Are Millennials selfish or healthy?

The aftershocks of the "Me Decade" in play.

Bullshit ageist propaganda.

Yeah, blame the young kids for your failing economy and government corruption baby boomers, certainly has nothing to do with your unsustainable lifestyles or your complete apathy for the democratic process.

Fuck 60 minutes, they don't even attempt to be real journalists.

A blend of the two. The people and the environment will change to fit one another. I would be mortified if my mom called about my performance review, but do think a lot of us demand a more relaxed working environment. I am perfectly happy working 10 or 12 hours day, did it for 2 years, but ask me to where a suit and I'm not going to like it.
It's all give an take, just like any other generation that enters the work force. The reason this is becoming such a big deal is that there is a vast difference between 2 generations ago and the new generation. Before people could have a job for a life time so nobody wanted to rock the boat. Now we know that we will most likely be moving on after 5 years so we are less afraid to ask for the little things that make us happy. Mine happens to be wearing jeans and being able to listen to music while I work.

The problem with our generation is that we think we're struggling against corrupt corporations when really we're just playing right into their hands.

Ohhhh embrace how shitty these new jobs are and hwo they offer you no real income or benefits. Ignore that you're likely to switch CAREERS 4 to 5 times in your life on average, a situation that has never occurred in world history let alone U.S. history ever before.

Fuck the ipods and the suits and the corporate culture. Give your fucking boss the finger and form unions and respond MILITANTLY to any denial of basic labor rights. I'll put up with stupid bullshit and bureaucratic, dehumanizing systems as long as the jobs are decent and we're able to actually have a middle class.

They are weak. Too soft...

At the risk of sounding like a whiny "me generationer":

This whole thing is bullsh*t. It's degrading; the notion of a young professional's parent calling his/her boss to complain is absurd and unfounded. This is the crap that helps propagate the idea Babyboomers seems to be so fervently holding on to: the idea that my generation is ignorant, spoiled, and stupid.

Here's a little reality check: critics of my generation are too jaded to realize that times have changed, and that they are no longer "of the world." My generation has the weight of the world on its shoulders, and I vehemently believe that we are one of the hardest working generations in history. And to believe that my generation is spoiled is a gross case of candy coating; with everything going to sh*t in the world, I don't see how we could ever be spoiled.

Suck on that, you cynical old farts!

Why is it a crime to be optimistic? Why shouldn't we be seeking our dream jobs or demanding better work conditions? We're a generation that doesn't believe in settling for inefficient government, biased media, or unfair employment. Being progressive isn't being selfish.

(And I realize the irony involved in defending the "Me Generation" by emphasizing the wants of me me me.)

I don't know man, I know a lot of people my age (25 give or take) that are living in a fantasy world, and are entirely self-absorbed... Not all of them, just enough to make me worry.

But then there's a lot of other people my age that are stepping up and thinking about how we can do better, so we'll see.

Damn those kids for not enslaving themselves to corporations! Since when is it a bad thing to want to be happy at work and enjoy your job?

They criticize the kids for their parents calling HR and updating their resumes. Why is there no blame to be put on the parental generation?

Because this program is for entertainment, and that's the audience they're appealing to.

It's not like this is an investigation, this is just an fun television program that panders to all older peoples' prejudices about young people.

60 minutes has been full of shit for a LONG time. For Christ's sake, they supported the Iraq war and called Matthew Shepard's murderers misunderstood victims of drugs and justified that hate crime.

mr ansom I'm gonna have to call BS on that statement that we are the hardest working generation.

selfish is healthy

Jorge Bucay

we truly are the center of our own little world, we are all like that and there is nothing we can do about it

First of all, there is a difference between jobs and careers. Most people I know are appreciate to find a JOB that covers the bills. However, I believe that it is important to find a CAREER you are passionate about. I'm sure there are people who are unreasonable or selfish about their job choices, but I don't know any of them personally.

I'm a Millennial? Good to know. With all this generalizing going on it's time to start being a douche at work.

our generation is lazy and the generation before us were bad parents that raised lazy kids and got lots of divorces...

there is a point in time when it is not okay for mommy and daddy to keep bailing you out and our lazy generation is the product of our surroundings, so to all the parents that used PBS to babysit your children, need to put some of the blame on themselves. and although the idea of unions are good, i paid into one for years and they can be just as corrupt and worthless to the working class as the big corporations. Wal Mart has set a low standard that a lot of people are willing to settle for and that idea is starting to seep into the minds of other big money hungry corporation heads. I need my degree to aim to be rich, the middle class is disappearing, there probably won't be much left in social security once i retire, but as far being the hardest working generation? ha ha thats funny, there are some jobs that are hard work, but i just don't consider dealing with needy americans, kissing their butt, and feeding their ego is necessarily... hard.

I was born in 1980 and I guess I do feel somewhat like the description, but not totally. I do, however, see the selfishness in a massive load of other people and it's astounding how people just buy their justifications. I don't like being babied and refuse to baby others. I am not my generation.

Pointless. Each person is an individual and should be judged based on their own merits. Generalizations are a step backwards not forwards.

