Sinek On Millennials; IS HE RIGHT?
According to Sinek, “Millenials are a group of people who were born approximately 1984 and after. Are tough to manage. And they’re accused of being entitled and narcissistic, self-interested, unfocused, lazy…..”
To be honest, I think my parents raised me to have the complete opposite ideals and morals from what he’s describing us as.
Yes, there are an odd few individuals with these characteristics but we shouldn’t be put under a stereotype. In my opinion, millennials have a lot more to offer. We were born in a time of mass technological development, meaning our childhood was surrounded by constant evolution. We saw the evolution of Apple and Samsung; from the first touch screen device to facial recognition; we’ve grown to experience and develop the technological revolution at its peak. Sniek bases his stereotype ideology based on these four characteristics;
- parenting
- technology
- impatience
- environment
So how do these affect our future employment opportunities?
Well according to his anonymous source, a percentage of have experienced ‘bad parenting’. We were told that we were special, that we could have anything we want in life when we want it. In my opinion, this seems a bit extreme. These assumptions based on the stereotypes don’t account for every individual. As a collective, I know for a fact that we didn’t always get what we wanted, I know for sure my parents didn’t tell me I’m special every time I failed. The majority of millennials didn’t have the privilege of enjoying those luxuries due to their parents socioeconomic and sociocultural status; these factors are what enabled us, individuals, to become more resilient and hardworking to achieve what we want and to be able to take a step back and learn from our mistakes. These two core values are fundamental for the mentality we need to take into the workforce.
Sniek also brings forth the point that technology, environment and our impatience due to not receiving instant gratification.
Growing up in a world where social media has become a major part of our lives, we are subconsciously trained to want likes, to want people to verify us all the time. Without that verification, yes sometimes most of us get impatient, have self-doubt etc. Using social media releases a chemical in our brain called dopamine; this substance controls how we feel pleasure. And when we use social media we receive a certain level of dopamine that keeps us in a good mood. On, the contrary, if we don’t receive it we get moody etc. As we get older we look for other sources to replace the missing level of dopamine we seek, hence why individuals turn to alcoholism, smoking, drugs etc. This is understandable but these factors are based on individuals sociocultural, socioeconomic and environmental factors as well as how they were raised.
Do these factors apply to everyone?
No, but they do apply to the small percentage of individuals that were dealt the wrong hand.
Will this affect our future employability opportunities?
No, they won’t, but we will have to learn how to manage and cope with our stress in healthier alternatives when things don’t go our way.
As millennials we have been given way more opportunities to succeed in life, some individuals have more or fewer tools to use. But is how we use the resources we were given to succeed, the mentality we attain from our parents and environment, our determination to succeed that will enable us to become the best employees or future employers we can be.
What do you think of his perspective?
