Too scared to fail: Millennials aren't starting businesses

[MidwestLandlord]

Based on my 26 years on this planet and my ok historical knowledge and extensive movie viewing experience lol, I think previous generations had much stronger sense of self esteem, and i think a lot of that had to do with good upbringing and social support for each other. Maybe even a sense of community played a part.

I mean if i lived in a tightly knit neighborhood where everyone supported each other and i wanted to start some business, i honestly would have more balls to call people get info etc etc because i feel like my neighborhood got my back.

I blame the internet.

One of the greatest inventions in human history, and what do most people do with it? They use it to action-fake, compare themselves to other's over social media, use social media to only show their "highlight reel" instead of their failures, attention-whore, and seek out and find confirmation of their biases for why they can't succeed.

They read about building a business instead of building a business.
They read about talking to girls instead of talking to girls.
They read about getting in shape instead of hitting the gym or the sidewalk.
They read about traveling the world instead of traveling the world.
They talk to people over FB or forums instead of making real life friends.
They endlessly text over Tinder or Match instead of insisting on meeting for a drink.
They endlessly post about the poor kid with cancer instead of giving their time or money to help.
They endlessly share their opinion on everything, without having any depth of knowledge or experience to know if they are right or wrong.

No other generation in history has had such an easy to use and socially acceptable action-fake tool available to them.

It's easy to be scared of life when you've never actually experienced it.

We've turned into a world of socially-retarded hermits who sit behind a screen living in fear.

 

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[Formless]

Maybe because we have so much instant gratification

I had this moment in my life that I remember vividly.

I was playing The Witcher for about 9 hours straight, completely enveloped in this intriguing world, experiencing it as an intriguing character.

Then there was a power cut.

Once the computer went off, within 20 seconds I remember something inside me clearly saying 'Oh, so this is what my life actually is. This is what it feels like.' I felt worthless. It was an important lesson.

The reason I loved RPG and Storyline-based games so much was because my own life had no 'story'. I was a vegetable, not an interesting main character whose decisions make dents in the world.

So it is definitely instant gratification. Closing your eyes to your reality and pretending that it isn't there.

When I stopped gaming so much and started giving my monitor to my friend for the week to motivate myself to work in the library, I realized how creative, intelligent and actionable I'm capable of being.

Most millenials have more potential than they will ever know, because they've stuck themselves in a cycle of instant-gratification and virtual reality, which is not enough to make them happy, but enough to make them comfortably miserable.

 

[Ronnie]

As a millennial with millennial friends, there's two reasons I see why some fail to get started.

1. Parental Control: Most millennial's have been programmed from birth to "do the safe thing" and to "never trust anyone." Since birth what we eat, who we play with, where we sleep and where we work has been printed on a nice little "life card."

That kid's father did 2 months in prison 20 years ago for stealing sneakers? YOU'RE BANNED FROM HIS HOUSE!

Those cookies over there killed a little child in Arkansas 15 years ago? YOU'RE BANNED FROM EATING THEM!

Your friend's house is next door to a gay, non church going, Buddhist worshipping, Prius driving, hummus eating couple? YOU'RE BANNED FROM SLEEPING OVER!

A lot of us grew up without being able to make choices for ourselves which reflects in our adult decision making.

2. The KARDASHIAN Effect: Most millennial's worship the celebrity, the athlete, the musician. They see this life of luxury on television and the internet and love it. That's not a good thing. They see the ease these people live life and end up thinking wealth is easy to obtain.

That lamborghini Mayweather just bought? I'll have one like that but in red!

That private jet Beyonce and Jay Z uses to travel the world? That's my future!

But they'll never get it because they're stuck daydreaming about a life of awesome, and have no idea how to take action.

The ones that do take action realize it's hard work to even gain a $1000 so they give up and go back to day dreaming..

This generation is the slowlane generation. I was fortunate enough to have parents that allowed me to discover life on my own and formulate my own direction. Unfortunately (or fortunately, however you look at it) business creation in this generation will be very low.

 

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[Kak]

The big one that I always heard when I was nearing the beginning of my "career" was to "pay your dues" then you can start a business... I always pissed them off when I said the only dues I'll pay are to a country club.

I currently make more money than almost everyone who told me that. I am also a member at a private country club just like I planned.

 

[Envision]

It comes down to what adversity you've faced in your life and how that shaped your mindset, intentions, and goals.

