Millennials as Students, Employees, and Citizens

1. Millennials as Students, Employees, and Citizens Dr. Pete Markiewicz Indiespace.com Lifecourse AssociatesArt Institute of California, Los Angeles

2. The Strauss & Howe model • Generations last ~20 years • 14 defined generations in US history • Cyclic patterns in generation psychology • Sudden pop culture “takeover” when youngest generation reaches their 20s • GenX/Y ->Millennial transition 2005-2020

3. Millennial traits summarized • According to S & H, Millennials are… • SPECIAL (wizards in training) • SHELTERED (naïve about real world) • CONFIDENT (I can do anything)) • CONVENTIONAL (rules, authority have value) • TEAM-PLAYER (group most important) • PRESSURED (work, work, work…) • ACHIEVING (value society’s rewards)

4. Millennial traits Special, Sheltered, Wizards-in-training

5. Millennial traits Conventional, Inclusive, Team-players Socially conscious Want everyone to succeed Group, cause-oriented Renewed political engagement

6. Millennial traits “Trophy kid” pressure Driven to achieve Achievement = passing standardized tests

7. Empire of Sports Millennial traits Virtualized Social media New kinds of “friend” “Always online” Geolocated Habbo Social media New kinds of “friend” “Always online” Geolocated

8. Additional traits • Close to parents (they’re still protecting them) • Naïve about “real life” • Not classic “rebels” (everyone older already is) • Left-brain, external, thinkers • Engaged by specifics, not “big ideas” • Collectivist/groupthink, consensus • Comfortable with monitoring, tight controls on personal behavior (in public) • Expect business, government to solve their problems

9. Bad press from 2006 Naïve Mommy/Daddy will fix it Arrogance No respect for experience Belief in personal superiority Lack basic communication skills Need constant stroking Over-complaining Over-sharing Can’t read a book Take any comments as criticism Reveal company secrets on blog Online and offline comments • Disloyal • Cheaters • Don’t understand money • Paying dues = occupy space • Uninterested in adapting • Lack creativity • Passive • Assume automatic promotion • Others responsible for my mistakes • “We all deserve promotions” • “I get Facebook or I walk”

10. Getting real People are people first No generation is “bad” “Bad” features of one generation may be the “good” features of the next You can’t easily change behavior You can exploit strengths and adjust for weaknesses

11. Millennial positives • Tolerant of diversity • Accept that rules solve problems • Will work hard for (specified) goals • Want everyone to get a fair shake • Very concerned about social justice for all • Want to make the world a better place • Skilled at leveraging new technology

12. Millennial issues • Entitlement • Failure to launch • The Collective • The Shallows • Generation Debt

13. Millennial entitlement Derives from the “special” core trait Millennials see their needs as “rights” A “micro celebrity” expects special customer service Want all the benefits (and a list) from the start Expect free stuff Confident that helicopter parents will defend their “rights”

14. Message received… • Millennials really think they are special • Told they were especially clever, creative • Had their ideas listened to as equals • Self-describe as “exceptional” • Assume there must be greener pastures for “someone as special as myself”

15. No Millennial confidence gap! Reported self-Confidence of First-Year College Students by Gender, 2006 SOURCE: The Gender Gap in College: Maximizing the Developmental Potential of Women and Men Linda J. Sax, Alexander W. Astin (Foreword by), Helen S. Astin (Foreword by)ISBN: 978-0-7879-6575-4

16. The “micro celebrity” Parents and media told Millennials that they were special Attention from family and society made Millennials optimistic and confident Marketing messages implied that they were a “must have” customer that would get premium service Millennials enter life as a customer, expecting great service

17. Examples I deserve an “A”for effort Why do I have to work now instead of outside work/class? Why can’t I just jump to the advanced class? That’s the part I want? “Why can’t we re-negotiate your hours?” “Why can’t I use Facebook at work/school?”

18. Millennials complain… You haven’t told me the rules Your decisions are arbitrary, we should negotiate and optimize If you give me an A, it would be good for me You don’t respect my ideas You’re forcing me to know stuff that doesn’t matter to my life plan

19. Entitlement = inexperience? • Fewer Millennials have ever held a job before graduating college • Fewer Millennials than any generation can drive a car • More Millennials depend on their parents before and after graduation • More Millennials interpret business and society as governed by “family rules”

20. Failure to launch • Millennials are “trophy kids” who remain close to their parents • Assume parents will continue to take care of them • Only 60% of eligible Millennials have drivers’ licenses • A large proportion of Millennials are moving home after college

21. Helicopter everyone • Millennials assume “someone will step in” • Helicopter parents are ready to run in and protect their “trophy kids” • Constant guidance from elders, close relationships before and after leaving home • Social networks make their default state of reality “being monitored by your peers”

22. Need for praise • Millennials expect praise • For effort • For ordinary work • For everyday activity • Praise may be symbolic • Gold stars • “A new level” like a game

23. The collective • Millennials are a “groupthink” generation • Parents • Peers on social networks • Larger group of virtual “friends” • Groups and “causes” • Solve problems in teams (think Harry Potter) • No losers – only the “last winner” • “A” grades have become the default • “B” for just showing up

