Generation Y
I am off on a course next week. It's not aimed at me - I shall be merely an observer, as my department is thinking of running a similar course and wants to find out about it. The course is aimed at the people who are just about to qualify - i.e. they all left university about 3 years ago.
The organisers sent me a huge pack of briefing notes on the course objectives and so on. The most intriguing was an entire report dedicated to the fact that these young'uns, all born after 1980, are the "Millennial" generation, AKA "Generation Y", and therefore are significantly different in their wants and needs to the sluggish pre-millennials such as myself.
What I want to know is how they can all be so very different to me when so few years separate us? Indeed, once my official age manipulation* is in full swing, I shall very soon be YOUNGER than these people. And yet I remain very much not Generation Y. This is exemplified by the fact that after many months on Facebook I still only have a handful of "friends" as none of my actual flesh and blood friends are on it, whereas my little brother (materially closer to being yer actual Millennial) has about 7000 friends after his first week.
*removal of one year from my age at each birthday until I reach 28. Then stop until it is time to gracefully sweep on to 35.
The organisers sent me a huge pack of briefing notes on the course objectives and so on. The most intriguing was an entire report dedicated to the fact that these young'uns, all born after 1980, are the "Millennial" generation, AKA "Generation Y", and therefore are significantly different in their wants and needs to the sluggish pre-millennials such as myself.
What I want to know is how they can all be so very different to me when so few years separate us? Indeed, once my official age manipulation* is in full swing, I shall very soon be YOUNGER than these people. And yet I remain very much not Generation Y. This is exemplified by the fact that after many months on Facebook I still only have a handful of "friends" as none of my actual flesh and blood friends are on it, whereas my little brother (materially closer to being yer actual Millennial) has about 7000 friends after his first week.
*removal of one year from my age at each birthday until I reach 28. Then stop until it is time to gracefully sweep on to 35.
posted by OboeJane at 8:35 pm
3 Comments:
I am loving your 'official age manipulator'. By my reckoning I am aged 3...yippee!!! I too am bewildered by Facebook. All my 'friends' have been knicked from Dan, and are mainly people that I wouldn't speak to if I had a choice!!!! Also - our work PC's won't let you access Facebook from the office - no such restrictions on Blogger.. ;)
Of course, I live with an actual millenial, and am delighted to report that he and the majority of his friends are, to all intents and purposes, a right bunch of old codgers just like the rest of us :o) Probably 'Generation Y' only applies to those groovy London youths whose parents once habituated Carnaby Street in afghan coats and long hair (and now apparently write the conference briefing notes for corporate behemoths). It will be a snowy day in hell when Big Stu wears flip flops to work (or whatever it is Generation Yers are supposed to get up to), so no need to worry about feeling prematurely aged!
Actually, I looked up Generation Y on Wikipedia and it says that they are, and I quote, 'demanding, impatient and bad at communicating', so quite how that distinguishes them from the rest of us I have no idea...
E x
PS. If you want me to be your friend on facebook I would be delighted to add you to my very small and select list! tracy.wood@btconnect.com that would be quite cool because we could say we met through blogger!!!!
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