Most millenials have it easy which has completely screwed there chances of creating a solid life path and building their future into something respectable

Cant afford college? Get student loans and worry about it later
Cant start a business? Pay some guy for his course and follow his step by step instructions
Cant get a girlfriend? Get on tinder and swipe right until someone thinks your attractive enough to talk to
Don't have money? Ask your parents for a job, salary, or $20 to get what you want.

Im 22, i'd say 99% of my friends are living in that type of an environment. But they never had life suck really bad. There parents handed them pretty much everything. They would never put themselves out there to eat shit for 5 years to build a successful business or create something that provides them the lifestyle they see in the pictures on Instagram. They wont sacrifice their Friday and Saturday nights with the boys to pack inventory, talk with suppliers, and plan the following week. They'd never drop all their savings (if they had any) on an inventory order to see if there idea would work not know if it was proven or not. They want everything handed to them, or its not worth their time and if it could fail then why would they even try? They would have just wasted their time.

And the millennial generations parents didn't realize they were in a system that worked effectively in a time where innovation/tech didn't really have the impact and influence it does now. So they blame their kids for not doing shit, when they system they grew up in was completely different than what their kids are in now (and what their telling/forcing their kids to do), and their kids are not prepared at all for the adversity that life is going to beat them with.

 

[Ninjakid]

Maybe because we have so much instant gratification?? Oftentimes entrepreneurs are driven by excitement; the burning desire to bring their larger-than-life idea to life. But when you can lose yourself in a hyper-reality at the touch of a touch-screen, building anything in real-life becomes less exciting.


So why would you go through the failures and emotional roller-coasters of starting a business when you can just lose yourself on your facebook newsfeed?

 

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[Contrarian]

I'm 29 and I find it difficult to relate to most people of my generation on much more than a surface level. You hardly ever see anyone under 35 on a motorbike, because "you'll kill yourself on one of those". Most do nothing but watch the clock until 5PM every day then go out and get drunk or sit on the couch and watch TV all night. Hedonism at every turn, but no purpose in sight. We are the lost generation; materially abundant but spiritually empty. Narcissism is our central value. Beneath it, an empty shell.

Our society makes mediocrity far too comfortable, and punishes success. Instant gratification is without a doubt a huge part of this. I love computer games. I grew up playing them. I have just learned to recognise it for the indulgence that it is and not something to treat as a matter-of-course activity.

The loss of the masculine virtues in our society surely plays a large part, as does the near-destruction of the family unit which used to bond people together and create purpose and future.

I can't picture me staying in the West long term, to be frank. I think the dominant culture of the day is sick, corrupted and remnant of the dying days of the Roman Empire. Kindred spirits here are to be found only in small groups, and with the wonders of the internet.

What I really find the most perplexing of all is this obsession with "equality" and "fairness" amongst some of the most self-obsessed yet self-loathing people in the world. Apparently sharing posts on Facebook and patting yourself on the back is the new making a difference in the world.

 

[Envision]

As a filthy millennial, how do I toughen the F*ck up? Start putting my balls on the line and dive head first?

To be honest, I don't really care how or what you do to figure it out. Your parents may lose their jobs, eventually causing them to lose their house and get a divorce, and you may find out your siblings are addicted to drugs, suicidal, or cutting themselves. You may be in such a shitty spot that all you do is exist in a shit hole mobile home park trying to figure out how to make more than minimum wage while everyone around you hates their lives and is literally existing to die while you close in on borderline homelessness. Somewhere along the line you'll snap and decide to do whatever the F*ck need to do to make it... Or not, and if not you'll just continue to blend into the "rest" of them and you'll die eventually, probably not soon enough but it'll come.

Most milennials have the problem where there is no wolf chasing them. They live in comfort and limbo, they don't have to try because it will be done for them. It doesn't take much to be better than the rest of them, just do something. Find your wolf.

 

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[K. H.]

Quote: 'This is the Golden Age. For you, your family, everyone you know, and everyone else around the planet, there has never been a better time to be alive. But it doesn't feel that way, does it? Your mind is likely filled with thoughts of recent terrorist attacks, racial tensions and economic crises.'

Instant gratification has a lot to do with it too... I'm 18 and have grown up in a well-off (society's standards) middle class family that fully subscribes to the sidewalker mentality. We have a big flat-screen TV mounted on the wall, tons of knick-knacks, nice cars, etc etc.... but there's no progression. We live in an apartment and I don't see my parents moving out any time soon... They're just comfortable. Settled. They're happy with the jobs they have and live paycheck to paycheck... If I didn't know any better, I'd be going off to college in pursuit of the same.

