I belong to a generation
called “the millennial” generation. This
generation belongs to those born after 1982, also called generation Y.
Key Characteristics of "The Mellennial" Generation
Special: Have
always been treated as special or important.
This generation of children has been the most wanted. Every milestone was marked with celebrations
and praise. They may carry a sense of
entitlement about them and have an expectation of frequent positive
feedback. It’s been instilled in them
that they are vital to the nation and to their parents’ sense of purpose. They feel they are here to solve world
problems that older generations have failed to solve. They may claim they want privacy, but they
crave attention.
Confident: they are motivated, goal-oriented,
and confident in themselves and the future. Grew up in time of increasing safety measures. They were rarely left unsupervised. They were sheltered from having to take care
of their own conflicts as parents
advocated on their behalf, and “spared” them from unpleasant experiences. As college students, they may expect
facult6yu and staff to shelter, protect, and nurture them-and resolve their
conflicts for them. Millennia’s are the
focus of the most sweeping youth safety movement in American history.
Team-oriented: they are group oriented rather than
being individualists. They
may sacrifice their own identity to be part of the team. They prefer
egalitarian leadership, not hierarchies. They are forming a tight-knit
generation. While they are group-oriented within their own cohort, they may
“politely” exclude other generations. They do not want to stand out among their
peers, they want to be seen as part of the group. They dislike selfishness and
are oriented toward service learning and volunteerism.
Achieving: grade points are rising with this
generation and crime is falling. The
focus on getting good grades, hard work, involvement
in extracurricular activities, etc. is resulting in higher achievement levels.
They see college as the key to a high paying job and success, and may miss the
bigger picture of what a college education is all about. They are pressured to
decide early on a career – and have been put on a career track orientation
since grade school. Their focus is more on the world of achievement rather than
personal development. The Boomer generation made their mark in the humanities
and arts, whereas the Millennia’s prefer math and science fields.
Pressured: tightly scheduled as children and
used to having every hour of the day filled with structured activity. This generation may have lost a sense
of pure spontaneous play. They may struggle with handling free time and time
management in general. In elementary, middle, and high school, have had more
hours of homework and less free time than any of the previous generations. They
feel pressured to succeed. They’ve been pushed hard to achieve, to avoid risks,
and to take advantage of opportunities. They may take on too much, and then
think others should be flexible with them when they want to negotiate
scheduling conflicts. They think multi-tasking saves time and is a smart thing
to do, but aren’t usually aware of the poorer quality of results.
Conventional: respectful to the point of not
questioning authority. They are
civic-minded and believe the government knows what’s best and will take care of
them. They fear being considered non-conformist. Their clothing, music, and
cultural markings will be very mainstream. They value their parents’ opinions
very highly. They support and believe in social rules, and are more in line
with their parents’ values than most other generations have been. They are
trying to invite rules and norms back into the culture.
Beliefs and
Values "The Millennial" Generation
Live first,
work second, Social causes, Flexibility, Balance, Fun, Friends, World travel, Diversity,
The value of Meaningful work-, Authenticity, Friendships/Groups of Friends, Fast
access to information, Experiential activities, The ability to travel the world,
The beliefs
and values that identify me are the shift from social networks to face to face
community networks. Use your knowledge to improve efficiency and create social
change
Events occurring during “The Millennial” generation
Key historical events that occurred the millennial generations childhood
effected our generation's current beliefs and values through the key historic
events that occurred during my generation.
Our generation group up in the technology age and we got more engaged in
social causes. Violence
was also a big part of our generation because of all of the following events
that occurred through generation y. Through
these events generation y became more globally concerned, open and accepting of
diversity, tech savvy, the “knowledge worker”, concerned about safety, team
players, multi-taskers, and impatient
1993 NAFTA was
passed and The north American free trade
agreement was passed
1994 U.S. Send
troops to Persian gulf
1995 O.J. Simpson
trial was found not guilty
1996 The first
version of JAVA was created
1999 Columbine
shooting
2000 Hubble
telescope
2001 Twin
towers and pentagon were hit by hijacked plane operated by Al Qaeda
2003 Space
shuttle catastrophe
2003 Uday and
Qusay were killed (sons of Saddam Hussein)
2003 Arnold
Schwarzenegger was elected govorner of california
2003 Saddam
Hussein captured
2004 Bush was
re-elected as president of the United States
The events that
affected my generation the most were September 11, global terrorism,
terrorism on home soil, Columbine, Virginia Tech, high speed internet, text
messaging, social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace, environmental
concerns, parents being laid-off, downsizing of corporate America, the melting
pot syndrome, plug and play knowledge,
pop culture