I saw the piece on Sixty Minutes. It made me feel I was ahead of the curve, don't all twenty-somethings have that attitude? At 24 I quit my job to live on the beach. But as a manager, I would tell them to show up on time, dress professionally, or take a hike. Everyone has to grow up sooner or later. If you don't want the job, someone else will.

OK...from my pov, the work ethic of some of the young graduates I have managed with was a bit strange. I believe this is what the article is getting at.

As for me, if an employee ever walks in my office and whines because you have to work through lunch because you left early the day before...they're done. Most corporate gigs are 8 to 5 or so...if your panites get in a wad at 4, I'll fire you and find someone else that wants to eat. If someone signs on to do a job, then they should keep their word. Simple as that...

Perhaps if those parents sapre_aude mentioned had instilled a work ethic into these folks they would have turned out better...

All that said most of the young folks that have worked for me in corporate and gig environments have been fantastic...the article is about the minority. The youth are great.

if thats the case, who are the ones that spoiled us and raised us up to be lazy? Who creates the technology that lets us slack off? Who outsources the jobs so there's none left here? Who put the emphasis on efficiency and convenience instead of ethic and ambition?
We're just dotting your i's and crossing your t's.

But we're just lazy and have it easy. We don't know what work is.

Screw that. We have it hard too, we have challenges that didn't exist before us, but we also have it easier where it was hard before. Guess what? Living is hard. People do what they can, in the way they want.

I think any generalization like this one is a crock of shit.

I'll admit it I act pretty selfish at my job,
but to be fair so does my boss.

Nap time halfway through the day and play time is really only a great stress reliever that keeps us productive.

The amount of tasks that we get done in a day are insane!

I think the result of the "me" generation means that we dont want to be just paper pushers. We want a say in all aspects and to really make a difference. That drive will make our generation better. I think the future is more profit sharing... and no, I dont think its unreasonable to work in a fun, positive environment, to come home fulfilled, not drained.

I dont think its unreasonable to want to be happy. Isnt that point of life?

I think the napping and the fun moments at work are a good thing. Napping doesn't have to be a forever nap but like 20 minutes after lunch. It has been shown to raise productivity where people use it. I agree that it's more about "me" but also more about how they don't want to die at work. Family and friends come first and I think that's a great change of pace and priorities.

Plus, the lifespan of the average American is much longer, we can afford to expand the adolescence stage. Our multiple job experiences introduces new ideas into the work force and encourages crossing of ideas/work culture. The fun that we love at a job, should create a greater sense of community and synergy, Work hard, play hard.

Jobs are less about manual labor, and more a labor of intellect. Things you could very well do from home. I encourage nourishing the soul, which is reflected in endeavours of the mind.

Meb025

Kudos!

As for the lazy kids, they're called the rich and privileged. They have always been this way from what I can gather.

Every question that was raised in this video has another side to it. They need to instead ask themselves what might be the benefits of doing things differently.

If there's any question about Millennials' work ethic, you don't need to ask -- we know that we'll be faced with challenges greater than anything else in history.

People don't like to be labeled but even those that don't like labels have labeled themselves as not labeled. Each generation is different than the last for reasons that are made up of the mass majority. Sure there are similarities but over all there are major differences that make the majority unique and the generation so different. It is either bad or good as a whole, but it's truthful for just like stereotypes these ideas of what this generation is like wasn't created out of thin air. People have seen the evidence and marked it down as something worth mentioning.

It may not be for everyone in that generation but it does hold truth for the majority and that's really what matters. Those that fall into the minority are not at all who people are talking about when they speak of this generation.

What job market are these douchebags, err I mean millenials in that they can jump from job to job?

I'm twenty and have at times worked three jobs. I didn't get my first job till I was 17 partialy because of the depressed and the crowded job market, two obstacles that the boomers simply didn't have to confront when they were starting out. I don't think we are spoiled.

Well part of the reason boomers think that you are spoiled is because you are still blaiming your parent for every problem you face. I have sat here and read the responses and most of the time all that is said is mommy didn't hold me enough! Enough already! Grow up stop blaming your problems on your parents! So you still want a nap, okay if your boss doesn't like it take it on your lunch break! AND the reason they think you don't know hard work is that the vast majority of the mil gen, has never really done any hard manual labor! Working 10 hours in an office is hardly putting in tobacco for 12 hours! ANd there is a lot of the mil gen I see and work with that fall apart on projects and I have to carry the weight! I do the work and allow those that gave any contribution to slide! My fault, I should let them suffer the consequences! That being said I do on occassion find a mil gen person that is someone I respect and see as intelligent and able to see beyond themselves! As for facign things no one else ever did, read a history book, we have been going back and forth on environmental problems since the industrial revolution, London was so bad people had to put towels and clothes around windows and doors to keep the black soot in the air from coming in. The main reason people are looking at this generation like they do, is the whining! Older gens have had it just as bad, they voted to change it and did what they could, now you are part of the process, vote wisely or your kids will be complaining about you not spending enough time with them and how bad you did things!

office space certainly shaped my views with dealing with my job