“First Digitals,” “Echo Boomers,” and “Millennials” are an example of the various terms used to describe those born between 1981 and 1997, the date range, however, is debatable. Generation Y, as this generation is most popularly referred to, is the largest generation since the ‘60s (Leung). The creative terminology is reflective of the digital world in which this generation has grown up in. In Sophia Yan’s “Understanding Generation Y” she characterized Generation Y as being Generation X on steroids.
Generation Y makes up nearly a third of the U.S. population, and they spend $170 billion a year (Leung). Therefore, as it is to be expected, corporations spend hundreds of millions of dollars on products aimed specifically at the Echo Boomers. For instance, in 2005 Toyota peddled its then new $15,000 cars by sponsoring events like street basketball and break dance festivals (Leung).
As Rebecca Leung puts it, “Echo boomers are the most watched-over generation in history.” And although older generations recognize the sophistication and the advanced technical skills that Generation Y possesses, Leung’s observation leads to the perception that Generation Yers lack work effort and realistic views regarding the real world. “They were raised by doting parents who told them they are special, played in little leagues with no winners or losers, or all winners. They are laden with trophies just for participating and they think your business-as-usual ethic is for the birds. And if you persist in the belief you can, take your job and shove it,” (Safer). “You do have to speak to them a little bit like a therapist on television might speak to a patient. You can’t be harsh. You cannot tell them you’re disappointed in them. You can’t really ask them to live and breathe the company. Because they’re living and breathing themselves and that keeps them very busy, (Salzman qtd. By Safer). There is an opinion amongst older employers that because Generation Yers have been “babied,” “cushioned,” “over-protected,” and “sheltered” growing up that within them lies a naivety about what it really takes to succeed in the workforce. As Safer explains, when companies are faced with new employees who “roll into work with their iPods and flip flops” around noon, but still want to be CEO by Friday, they are forced to realize that the previous work era is dead (Safer).
However, there is a different opinion regarding Generation Yers. Each generation faces its fair share of monumental events but Generation Y has arguably faced the most numerous, and monumental events in our nation’s history. Including but not limited to, the September 11th terrorists attacks, the Columbine Massacre, the Virginia Tech Massacre, the Monica Lewinsky scandal, the Oklahoma City Bombing, Y2K, anthrax scares, the SARS epidemic, The Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, the O.J. Simpson trial, Hurricane Katrina, and the death of Princess Diana. Yan mentions that these various events that occurred during the lives of Generation Yers may lead to this generation being identified as cynical, skeptical, and pessimistic, at least comparable to past generations (Yan). Yan then goes on to quote a January 2006 newsletter of the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives, where it mentions that increases in antidepressants, prescription medication and other behavior-altering drugs, such as Ritalin, are making Generation Yers the most medicated generation in history. Also, as more prescription drugs have begun to circulate, abuses of such substances have also increased (Yan).
There are obviously opposite opinions about what the experiences of Generation Y have been and what affect they have had on said generation. On one side there are those who feel that these tech savvy youngsters have been over-protected and sheltered throughout their lives, and thus are unknowingly unprepared for the realities of real life. On the other side of the fence you have people who believe that Generation Y has actually experienced quite a bit, and are therefore are cynical and pessimistic.
Neither is a very flattering light to be placed in, but I feel that the result that is best accurate depends a lot on the circumstance of each individual Echo Boomer. Social class and ethnicity have a lot to do with whether you grow up sheltered, or if you grow up experiencing a great deal. “They have climbed Mount Everest. They’ve been down to Machu Picchu to help excavate it. But they’ve never punched a time clock. They have no idea what it’s like to actually be in an office at nine 0’clock, with people handing them work,” (Crane qtd. By Safer). The previous quote is relative to whether or not you grew up in a world where you had the financial means that would allow you to travel, and not have to work a regular nine-to-five. If you don’t have money, then you may have never travelled outside of your hometown, and you’ve probably held down a job since your early teens because you didn’t have a choice. In that instance a Generation Yer wouldn’t have had the luxury of a sheltered life, and also that individual would indeed be knowledgeable about the realities of real world work. In addition, that individual may be somewhat cynical like Yan described. In contrast, a Generation Yer who grows up with financial wealth would have the opportunity to remove themselves from reality, or be removed by parents, and not have to work until they decide they want to. Therefore, they may enter the workforce with the naïve mindset that the world that they’ve grown up in is the reality, and that everything will be handed to them on a silver platter, as it has been so far. And since social lines usually run parallel to racial lines, ethnicity can, and does affect the experiences that Generation Yers have and the mindsets that they end up with.
It is unwise to lump all Generation Yers, Echo Boomer, or whatever you prefer to call them, into one big box. Each individual’s experiences and circumstances determine who they will ultimately become, no matter what the generation. One thing is for sure however, this generation has had the privilege to have been immersed in some of the world’s greatest technological innovations. With being surrounded by so much technology, Generation Y is bound to go on to create some innovations that we can’t even yet imagine.
Works Cited
Generation Y makes up nearly a third of the U.S. population, and they spend $170 billion a year (Leung). Therefore, as it is to be expected, corporations spend hundreds of millions of dollars on products aimed specifically at the Echo Boomers. For instance, in 2005 Toyota peddled its then new $15,000 cars by sponsoring events like street basketball and break dance festivals (Leung).