I'm glad I fell off the railroad young enough to realize that everyone around me is going... nowhere. I've written essays on the failure of the public education system to harbor any enterprising thoughts in our youth... We've been indoctrinated to be employees from the start of kindergarten. No one around me sees it (too busy caught up in social media, drugs, worrying about their own petty issues), but I don't feel that bad about it. I see it as much less competition for me and endless possibilities with the gifts I possess. Hello everyone by the way, this is my first post

 

[AntEmpire]

I'm an older millennial. Split my childhood between the 80s and 90s. And I don't know if it's fear or really just the lack of knowing how to dream big that stops many millennials from striking out on their own.

My story: I grew up in inner city Chicago. Neither myself nor my friends came from homes of means. The only thing we had to really entertain ourselves were our toys and each other. We spent LOTS of time outdoors. Playing in the park, dirt lots, or just hanging around on different building stoops. If we ever complained that we were bored, our parents would say "well, find something to do." And we always did. In fact, one of the phrases we often repeated enthusiastically to each other was "hey! I got a good idea!"

We were always making up something to do and having a good time doing it. And we were all creative, each of us known for doing something. I was known for my writing while some of my friends were known for drawing, singing, dancing, and poetry. We spent a lot of time producing things and sharing them with each other.

Contrast that with my cousins who are 5-10+ years younger than me. They grew up with TV's in their bedrooms, complete with cable packages and spent a lot of time in front of the TV, on the computer, and on video game systems. My cousin's 12-year-old son has been thrust in front of something electronic from the moment he was born. He had his own phone since he was 10 and whenever he goes over to his grandmother's house, he occupies the TV in the living room, complete with his phone, kindle tablet, and a few action figures.

But you know the one thing I've never seen any of my younger cousins do? Create something. I've never seen them write stories, or draw, or build anything that wasn't required from a school project. When they're bored, they throw themselves in front of a TV or computer screen. And the oldest ones, who are now of drinking age, are spending a greater amount of time crushing for deals for alcohol.

I honestly don't see them being anything other than employees for the rest of their lives. From my observations with my own family, I can't say they are fearful of starting businesses because it just never crossed their minds. For them, it's just the lack of knowing how to create anything. If they're short on money, they beg from older relatives to get the difference. When me and my friends were short of money, we just found a way to earn it on our own, because we knew we couldn't expect it from our parents.

Just my two cents on my experience as a millennial observing other millennials.

 

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[Formless]

Penn Jilette had an excellent quote that relates, he said something along the lines of:

'Two things are always true:

1) The world keeps getting better
2) People think it's getting worse.'

The relevance here is this media and public fearmongering. Economy is crashing and burning. Debts are rising. Sky is falling. Dan Kennedy also mentioned this in one of his seminars. He said 'Nobody talks about the new company which hired 300 people, but the one that fired 20.' So you have these people who are so afraid of starting anything.

I haven't seen any of this 'helicopter parenting' EVER in my life though. It has always sounded to me like bitter old people making things up. Can someone give me an anecdotal example of helicopter parenting in real life? (This is a legitimate request, not a facetious one.)

 

[parkerscott]

Coming from a millenial there are many reasons. Too many reasons, and they are all terrible reasons.

I have a friend who loves watches, he always asks for my opinion on watches, and he dreams of owning nice clothes, and looks at motivational pictures, and big houses etc. He always talks about the future, and how hes going to make it. He never takes action though, and instead he rather just dream.

The typical excuses from millenials are pretty funny. Some think you have to have a college degree. Others think you have to have 50k. Some think you have to be super lucky. Some just dont want to give up their time. Others think its too risky. Some think they are not smart enough.

They are all just excuses though. Luckily I stopped making them.

 

[FeaRxUnLeAsHeD]

My brain has been wired from birth though parents and school to adopt the slowlane mentality. It's not an excuse. Now I know. And have had to teach myself everything about this mentality. That's why I'm here, to take advantage of this amazing opportunity to learn

I think you touched on an important point here. The educational system is designed to put you in the slowlane, or keep you on the SIDEWALK.

