better to provide industry forecast information links directly on program pages now though so it helps queue students into maybe doing that research.
Anecdotally, everyone that I know that completed a master's degree found much greater advancement and opportunity with it, as I have. The issue becomes that you have the higher paying jobs that require the masters degree and you have a lot more candidates that apply for them. They are coveted positions and that is what everyone wants. It isn't like walking into any McDonalds and almost every one will hire a person. Employers have very highly qualified people applying and can be selective. Again, that is my personal experience in both applying for positions and doing a lot of hiring of those positions over the years. The last open position we posted had 42 applicants, all with masters degrees and higher, and a lot of years of experience. Then again, if you look at stats the higher degrees also do pay back over time.
Views will vary depending upon the field of study and work one is in. If you're in research, education, or other similar fields, then yes. A master's may very well help you out. However, there's many times where college degrees don't add to much and people can't find jobs in the fields they studied. Thus, you have college educated burger flippers and espresso makers. Where's the value in that?
Is it the college's fault that their students graduate with a degree that most likely won't benefit them? To some degree, yes. They will market said degrees heavily, and some will talk about lucrative careers with high salary. But, at the same time, it's also the individual's responsibility to study the job market and determine what jobs pay well, are good solid careers, and which of them they'd like to do. Not everyone can be a college professor, politician, or game developer. You need auto mechanics, tradesmen/women, and other general laborers to fill a wide variety of roles. Yet, there's a heavy emphasis on going to college for these as well. So, in many ways, colleges market themselves the same way Pepsi or Coke will. "Consume this and you'll be great"
Not everyone requires a college education, nor a master's degree, to succeed. Again, it comes down to what's relative for your field. For a while, there was a heavy push for certifications in my field. But, in my almost twenty years, the fact that they lapsed over 15 years ago doesn't matter. It's the skills, the knowledge that's accrued over that time which is more important than the piece of paper. College degree? Sure, it might help to get hired by some companies which require them. But, they don't pay any better, nor are those jobs more prestigious than what I do. Again, experience.
If two candidates are 100% equal in terms of skills, personality, thought process. yet, the ONLY difference is papers one may hold, then it might make a difference. But, rarely do papers make the sole deciding factor. More often than not, again, it's the experience, work history and personality. Usually, references (including google searches on candidates), have a deciding factor as well.
Another key factor, which someone eluded to before is that there isn't much loyalty from employers to employees. True. But, at the same time, when a company hires an employee only to have them leave a few months later after they've built skills. The employer sees it as well. Or, a long time employee jumps ship because they are making less than a recent college grad with minimal experience being brought in. There goes the experience, yet the market demands higher salaries for new employees so the old leaves for higher pay. Again, an employee may jump ship because they're tired of the annual 1.5% pay increase. The only way they'll get a decent salary is the jump jobs a time or two. So, who's really to blame? They both are.Anyway, it is interesting that noted differences in generation makes people think you are old and negative. Being the father of two boys with these varied skills, priorities, and valuation, I am far from it. In order to communicate and work with anyone of any age you have to understand their mindset, then work within it to teach or relate.
ALL people are being socialized the same so the effects are broadly distributed over all age groups. Younger people are more influenced by it and it is deeper in their experience is all. So while things like critical thinking, immediate satisfaction, etc are notable to most younger groups, it still effects a portion of older groups.
That said, get off my lawn.
This is far more accurate of a description in how people are than generational labels. I know some people in their mid 20's with very solid work ethics. But, I also know more who care for nothing other than themselves and what they can get for free because they feel they get the shaft and they "deserve" it.
Personality traits cross many different demographics such as age, gender, and whatever else labels people want to put on themselves beyond those two.1 -
rheddmobile wrote: »All my friends couldn't wait to get their driver's license on their 16th birthday, I know several Millennials who are in their 20s and can't drive.
Millennials also have the worst handwriting. My handwriting is terrible compared to most people of my generation, but most Millennials grew up writing everything on a screen and have handwriting like mine before I started grade school. And some can't even read handwriting - one of the things I do as a hobby is transcribe historical documents for NARA, and some of the young people I have encountered are shocked that I can read perfectly legible cursive handwriting, they have never learned.
