We are a generation of entitlement. My generation, more than any before, seems to feel as though the world owes us something. I think quite the opposite. When people ask me why I'm so good at my job, my response is always this: When you've been so poor that you don't know where you're going to get $0.32 for two packs of Ramen Noodles that night and someone offers you a shot at living comfortably, you will give them everything you have...because anything less than your best is not really an option. You find a part of yourself that is so grateful for the opportunity to work for that company that you will literally do anything for them. Hire the poor, rugged, unfortunate looking person...they'll become a superior employee.
I lost my sense of entitlement when I turned 18. Having everything and then losing it suddenly makes you realize that you never really had anything at all. I never realized how much I had handed to me until my parents weren't paying the bills. I spent months trying to recover from the loss. I spent a year after that living on an extremely tight budget. Now, we're at a place where we can have the things we want and need. Our budget is much more lenient. But I haven't forgotten where we once were. I still work my hardest every day to avoid going back to that place.
People my age seem to forget that they're being paid to perform a job and they should give their very best to that job every single day. I don't experience this much with my coworkers because most of them have similar experiences to me. But I see it everywhere I go. I see waiters and sales associates that feel like adequate customer service is a request, not a requirement. They seem to think that pleasantries are unnecessary.
I think everyone should be poor. We should all experience it at one point or another because it really makes you a more grateful, giving, loving person. It allows you the chance to humble yourself and ask for help. It shows you who you can depend on in times of need. It also makes you savvy. You learn what you can and can't live without. You realize how far you can stretch a dollar. You find things to do that are free...and you learn to enjoy those things quickly. You realize that holidays are not just about presents but the love that those days bring. You'll cry more. You'll laugh more. You'll realize just how much the small things matter...and how much the big things don't. It's a learning experience. It's something we all need to live through.
"It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything." -Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
I think every generation says this. I agree. Part of it is parents wanting so badly to give their kids a childhood that they forget they're also supposed to be teaching them to be adults. It's a balancing act.
ReplyDeleteAs soon as a kid is old enough to learn how to help with chores, they should. You might be too young to do your own laundry but old enough to fold it and put it away. Maybe you shouldn't cut up the veg, but you could grate the cheese and set the table. Your a family. Participation of everyone is needed to keep it all together. That's the beginning of learning to work, and developing a sense of satisfaction from doing a job.
Long as I'm on a little rant, teach your boys to do laundry, clean, and cook. They'll impress the ladies (or gents), look better, smell better, live better.
Teach your girls how to use the most basic tools (have 'em build a bookshelf), mow a lawn, and maintain a car. They'll be more confident, safer (no douchenozzles need hang around here, thank you), and they too will impress the right sort of fella (or lady).
;~)
I agree with a lot of your assertions but they are not relegated to your generation. I've got 10 years on you and I see the exact same trends amongst my peer age-group. It's also important to remember, that we are the first two generations that came from homes that were dual incomes and incomes that were far, far less than previous generations (on average). The middle class has been decimated, income inequality is the worst it's been since before the Revolutionary War (if you don’t include slavery), and more PhDs and Master’s level graduates are unemployed than at any other time in history. Working for $8 an hour with a graduate degree at age 30 doesn’t exactly make me turn cartwheels. Much of the problem is indeed an attitude issue but when a hard day’s work is not compensated by honest wages I can certainly understand the discontent and lack of spirited effort on the part of the worker.
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