24. My Network = me Katy ***** do not worry if you are trying to get ahold of me...the phone got mixed in with a little bit of gatorade.... so now i am not only stressed but missing part of me.. i guess find me on here (Facebook) if you need to talk to me Kelly ****** wants to drop kick the idiot walking in the middle of the street while holding her lil girl's hand & talking on the phone at the same time. Real Talk! Karmel ***** and Dawn **** are now friends Hilary ***** commented on Charles Iker's photo. Shawn ***** found a secret stash of BA-12 Assault Rifles in Mafia Wars! Ara Leon ********* was at Philadelphia Steak & Hoagie. Philadelphia Steak & Hoagie on Yelp Ara has the most check-ins at Philadelphia Steak & Hoagie! Category: Sandwiches Location: North Hollywood, North Hollywood Ara Leon Abcarianswas atPhiladelphia Steak & Hoagie. Philadelphia Steak & Hoagie on Yelp Ara has the most check-ins at Philadelphia Steak & Hoagie! Category:Sandwiches Location:North Hollywood, North Hollywood

25. Thinking in groups Derives from the “team-player” core trait Millennials don’t have an “inner compass” (unlike their mostly Boomer parents) Online peer groups in Web 2.0 provide the “wisdom of the crowd” for personal decisions Short, frequent “ping” style communication (texting rather than long calls, emails, or letters) A new kind of friend Definition of “friend” loosened to anyone you can communicate with Virtual personas to broadcast their inner state (e.g. avatars in virtual worlds)

26. No “inner compass” Older generations have a feeling (excitement, sadness), and call a friend to share… Millennials call a friend to get their next feeling… Millennials consult the group to know what to think/feel next! – Sherri Turkle, MIT

27. What should I do next? “Students can’t go for even a few minutes without talking on their cellphone. There’s almost a discomfort with not being stimulated – a kind of ‘I can’t stand the silence’…” -Donald Roberts,Stanford Professor, quoted in “Generation M”, Time, March 27, 2006

28. Mashups = crowd art • Millennial media is “cut and paste” • Social networking pages • Widgets • Authenticity less important • IOK to grab stuff from the Internet and call it mine • One of my avatars can stand-in for me • Viewed as original work • Internet content provides the worlds for our “visual language”

29. The Shallows • “The Shallows” (Nicholas Carr) • Millennial reality is transactional, rather than conceptual • Network technology replaces focused thought with ADD-like management of fast data streams • Millennial understanding of computers actually worse than previous generations • Millennials are… • Good at sorting, organizing, collaborating • Poor at meaning, deep thought, long focus on a single task SOURCE: “The Shallows” by Nicolas Carr, 2010, Norton

30. A mile wide/an inch deep • Derives from “always on” media • Millennials adapt to information overload by communicating in frequent, short bursts • They value shuffling of vast amounts of information rather than deep knowledge of a specific topic • Millennials multitask – but research shows they do it no better than older adults • Computer games and social network sites present the world as having discrete tasks, scores, and rankings

31. Homo mobilis Constant communication increases re-negotiation, reduces advance planning, reading Frequent check-ins (“pinging”), allows regular consensus-building with their “friends” Definition of “friend” loosened to someone you can communicate with Looser definition of “public” versus private information (a public web page seems “private” to them). SOURCE:-The Economist,” Homo Mobilis, April 10, 2008

32. Everything is negotiable “…Older people use their mobile phones to "micro-co-ordinate" with partners during the day in order to run their errands more efficiently and … younger people, who have never known paper diaries or an unconnected world, micro-co-ordinate in order to avoid committing themselves to any fixed meeting time, location or person at all. After all, a better opportunity might yet present itself…-The Economist,” Homo Mobilis, April 10, 2008

33. In other words… • Computers didn’t take over the world • Millennials made their minds match computer processing • Big Brother didn’t take over the world • Millennials made themselves into their own S/N Big Brother

34. The social norm • Millennials don’t share Boomer perfectionism • Trained to see the world as a game • Standardized challenges • Lots of levels defining advancement • Rapid feedback-style rewards • There is no “in the long run” • Expect maximum benefit if they “put in the time”

35. Millennials believe… • The journey is ANYTHING but “its own reward” • You don’t “follow your bliss” unless it: • Gets you something concrete • Makes you a success • Makes a difference • 90% of life is doing what you’re told to do

36. Millennial expectations • If I work hard and follow the rules • There must be a reward • It will be a special reward • If I fail… • The system must be broken • Schools, industry, government must keep their promise

37. Millennial cheating in 2002 Cheating is just us helping each other… "I actually think cheating is good. A person who has an entirely honest life can't succeed these days." "I believe cheating is not wrong. People expect us to attend 7 classes a day, keep a 4.0 GPA, not go crazy and turn in all of our work the next day. What are we supposed to do, fail?" SOURCE: CNN report on Millennial cheatinghttp://archives.cnn.com/2002/fyi/teacher.ednews/04/05/highschool.cheating/

38. Generation Debt • Students typically graduate with ~$25,000 in debt • Debts may be double for for-profit schools • The average senior will graduate with ~$4,000 in credit card debt, up 41% from the same study conducted in 2004 • People in the 18 to 24 age bracket spend nearly 30% of their monthly income on debt repayment - double the percentage in 1992  SOURCES: Salle Mae, Center for Responsible Lending

39. Debt consequences • Debt is contributing to other Millennial features • Failure to launch • Extended dependence on parents • Entitlement (inexperience?) • Debt will soon contribute to • A desire to “fix it” by any means necessary • Delayed start to households

40. What would you do? • Choose a topic • Discuss pragmatic approaches • Create a list for implementing • Check the solution deck