When I was in elementary, middle, and high school, my friends were the side-walkers. They had the mentality of just having fun and never really getting serious about anything. No real passion. No real drive or ambition. Just exist. When we were old enough to get jobs, the majority of us did, and we began the route to slavery.
Throughout my upbringing, I clearly remember my dad dropping me off to my job before I had my license. He told me "You'll never be rich, but you'll do okay".
My parents always echoed the same words throughout my upbringing: "work is a prison, you do your time and get out" "We're prostitutes for our money. We sell our bodies and time for money" "You'll never be rich but you'll do better than I did."
I would go to school and be told by my teachers "Find something you enjoy doing and go to school for it. From there you can go on to find a safe secure job and if you work hard enough, you can retire young and enjoy your life"
Teachers would advocate how we should go on to live our lives, and when you would look at their lives they were speaking from a mindset of having f*cked up themselves. They were getting a$$-F*cked on the daily by upper management, they were underpaid, and they had student debt at 40. Their lives *SUCK* and that *SUCK* was always exacerbated through their teaching.

It took me YEARS, literally YEARS to break that mold. Imagine growing up and that's the shit that surrounds you? It's no WONDER the millenials aren't starting businesses. What the F*ck do you expect with this kind of upbringing..

The only way I got out of it was through a life coach, mentors, books, ditching the loser friends, and from that shift of mindset / environment, taking *ACTION* and starting a business and beginning to learn the possibilities that exist in this world for all of us if we just take the time to notice..

 

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[Charnell]

I'm a bit unfamiliar with these generational terms, but I believe I fall into the "millennial" gap (24 years old).

The biggest I see as a problem is a lack of grit. No one wants to do anything for themselves, get a bit dirty, learn a thing or two.

My best friend and his little brother were both excellent football players when we used to play in HS. Tough, smash mouth kids. My best friend went on to college and play ball, I joined the Marines. 6 years later they're both still at home living with their parents at 21 and 23 years old.

That's not so much a problem, I don't care, but their mom does everything for them. We drove across the state for a wedding and their mom packed their bags for them. Then we get there and the younger one calls her up complaining that she packed cargo pants instead of slacks. I was so bewildered, means I've been away from home since 18, that people could rely so heavily on their parents after 18.

Moral of the story is we need to bring back bullying. Get a lil toughness in us. A lil grit.

 

[FeaRxUnLeAsHeD]

You're dead on. I'm 23, was raised in very much the same way - my parents are super supportive, kind parents, I love them to bits, but there is definitely a slow lane mentality there. I grew up thinking I was going to go be a cop, join the Army, or maybe do something with computers, work till 65 and then maybe retire. Or maybe be a stay-at-home mom, which is my current gig.

I was introduced to the idea of being an entrepreneur in 2009, when I had just started college. So, I started a blog and wrote stuff. Joined Beachbody as a 'coach' (MLM). Couple years later, I was introduced to TMF , just in time to get married and have kids. So, of course, I "had" to devote all my time to that. It's only been recently (even though I've been a member here for years) that I've really broken out of that mindset.

I'm still dealing with some residual issues (not in the least trying to work with two kids pulling on my leg all day), but I'm reprogramming myself, figuring out my routine, and how to get shit done a little more every day.

Most of my friends (the ones that aren't still in school for their Masters/PhDs) are miserable working lower wage jobs, and are already dreaming about the day that they can retire and travel/golf/do absolutely nothing with their lives.

And if I bring up the idea that there's another option? I get laughed at and told that their reality is the best it's gonna get.

You're in the right place, that's for sure. You're reading the right books and browsing the right forums, which already puts you and everyone else on here miles ahead of the average joe-blow on the street.

The *Best* part about your statement at the end, which I marked in bold. I had a professor that really changed my mindset forever last semester, and it was about what you just said and the concept of retiring. I bet even MJ can touch on this.

My professor taught an actual, real life entrepreneurial class. No bullshit. No formulas. No functions. REAL LIFE. Business owners come in every week and we would solve their real world business challenges and present it to them, every week. And, a lot of the concepts we came up with made many people millions of dollars. This professor, let's call him Joe. Joe went on to found two very large companies that you and I both know of, but I will keep the names out for confidentiality. To put a long story short, Joe has a 9-figure net worth. Joe comes and teaches the class once a week because he has a true passion for helping entrepreneurs and contributing to the world. Joe is approaching 80 years old (and he's been a hundred millionaire probably since he was 35, mind you), and yet he continues to work on the board for over a dozen businesses, running companies, advising the youth, and teaching the class.

