24 Reasons Older Generations Like Younger Generations

17.

“Gen X’er here. What I greatly admire about the younger generations is their ability to think creatively, their willingness to challenge the ‘status quo,’ and their awareness that mental health matters. Honestly, pretty much no one from my generation realized that we could monetize the internet and social media, launch our own enterprise, or engage in philanthropic investments. We were raised to honor the old ways: college, career, marriage, nuclear family with house, white picket fence, and pets. It was not socially acceptable in my generation to acknowledge, let alone discuss, matters of mental health. We were expected to push it down, bottle it up, put a lid on it, and carry on. And for that, we’re now the Prozac generation. The reality is that this is nothing new. When Gen X’ers were teens, the ’60s generation thought we were all stupid deviants. The ’50s generation thought that the no-war, free-love hippy generation were planet killers.”

“In my work (aviation), I interact with younger generations all the time. I have always found them to be quick, creative thinkers, engaged, and receptive. If I don’t disparage them, they don’t disparage me. For the younger generations, I hope they value and practice more personal engagement with their surroundings while relying less on devices and social media for engagement. Also, I hope they realize and accept that older generations experienced the exact same student loan, starting salary, mortgage, investment, and other early-adult life struggles that they do now. We all eventually figure it out and get ourselves centered, and they will become us before they know it.”

—Anonymous