I know a lot of people who can't/don't drive...millennials, genx, boomers...because they're in the city and never needed to.
I had my license at 16, but I went years in my 20s without a car and without driving...'cuz I didn't need to...anything I needed was within walking or biking distance and if not, there was public transportation. I didn't need a car until I turned 30 and graduated and took a job that required me to commute and travel.0 -
TeacupsAndToning wrote: »I think what bothers me is the generalizations. I could come out and say, "I hate how gen x-ers do this, I hate how gen x-ers do that." If I were to do that, I'm sure a lot of gen x-ers would get mad at me because I've just put them into a box that they don't necessarily fit into.
I get offended when someone says that millennials take things for granted, millennials are babies, millennials have no respect for their elders, blah blah blah. None of this is true for me and for most millennials that I've met, this isn't true for them either.
The issue is that when you are NOT part of a generation you CANNOT understand what it's like to be a part of it. You don't understand what we have to deal with and often when people don't understand something, they *kitten* about it.
I went to university and I've had a stable job for 7+ years now. I work hard for my money. I respect my parents. I don't think everything should be handed to me - I just think that people, in general, deserve more. I don't think that's a crazy concept.
This makes a lot of sense to me.0 -
I find it funny when people say the music of today is crap
Have you heard the old "American top 40s" shows they play on the radio now and again? All one hit wonders that nobody would ever listen to now, even by the generation that listened to it at the time, pure garbage.
Yeah, I love older music, but a lot of it wasn't popular at the time or well known, and even if it was some of it was pure fluff (I love the Beatles but c'mon, they were a fluff band lol)
I agree that most of the songs on the radio today is crap, but most of it was crap back then too. We just tend to focus on all the hits that popped up in between the crap.
If you listen to indie bands from todays generation, a lot are very very good and some are my favourite bands.
I'm sure it was the same with previous generations.2 -
Most every generation thinks the music from older generations is awful. In actuality, the evolution of music through the decades is pretty amazing, speaks to the culture of the time, and carries pretty great historical significance. I wouldn't really call any of it "crap" or "garbage".
And to call the Beatles a "fluff band"? Now that's pure sacrilege!
(and that wasn't even my generation) 1 -
CanesGalactica wrote: »rheddmobile wrote: »All my friends couldn't wait to get their driver's license on their 16th birthday, I know several Millennials who are in their 20s and can't drive.
Millennials also have the worst handwriting. My handwriting is terrible compared to most people of my generation, but most Millennials grew up writing everything on a screen and have handwriting like mine before I started grade school. And some can't even read handwriting - one of the things I do as a hobby is transcribe historical documents for NARA, and some of the young people I have encountered are shocked that I can read perfectly legible cursive handwriting, they have never learned.
I'm 32 (nearly 33) and I didn't obtain a driver's license until I was 20. I just had no inclination to learn to drive because where I lived (which was rural, mind you) everything was still completely walkable (for me). Didn't seem like there was much incentive to learn, especially since I couldn't afford a vehicle, had three jobs and was going to school full time (which I was paying for, in part).
I believe I only know one person that waited until after she hit 30 to learn to drive.. and that was because it was a necessity. Everyone else knew how to and/or had cars before they even hit college.
i was in my early 30's when i got my licence. i didn't really need it where i lived but after getting my licence i sure knew how my mom felt driving us all over. it is a pain having others depend on you for a ride everywhere. my mom was the only one who could drive legally. so we all depended on her.
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CanesGalactica wrote: »RaeBeeBaby wrote: »CanesGalactica wrote: »rheddmobile wrote: »All my friends couldn't wait to get their driver's license on their 16th birthday, I know several Millennials who are in their 20s and can't drive.
Millennials also have the worst handwriting. My handwriting is terrible compared to most people of my generation, but most Millennials grew up writing everything on a screen and have handwriting like mine before I started grade school. And some can't even read handwriting - one of the things I do as a hobby is transcribe historical documents for NARA, and some of the young people I have encountered are shocked that I can read perfectly legible cursive handwriting, they have never learned.
