This guest post is part of our Millennial Perspectives series. I met Rene through her blog Habits of Thought way back when my blog was called Career Avoidance 101. She has been a loyal and supportive reader – and has taught me a thing or two about running tenaciously! - so I’m thrilled to have her as a part of the site today.
If you’ve been reading/watching the news, you’ve undoubtedly encountered a lot of bad news for Millennials. None of it should come as a shock to us, but at the same time, it all creates a feeling that can only be explained by a Liz Lemon-esque response of “Blargh!”
Here’s one of the most upsetting reports: according to many sources, the economic outlook indicates that we may be the first generation in American history to come out being less profitable than the last.
Is anyone surprised by this?
I’ll admit, though, when I read this tidbit of news, my reaction was “Come on! Give us a break here!” I wanted to yell at the people who made me optimistic that it would get better, and our lives would “go back to normal” if we just keep striving for The American Dream.
Let’s face it. Now, more than ever, the dream we keep hearing about is harder to reach and the stakes keep rising to get it. It makes me not want it at all.
It’s possible we weren’t meant for financial profitability in the traditional sense. We are the generation that has graduated with more college degrees than ever before. We are educated and innovative, yet the jobs we can find offer little creativity or growth.
Then we feel restless and unproductive.
Then we see headlines about our selfishness or laziness.
Then it gives us the impression that we are wrong for what we want from the world.
Being part of a generation that continually faces adversity and setbacks can be frustrating. It can hurt our well-being and muddle our priorities. It makes many of us want to give up on life entirely.
But let’s get one thing straight: we are needed in this world.
We are the generation that has the responsibility to set a more positive, innovative, conscious world in motion. That means we have to let go of traditional views of our lives and start making waves. We may not ever live up to our financial potential, but we WILL leave a better legacy behind for generations to uphold.
In order to fulfill our potential, we have to let go of tradition and push boundaries. We have to give up on ever having the corporate career that could give us financial security and the “normal” lifestyle our parents want us to have. Those jobs are currently taken, and will not be available in the future as businesses continue to streamline their work.
While there’s nothing wrong with The American Dream, we have to be realistic on how to achieve it. Now, more than ever, we have to find a way to make what we do something we find meaningful.
Our generation is in this together. The majority of us will never see our potential reflected in our salaries. The meaning we find in our work will be a requirement to uphold our responsibility to the future.
This is our challenge.
Are you ready to accept it?
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