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I AM NOT A NUMBER

By Chelsea Bush ⋅ February 25, 2008 ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

What makes us so different from past generations? 75% of those surveyed, born between 1978 and 1998 work to live, not live to work. We’re spend-a-holics not work-a-holics. Television programmes such as Dragon’s Den and Sex and the City have given us aspirations of success. All we need is the money and we can have the city centre flat, flash car or expensive shoes. Be able to prove something to the friends from high school who we still speak to on Facebook, but are willing to climb over in the career world. The idea is that we want the money, but we will not settle for any old job to get it. We want job satisfaction. Many a time we have heard our parents complain about their work. The work which most went straight into after high school because university was not the next step. From a young age our generation: Generation Y, has been told, ‘You can do it’, ‘don’t settle’ and, uncharacteristically, we listened to our parents. The satisfaction of being able to announce yourself as a CEO at the school reunion is what we strive for. Not the best pension or a gold carriage clock after thirty years in the business. If our career doesn’t challenge us, we will leave. Four years is a long time in the same building with the same colleagues. Generation Y is about building a CV, not showing our commitment to one employer. We want our list of work experience to rival our dissertation bibliography.

We want to go to the wine bar on a Friday evening. Content after a challenging but rewarding week writing articles, budgeting for gallery openings and meetings with the Managing Director: our predecessor! 52% expect a career overseas and a promotion after twelve months. We want the Blackberry in our pocket and the laptop in our bag. Our parents complain about the small buttons and sore shoulder from the pretentious leather case. Twenty years between the generations and the perception of work has turned on its head. 43% look and apply for jobs online. The website has to impress us. Technology is our world: the world is our oyster.

Generation Y wants pole position. Experiences in life don’t happen without money. We are willing to work for that money but employers need to work for us. Take an interest and challenge us. We are not a number: we’re Generation Y.

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