Here’s why being a millennial is so hard if you didn’t know.
The dreaded millennials, “narcissists” and “entitled”. Right? Well it is according to the older generations. We are criticised for using the Internet as a cheat tool, for caring about social media and refusing to stick to just one job. Trust us, being overworked, underpaid and anxious isn’t exactly fun for us either. Thanks to the struggling economy and a round-the-clock working lifestyle, here are some very real reasons why being a millennial is hard AF.
With more options, we have more chances to screw up.
Once upon a time, a working path would be consistent. It was fairly simple, you either went to university or climbed the work ladder. Our world though now, it’s limitless. We are always connected, with barely any barriers between us. And with these connections, come new paths and tools that help us access opportunities that were previously unreachable. That’s great but it isn’t always positive.
Pieter Kruger, Director of the Institute of Psychology & Wellbeing, says: “People with no choice are significantly more resilient because they can blame life or other people when they make a wrong decision, but if you make a wrong decision having had a range of choice, you have no one to blame but yourself.”
Our office is everywhere and our work hours are always.
We are always connected. We grew up with technological advances and they have become an integral part of our daily lives. It comes as no surprise then that we use these tools to enhance our work performance. Our relationship with technology has changed the workplace. We now naturally have a warped view when it comes to work, we view it as an “everywhere and anytime” occasion. If you truly feel passionate and motivated in your job, this can be a fulfilling lifestyle, but it can also be an overly demanding one. Being available 24/7 blurs the line between work and leisure. I can’t remember the last time I had old-fashioned fun without it costing me a limb.
We work more for less.
Getting a degree was sold to us. We were told it would mean a job straight away. We focused on getting the right skills and taking out big loans in the process. Guess what, it never meant a guaranteed job. Have you noticed how many of us now are freelancers and contract workers? What this has generated is a drift in productivity and compensation. Millennials are working harder and more efficiently, but are receiving less and less, leading to human capital exploitation. In a nutshell, this is why we still are not able to afford a car or a house when half of the Gen X had already achieved that by the age of 35.
It all leads to burnout.
The six primary causes of burnout are having an overwhelming workload, limited control, unrewarding work, unfair work, work that conflicts with values and a lack of community in the workplace. Sound familiar? Known as the burnout generation according to Buzzfeed’s Anne Helen Petersen in an article, when will it all stop?
Do with that what you may, but every generation is faced with different challenges and guided by different ideologies. However, did we opt for this or did it just happen? I would say we have done pretty well considering, we are shining light on mental health and self care and paved way for social equality. And there you were thinking it was all avocado toast and selfies.
Other’s are loving:
Are women intimidated by ambitious women?