Why?

Because, with his exact words on retirement, this is what he told me.

"Why don't you retire, people will say to me. I tried that once. I went, up and moved with my wife down to Florida. We bought a nice beach home in a retired community and would get together with the community every night... And every night, all they would want to talk about is what the dinner-special was... If that's what retirement is, I dont WANT to retire."

Retirement is a joke. People think once they have a hundred million dollars they can go live in a beach home and fish and golf every day. Guess what, fishing and golfing every day will get old. If you aren't making a contribution, if you aren't *DOING SOMETHING* for the world with your time and with your energy and with whatever life is left in you, you're going to go crazy.

Go re-read the first several pages of MJ's book. "I write this to you out of blablabla... and out of boredom" - Now I don't want to go and put words in anyone's mouth, but I would *think* that sitting back in a very large house with everything money can buy will get utterly pathetic and boring... and you will HAVE to do something with your resources, with your time, and with your life. That was the perspective I got from a cancer-surviving near 80 year old professor of mine who has been worth 9 figures probably since he was in his 30s. Once you walk the entrepreneurial path, there isn't a finish line. Remember, journey, not destination. It's a carrot on a stick dangling in front of you.. So don't think you're going to *make it* and *retire* and golf and fish all day. Reality will catch up with you.. You will probably *ALWAYS* be doing something entrepreneurial once you drive into the fastlane

 

[DeletedUser394]

Penn Jilette had an excellent quote that relates, he said something along the lines of:

'Two things are always true:

1) The world keeps getting better
2) People think it's getting worse.'

The relevance here is this media and public fearmongering. Economy is crashing and burning. Debts are rising. Sky is falling. Dan Kennedy also mentioned this in one of his seminars. He said 'Nobody talks about the new company which hired 300 people, but the one that fired 20.' So you have these people who are so afraid of starting anything.

Funny I was reading an article today about exactly this topic. The crux of it was that life is good, and only getting better, regardless of what the media would have you believe.

Some facts included;

-The world has never been more peaceful. Civil wars are down 40% since 1990. They are also becoming less lethal. In the 1950s 86,000 people would die on average, now it's 3,000.

-In the middle ages you had a 1 in 8 chance of dieing violently in some kind of war. Now that number is minuscule even when accounting for disease and famine related causes.

-Threat of nuclear war? Warheads are down (and declining) from a peak of 70k, to 24k today.

-There has never been less poverty. The number of people living on less than $1.25 a day dropped 52 percent to 21 percent in the past 30 years.

Most people in the USA that today would consider themselves 'poor' in fact live better than the kings and queens of a few centuries ago.

-Hunger is down 40%.

-There are 78 MILLION fewer child labourers than there were just 14 years ago. (still over 150 million to go!)

-The number of democracies have increased exponentially from a low of 11 in 1900, to over 80 today.

-Crime is down in the USA and Canada. Significantly.

-Life spans are always increasing.

-Malaria rates? down. Teen pregnancy? down. Smoking? down.

Regarding teen pregnancy, with the proliferation of shows like 'Teen Mom', people are under the impression that more kids are getting knocked up now than ever before. Simply untrue.

Quote: 'This is the Golden Age. For you, your family, everyone you know, and everyone else around the planet, there has never been a better time to be alive. But it doesn't feel that way, does it? Your mind is likely filled with thoughts of recent terrorist attacks, racial tensions and economic crises.'

I am never turning on the TV again. Was going to watch the last few NFL games, but F*ck it I don't even care.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

Start putting my balls on the line

What does this mean?

I mean, seriously?

Is "balls on the line" failing and having to work in a retail store stocking shelves?
Is "balls on the line" a public failure and having some internet comment troll calling you a moron?
Is "balls on the line" spending 4 weeks learning something that might not yield a dividend?
Is "balls on the line" having to live in a tiny studio apartment while your friends seemingly live large?

I'm curious... what is "balls on the line?" to you?

 

[Djs87]

Before even reading the article I thought to myself, "parents giving kids trophies for everything and student loans." Simple as that. Sure enough...

 

[MidwestLandlord]

Why in the world are you complaining?

...

Isn't that good for Fastlaners?

Not sure I was complaining, more just staying the obvious.

But it does concern me. Why?

Because I live in this world, and dislike how people are so plugged in that they have no ambition and extreme apathy.

