Firieba Sarwarzadah
We are many things. As young adults – I’m avoiding the term “millennial”— we are arguably a hardworking, entrepreneurial-minded generation that has been offered the short end of society’s stick. We’ve got big dreams and are considered revolutionary go getters, but we’re bombarded with systems, financial burdens, and a lack of job opportunities to name a few factors.
We’ve all heard of the mid-life crisis, but I’d say us young adults have rightfully stolen that title from our Generation X predecessors and shifted it to what is known as the quarter life crisis. It’s that struggle we 20-somethings seem to face, as we juggle a post-secondary education, a job to pay the never-ending bills, and try to maintain a presence in the working industry we study so hard towards.
It seems the past generations who scoff and mock us, the very ones who dubbed us as millennials, seem to conveniently overlook how much our world has changed over the past 30 odd years. No longer can new fresh ideas and advances break through an awed society of Windows 95 users, or a fresh graduate enter the work field and be set with a career that will offer them a stable life and pension for the next 40 years.
We now face immense competition, everyone trying to best the other, in a world where a university degree is no longer enough. Not to mention the basic cost of living, expenses for housing, education, and even food have sky rocketed, often amounting to more than a paycheck brings in. All the while, we are judged as being entitled, spoiled, and handed most things in life.
This couldn’t be farther from the truth. Most millennials I know pay their own tuition, an amount almost four times more than 30 years ago and increasing every year. Often, we work multiple jobs while giving our best efforts to manage a decent GPA and make an impression on the job market. We have it tough, in fact tougher than our parents had it. That may be a cold hard truth, or a slap in the face that most older generations like to brush under the rug.
Despite these barriers, our generation has overcome and utilized what past generations had no opportunity to. We’ve developed our own entrepreneurial voices through social media, YouTube, and podcasts. Using the cost-free reach of the world wide web, we’ve taken control of our own voices, learned to share our own messages, and have become our own bosses. What’s more, we understand the power of branding, how to become the brand, and use it to fearlessly enter any industry and make strides.
We’ve become advocates and activists – bravely standing up to systems and injustices, no longer bowing our heads and accepting our fates. We use our voices to fight for those that have none and have collectively removed our rose-coloured glasses, urging that everyone do the same.
As much as our journey may differ from past generations, and as much as we need to dig our way through obstacles, finances, lack of opportunities, and societal pressures, we should give ourselves more credit than our reputation may suggest. Believe in yourselves, my fellow quarter lifers, be proud of the path we’re paving for ourselves that the world has never seen before.
