For those of you who don't know what Millennials are, we are the Generation Y, the people now aged between 22- 35. The generation that precedes us are Generation X. I would like to look deeply into what makes us the worst best generation ever.
The Good
Millennials are known for being the most open minded, driven and ambitious generation even though some of our elders would argue otherwise. We have been called lazy, dumb and unhappy. The generation is generally marked by an increased use and familiarity with communications, media, and digital technologies. The launch of social media platforms has formed a double-edged sword for us millennials. Due to this new open and verbal space, everyone is now free to speak their mind and share their opinions. This has shown a huge change in the way politics is moving forward and the way power players are communicating with the world. About 2 million people 34 or under attempted to sign up in the five weeks before the May 22 registration deadline, up 20% on the comparable period before the Brexit vote, according to U.K. government data. The young generation are fed up of how the country is being led and for the first time, there is a huge divide between the two generations opinions.
Never before has there been a generation that has a wider understanding of empathy and love. We have grown up in a civilisation, which has seen major changes in the decrease of bigotry, homophobia and transphobia, we're defiantly not all the way there yet but we are making progress. Never has there been a generation so focused on a greener and cleaner world, doing all we can to give back to the earth.
The Bad
As I mentioned above, the influx of social media platforms has created a double-edged sword for us millennials. Including myself, the power of Instagram has created a social problem. Millennials are having troubles communicating with each other outside of the social media platforms. Young adults have become self-obsessed and narcissistic, worried more about the likes they receive on a picture rather then there social engagements.
Recent reports have suggested that Instagram is the worst app for young people's mental health. The #StatusofMind survey, which interviewed 1,500 U.K. residents between the ages of 14 and 24, asked 14 questions based on five social media sites: Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. According to the survey, Instagram caused anxiety, depression, loneliness, and issues with sleep, body image and bullying. There is now two different people we are portraying, our real selves and our social media selves.
The Ugly
The ugly is the middle of both the above. I would stand up to argue that as a generation, we are far advanced to take on the future of this world, however our self image and the onset of mental health issues could severally prevent us from carrying out our mission to make this a stronger and more accepting world. The pressure felt from our generation to make something of ourselves is more powerful then ever and has caused an increase in unhappiness and the ugly state of never being satisfied.
Let me know your thoughts of Generation Y in the comment box.