I don't like that my daughter's are force fed this way of life by others and that this is the norm for their peers (whom will be their friends and romantic partners when they are older)

Plus, I have genuine empathy for my fellow humans, and I don't like seeing the vast majority of people throwing their lives away.

How many people say they get after it, take action, but never get anywhere? Excuses! I don't have time! I don't know what to do! I don't know how!

That's apathy. That's not being committed to the process.

And that's how most people operate. Action fakes and excuses galore.

Here's how it's done. Write a to do list, you're not allowed to go to bed until it's done. That's exactly what I do. If I still have work to do, I don't sleep until it's done. Period.

I suppose it's easier to just be an apathetic victim though.

So is it good for business? Maybe (i would argue it's not)

But it's sad to watch.

 

[ClintonSkakun]

I've wondered this when watching my girls. It seems to be a motivation killer. My oldest enjoys creative activities like drawing, sewing, etc. But she'll always choose the iPad over those if it's available. We make her take breaks, and sometimes it's only after 30 minutes or so of bitching about being bored that she will decide it's worth the effort to go find something else to work on.

It seems to me that those who have the strength to achieve in spite of that instant gratification will have a huge advantage in the coming decades. of course, then the wealth gap will get worse, then more griping...etc, etc.

I'm 24 and not sure if it's only something to do with my generation but being "bored" seems to be a norm. When I was younger, and today, I'm rarely bored. Too many areas to improve, interests and hustles. Being bored is foreign to me. I'd often have friends calling me to take a break from my freelance work to hangout because they were bored. These are the F*cking problems we have these days. We're bored, yet at the same time, we completely lack in any type of meaningful accomplishment.

 

[Kak]

I am disgusted with my generation... But, I am also excited that the incompetence will leave room at the top for those of us with some ambition and intellegence.

It is going to be really easy to win with these folks as the competition... I really don't relate with my generation at all... I can count on 2 hands the people in this world who I consider my very good friends and they are almost all older than 40.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

I blame the internet.

One of the greatest inventions in human history, and what do most people do with it? They use it to action-fake, compare themselves to other's over social media, use social media to only show their "highlight reel" instead of their failures, attention-whore, and seek out and find confirmation of their biases for why they can't succeed.

They read about building a business instead of building a business.
They read about talking to girls instead of talking to girls.
They read about getting in shape instead of hitting the gym or the sidewalk.
They read about traveling the world instead of traveling the world.
They talk to people over FB or forums instead of making real life friends.
They endlessly text over Tinder or Match instead of insisting on meeting for a drink.
They endlessly post about the poor kid with cancer instead of giving their time or money to help.
They endlessly share their opinion on everything, without having any depth of knowledge or experience to know if they are right or wrong.

No other generation in history has had such an easy to use and socially acceptable action-fake tool available to them.

It's easy to be scared of life when you've never actually experienced it.

We've turned into a world of socially-retarded hermits who sit behind a screen living in fear.

Featured!

I heard this the other day...

Are you using your smartphone? Or is your smartphone using you?

This isn't just about millennials, but about making an entire society subservient to a particular narrative that befits huge corporate oligarchs... and sorry, starting a business to compete with those oligarchs while exorcising yourself from the ranks of an obedient drone isn't apart of that narrative.

 

[Mattie]

The millenial's on here aren't so bad as the one's I'm used to talking too. The one's I'm conversing with are in the middle of a lot of pain and suffering, and in the victim mentality from abuse. Now I can talk to them and share this kind of stuff with them, but they have a lot of fear about breaking away from their dysfunctional homes. It's kind of like the human conditioning of being loyal to the toxic parent, and their siblings they need to rescue. And this is side walk and middle class kids I talk to in a wealthy area.

The one's in the hood and lower poverty are hustling and doing business on the streets and aiming all that negative energy towards other people through crime.

And than you have the one's that are above those two levels that are striving for college or entrepreneurship that have their head on straight to a certain extent.

Most of the one's I know don't have a mcdonald's job and keep a job for two seconds, because it's F..ck the world and they have an attitude like you can believe. And I laugh sometimes because I understand them wanting to rebel against toxic parents, but they haven't learned quite yet, how to harness that anger and negative energy towards doing something productive, and I have to sort of wait sometimes for them to get done blowing off steam, and with one of them, it's been four months they're having their growing pains. So, I know they have the information I gave them, and I've planted seeds in many of them, but somehow, ha ha they seem to be lost in the emotional and mental thing and I guess when they're done with it, they might do something.

