Savannah Palmer
opinion@suunews.com
Face it! The word “millennial” is in the air wherever we go. You know, that term spat derogatorily at us as we rush to job interviews that require six years of sandwich-making experience for minimum wagers just out of high school.
Countless memes, gifs and #annoyedfullnester pop up on our social media feeds constantly telling us that we provide little value to society, and that we need to grow up. The fact that you were born between 1982 and 2004, apparently means that you won’t ever get out of your parents basement.
The issues typically associated with millennials include: entitlement, laziness, selfishness, addiction to social media, reliance on our parents – the list goes on and on as a generalization for the decade that we were born into.
No matter what, if it’s going to make waves, it needs to be accurate. We didn’t decide to give all of our friends and teammates participation trophies … at the age of three!
It is our coaches and leaders that gave everyone those participation trophies and pep-talks that told us that we are winners just for showing up. We pay for the life lessons of value when we get to college or into the job market.
The economy causes older generations to gobble up jobs that used to help us get onto our own phone plans.
Yes, we are at fault for creating a world of instant gratification through modern technology such as Netflix, Amazon, smartphones and dating apps. More and more creative filters make it so we have the illusion of involvement and relationships while not having to admit to personal issues.
These are valid and very prevalent issues among our generation, but let’s not forget what we bring to the table. A study by Bentley University said that when asked, 66 percent of millennials want to build their own businesses, and 13 percent want to run or be CEO’S of companies. It’s our competence with technology that is now running the world, launching us into success.
Our generation has to wake up and face the issues of today with bigotry, racism, brutality and equality at the forefront of news and politics. This forces us to make the important decisions, to step up, to change the status quo.
According to Pew Research Center, because of a disappointing job market, we are the most educated generation in U.S. history. Because of the education opportunities that we are taking, millennials have a delayed workforce entry, but once entered into the workforce, compensation is much greater.
We are connected, we are creators, thinkers and dreamers. So let’s keep changing the status quo, stay informed and stay in school.