As Rebecca Leung puts it, “Echo boomers are the most watched-over generation in history.” And although older generations recognize the sophistication and the advanced technical skills that Generation Y possesses, Leung’s observation leads to the perception that Generation Yers lack work effort and realistic views regarding the real world. “They were raised by doting parents who told them they are special, played in little leagues with no winners or losers, or all winners. They are laden with trophies just for participating and they think your business-as-usual ethic is for the birds. And if you persist in the belief you can, take your job and shove it,” (Safer). “You do have to speak to them a little bit like a therapist on television might speak to a patient. You can’t be harsh. You cannot tell them you’re disappointed in them. You can’t really ask them to live and breathe the company. Because they’re living and breathing themselves and that keeps them very busy, (Salzman qtd. By Safer). There is an opinion amongst older employers that because Generation Yers have been “babied,” “cushioned,” “over-protected,” and “sheltered” growing up that within them lies a naivety about what it really takes to succeed in the workforce. As Safer explains, when companies are faced with new employees who “roll into work with their iPods and flip flops” around noon, but still want to be CEO by Friday, they are forced to realize that the previous work era is dead (Safer).
However, there is a different opinion regarding Generation Yers. Each generation faces its fair share of monumental events but Generation Y has arguably faced the most numerous, and monumental events in our nation’s history. Including but not limited to, the September 11th terrorists attacks, the Columbine Massacre, the Virginia Tech Massacre, the Monica Lewinsky scandal, the Oklahoma City Bombing, Y2K, anthrax scares, the SARS epidemic, The Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, the O.J. Simpson trial, Hurricane Katrina, and the death of Princess Diana. Yan mentions that these various events that occurred during the lives of Generation Yers may lead to this generation being identified as cynical, skeptical, and pessimistic, at least comparable to past generations (Yan). Yan then goes on to quote a January 2006 newsletter of the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives, where it mentions that increases in antidepressants, prescription medication and other behavior-altering drugs, such as Ritalin, are making Generation Yers the most medicated generation in history. Also, as more prescription drugs have begun to circulate, abuses of such substances have also increased (Yan).
There are obviously opposite opinions about what the experiences of Generation Y have been and what affect they have had on said generation. On one side there are those who feel that these tech savvy youngsters have been over-protected and sheltered throughout their lives, and thus are unknowingly unprepared for the realities of real life. On the other side of the fence you have people who believe that Generation Y has actually experienced quite a bit, and are therefore are cynical and pessimistic.
Neither is a very flattering light to be placed in, but I feel that the result that is best accurate depends a lot on the circumstance of each individual Echo Boomer. Social class and ethnicity have a lot to do with whether you grow up sheltered, or if you grow up experiencing a great deal. “They have climbed Mount Everest. They’ve been down to Machu Picchu to help excavate it. But they’ve never punched a time clock. They have no idea what it’s like to actually be in an office at nine 0’clock, with people handing them work,” (Crane qtd. By Safer). The previous quote is relative to whether or not you grew up in a world where you had the financial means that would allow you to travel, and not have to work a regular nine-to-five. If you don’t have money, then you may have never travelled outside of your hometown, and you’ve probably held down a job since your early teens because you didn’t have a choice. In that instance a Generation Yer wouldn’t have had the luxury of a sheltered life, and also that individual would indeed be knowledgeable about the realities of real world work. In addition, that individual may be somewhat cynical like Yan described. In contrast, a Generation Yer who grows up with financial wealth would have the opportunity to remove themselves from reality, or be removed by parents, and not have to work until they decide they want to. Therefore, they may enter the workforce with the naïve mindset that the world that they’ve grown up in is the reality, and that everything will be handed to them on a silver platter, as it has been so far. And since social lines usually run parallel to racial lines, ethnicity can, and does affect the experiences that Generation Yers have and the mindsets that they end up with.
It is unwise to lump all Generation Yers, Echo Boomer, or whatever you prefer to call them, into one big box. Each individual’s experiences and circumstances determine who they will ultimately become, no matter what the generation. One thing is for sure however, this generation has had the privilege to have been immersed in some of the world’s greatest technological innovations. With being surrounded by so much technology, Generation Y is bound to go on to create some innovations that we can’t even yet imagine.
Works Cited
Leung, Rebecca. “The Echo Boomers.” CBS News. 4 September 2005. 25 April 2009. <http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/10/01/60minutes/main646890_page2.shtml>
Safer, Morley. “The ‘Millennials’ Are Coming.” CBS News. 23 May 2008. 25 April 2009. <http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/08/60minutes/main3475200_page3.shtml>
Yan, Sophia. “Understanding Generation Y.” The Oberlin Review. 8 December 2006. 25 April2009. <http://www.oberlin.edu/stupub/ocreview/2006/12/08/features/Understanding_Generation_Y.html>
Safer, Morley. “The ‘Millennials’ Are Coming.” CBS News. 23 May 2008. 25 April 2009. <http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/08/60minutes/main3475200_page3.shtml>
Yan, Sophia. “Understanding Generation Y.” The Oberlin Review. 8 December 2006. 25 April2009. <http://www.oberlin.edu/stupub/ocreview/2006/12/08/features/Understanding_Generation_Y.html>
No comments:
Post a Comment