 

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[jlwilliams]

I don't know. My daughter is 23, and some of her generation that I have met leave me with limited hope. Then there are the other ones, who are doing incredible things.

Look at the "baby boomers" for a minute. Never has there been a more self centered generation. Their parents made it through the depression and WWII and wanted to give their kids everything. The spoiled little brats "rebelled" against normalcy and did their best to tear down society (look at SDS and The Weathermen etc) They smoked as much dope as they could, they drank, screwed and snorted everything in their path. The end result being the first generation where single parent households was the norm (and still is, thanks, boomers.) As adults, as they came into their own, they became the "yuppies" of the 1980s. The fictional Gordon Gecko was a Baby Boomer arch-type and only he himself was fictional. He was based on real people and typified the mores of many of his peers. Now, they are the old people who run things. They have successfully repainted the '60s as a time of social growth, not their failed attempt to tip over the apple cart. They collectively have more wealth that any other age bracket, and still collect more benefits. they WILL bankrupt social security. Neither I nor you who are younger than me will get one thin dime of that (I'm 43.) Yet still, their generation has it's successes. They have built things. Not all of them burned their draft cards, many served. Not all OD'd on heroine. Many raised their families and live productive lives. The fact is, their generation had as much to show them in a poor light as the "millennials" do; arguably more but they didn't collectively stumble and fall. All the predictions that they would do so turned out to be crap.

Sure, there are some worthless millennials. So what? Predictions that the sky will fall are nothing new. Pay no heed to that crap. Just keep pushing the ball forward. Be productive. Create value. Studiously ignore the nay-sayers. They create no value by claiming that this generation or that one isn't creating enough value.

Moving on.......

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

They're happy

And that's what really matters. A Fastlaner has no grounds to tell a happy Slowlaner/Sidewalker that his way is wrong. The Fastlane message is for DISGRUNTLED Slowlaner/Sidewalkers who want to change and are unhappy with status quo.

But you know the one thing I've never seen any of my younger cousins do? Create something. I've never seen them write stories, or draw, or build anything that wasn't required from a school project. When they're bored, they throw themselves in front of a TV or computer screen. And the oldest ones, who are now of drinking age, are spending a greater amount of time crushing for deals for alcohol.

Great take. Surprised no one commented. Rep+$100.

 

[DifficultTruth]

Some things I have learned as a Millennial:

1. Every generation thinks they are the best generation, and wants to talk about how great they are and talk badly about the others.
2. There are winners and losers from every generation.
3. There always has been and always will be sidewalkers, slowlaners, and fastlaners in every generation. None of these choices/lifestyles is right or wrong, if someone is happy with their life, who cares.
4. Most people are lazy, regardless of what generation they are from. Work hard and you will be rewarded.
5. Be grateful for what you have. Work for what you want.

 

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[luniac]

You know seeing this thread brought up some personal thoughts about the subject.

Maybe millennial are too scared to fail because other millennial are just ITCHING for an opportunity to shit on them whether publicly or some Shadenfreude type of shit.
Both cases are sense of insecurity, the millennial too scared and the millennial who brings you down afterwards.

Based on my 26 years on this planet and my ok historical knowledge and extensive movie viewing experience lol, I think previous generations had much stronger sense of self esteem, and i think a lot of that had to do with good upbringing and social support for each other. Maybe even a sense of community played a part.

I mean if i lived in a tightly knit neighborhood where everyone supported each other and i wanted to start some business, i honestly would have more balls to call people get info etc etc because i feel like my neighborhood got my back.

Nowadays(and i know this is bad mentality) i have the feeling that if i F*ck up something and look stupid someone somewhere gonna laugh at me, even in my own home.

I feel like part of the reason i do apps is because since i make them myself, at least it limits how much shit someone can talk since it's still impressive that i personally created and released an app.

I'm going deep here lol... whatever

 

[Jamesdoesmith]

Penn Jilette had an excellent quote that relates, he said something along the lines of:

'Two things are always true:

1) The world keeps getting better
2) People think it's getting worse.'

The relevance here is this media and public fearmongering. Economy is crashing and burning. Debts are rising. Sky is falling. Dan Kennedy also mentioned this in one of his seminars. He said 'Nobody talks about the new company which hired 300 people, but the one that fired 20.' So you have these people who are so afraid of starting anything.