I'm 32 (nearly 33) and I didn't obtain a driver's license until I was 20. I just had no inclination to learn to drive because where I lived (which was rural, mind you) everything was still completely walkable (for me). Didn't seem like there was much incentive to learn, especially since I couldn't afford a vehicle, had three jobs and was going to school full time (which I was paying for, in part).
I believe I only know one person that waited until after she hit 30 to learn to drive.. and that was because it was a necessity. Everyone else knew how to and/or had cars before they even hit college.
So living rural you walked to 3 jobs and school?! (Not being facetious, that just seems pretty incredible.)
If so, then good for you. Not only time consuming, but great exercise. If mom or dad was your taxi service, then getting the driver's license would have been helpful to them even if you were borrowing the family car.
Yes. And yes, it was time consuming, but.. I didn't have a vehicle and those I knew who did I did not feel comfortable asking constantly for a ride when they had their own jobs/school to worry about.
To be fair, two of the jobs were on campus so only 10 or so minutes from my place at the time. Last job was a bit of a stretch and yep, grocery shopping was a pain. Had to be done in really small intervals or I had to wait until 3AM when my flatmate would go shopping, lol.
My folks lived about 1 hour and 4 hours away (divorced) and worked swing shifts, so no dice there most of the time even though they offered help plenty of times with a weekend grocery shopping trip here or there when they came to visit me. Otherwise, I just managed on my own.
I do really miss the exercise from all that walking.
That really is inspiring for a young person to take all that on. I'm sure it taught you a lot about responsibility and self-sufficiency. Good lessons for any age!1 -
RaeBeeBaby wrote: »Most every generation thinks the music from older generations is awful. In actuality, the evolution of music through the decades is pretty amazing, speaks to the culture of the time, and carries pretty great historical significance. I wouldn't really call any of it "crap" or "garbage".
And to call the Beatles a "fluff band"? Now that's pure sacrilege! (and that wasn't even my generation)
Well I don't actually think the older generations music is awful, it's most of what I listen to.
My dad raised me on his music, BUT most of that was never top 40 hits haha.
however, to say that the music is somehow inherently better when a lot of it is just nostalgia clouding memories, does a disservice to creators today.
(and yes, I stand by my belief that the Beatles were a fluff band lol they were way more interesting as solo artists)
STILL LOVE THEM THOUGH WOOHOO NORWEGIAN WOOD
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RaeBeeBaby wrote: »Most every generation thinks the music from older generations is awful. In actuality, the evolution of music through the decades is pretty amazing, speaks to the culture of the time, and carries pretty great historical significance. I wouldn't really call any of it "crap" or "garbage".
And to call the Beatles a "fluff band"? Now that's pure sacrilege! (and that wasn't even my generation)
The Beetles in the British Invasion days were totally the first "boy band"...they morphed into something else later, particularly as they went out on their own as individual solo artists, but they totally started out as a fluff boy band and that was the height of their popularity with all of the screaming young girls...1 -
^^ took the words from my mouth @cwolfman130
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cwolfman13 wrote: »RaeBeeBaby wrote: »Most every generation thinks the music from older generations is awful. In actuality, the evolution of music through the decades is pretty amazing, speaks to the culture of the time, and carries pretty great historical significance. I wouldn't really call any of it "crap" or "garbage".
And to call the Beatles a "fluff band"? Now that's pure sacrilege! (and that wasn't even my generation)
The Beetles in the British Invasion days were totally the first "boy band"...they morphed into something else later, particularly as they went out on their own as individual solo artists, but they totally started out as a fluff boy band and that was the height of their popularity with all of the screaming young girls...
You're right and I stand corrected. I was too young to be part of the screaming hoard and only became aware of their music after they became more political. Although it was still good music (IMO) and something new on the music scene.0 -
This thread reminded me of this advice from 20 yrs ago.....it sums up all generations...
https://youtu.be/MQlJ3vOp6nI 0 -
I just realized that if I am in fact a millennial then I can compare myself to other millennials. All I have to say about that is, people are people and technology is what changes.0
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