I haven't seen any of this 'helicopter parenting' EVER in my life though. It has always sounded to me like bitter old people making things up. Can someone give me an anecdotal example of helicopter parenting in real life? (This is a legitimate request, not a facetious one.)

you know the ones. Parents who won't let their kids get dirt or hurt EVER. The parents who get their kids clothes picked out, shop for them , fill out apps for them. Drive them everywhere out of fear. Overbearing over the top safety parents. parents that bail out lil johnny cause "he's just being a 20 yr old!" Kids don't get bruised up anymore or work hard. Buying pre cut wood over choppin logs nomsayin??? Kids are babied. They love the system. They walk out of college with their hand held to the sky cause they are looking for a freebee or a handout. Why would they not? their parents have always ever just kicked things their direction no question. If only to keep em quiet. They vote for a party cause they never knew any other way. They look for perks, not real legitimacy of a candidate. What can be done for me? why is the world hating me? why don't things change for me???

In relation to the article. It is also what I call the hivemind. The mindset of "well my sister, brother, and closest friends are doing XYZ...better do the same!" revolves around FOMO. (Fear Of Missing Out) Fear to be individuals. Fear to step out of the norm. Keep the sheep mind and we will all be OK. It is why the music on the radio all sounds the same. Fall into line and get a safe 60k job and pay back a debt that the gov will eventually just nip for you anway.


This way of thinking is sad but welp I can't help you. I went to a school where money was a plenty and trucking to work every weekend was obscene. I went to work to make money and pay for things cause my parents stopped covering frivolous things early on. Kids I went to school with did it to "learn value". Most don't hold jobs and get random thousands of dollars from their parents. I used to be bitter and envious...but I know had I been brought up that way I wouldn't turn it down. This grand ignorance of the road less traveled. It covers it back up in trees and weeds and makes it alot easier for trailblazer "try hards" like me to succeed in it. It makes it more "man on the moon" vs "random success in the news". I love the lack of competition. The NEED TO BE LIKED and the NEED to fit in. College is doing exactly what the economy wants. Chaining the perfect person to a desk to pay off a debt they know they can't pay back in a timely fashion. They fit the mold perfectly. Made for it. Slowlane gerbil wheel.

 

[Mattie]

you know the ones. Parents who won't let their kids get dirt or hurt EVER. The parents who get their kids clothes picked out, shop for them , fill out apps for them. Drive them everywhere out of fear. Overbearing over the top safety parents. parents that bail out lil johnny cause "he's just being a 20 yr old!" Kids don't get bruised up anymore or work hard. Buying pre cut wood over choppin logs nomsayin??? Kids are babied. They love the system. They walk out of college with their hand held to the sky cause they are looking for a freebee or a handout. Why would they not? their parents have always ever just kicked things their direction no question. If only to keep em quiet.

This exactly why I ended up not succeeding. I was always given everything and rescued and bailed out or bought all the time. I remember when I was 22 I wanted to buy a mountain bike and pay for it myself, and it ended up getting bought for me. The thing is when people buy everything for you and bail you out you don't learn. I was a spoiled kid from the beginning. I had every toy in the store, because people competed. I never lacked anything.

And so though when everything came crashing down, It probably was the best thing that happen to me. At the same time, I saw how the poverty people had to survive and how hard of a struggle it was, and at the same time, I see how the side walk and slow lane people didn't ever teach me how to fish or sell fishing poles. I was fed all the time, but even there version of success and going to college, and wealth is distorted.

If I didn't know better the fall and failure actually made me a champion in life. And like Eminem stated, perhaps I needed to go there, to get here. During that experience it wasn't pleasant and painful, but perhaps the experience was necessary to become my best self.

Think that makes the difference in leaders that make an impact. They've went through the experience and process.

When I work with the Millenials, the one I keep watching and trying to reach, I know they have to go through the process of emotions and hardships, this person knows I'm there online, and I make comments once in awhile when I see the behavior is appropriate. The thing is as a mentor I know they have to get rid of that negative crap and when there finished fighting and resisting, I can step back in when they're ready. Metaphor (sometimes it's like when you have a fish on the line and keeps pulling the string out and their thrashing and fighting the line) You have to let them get tired and step in and work with them.

There's a group of them I've tried to work with, but it's not an easy ride, they listen to me, but they have a hard time disciplining themselves, and sticking with it.

 

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[Even Steven]

On the flip side of this, I wonder if fewer people willing to take the risk and start a business means more opportunities going forward for those are willing to.