Quote:Are We Raising a Generation of Helpless Kids?

When a college freshman received a C- on her first test, she literally had a meltdown in class. Sobbing, she texted her mother who called back, demanding to talk to the professor immediately (he, of course, declined). Another mother accompanied her child on a job interview, then wondered why he didn't get the job.

A major employer reported that during a job interview, a potential employee told him that she would have his job within 18 months. It didn't even cross her mind that he had worked 20 years to achieve his goal.

Sadly, the stories are all true, says Tim Elmore, founder and president of a non-profit, Growing Leaders, and author of the "Habitudes®" series of books, teacher guides, DVD kits and survey courses. "Gen Y (and iY) kids born between 1984 and 2002 have grown up in an age of instant gratification. iPhones, iPads, instant messaging and immediate access to data is at their fingertips," he says. "Their grades in school are often negotiated by parents rather than earned and they are praised for accomplishing little. They have hundreds of Facebook and Twitter 'friends,' but often few real connections."

(02-23-2012 08:44 PM)Motown Bronco Wrote:  

Quote:Are We Raising a Generation of Helpless Kids?

When a college freshman received a C- on her first test, she literally had a meltdown in class. Sobbing, she texted her mother who called back, demanding to talk to the professor immediately (he, of course, declined). Another mother accompanied her child on a job interview, then wondered why he didn't get the job.

A major employer reported that during a job interview, a potential employee told him that she would have his job within 18 months. It didn't even cross her mind that he had worked 20 years to achieve his goal.

Sadly, the stories are all true, says Tim Elmore, founder and president of a non-profit, Growing Leaders, and author of the "Habitudes®" series of books, teacher guides, DVD kits and survey courses. "Gen Y (and iY) kids born between 1984 and 2002 have grown up in an age of instant gratification. iPhones, iPads, instant messaging and immediate access to data is at their fingertips," he says. "Their grades in school are often negotiated by parents rather than earned and they are praised for accomplishing little. They have hundreds of Facebook and Twitter 'friends,' but often few real connections."

Entire column is an interesting read.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/Mickey-goodman/are-we-raising-a-generati_b_1249706.html?ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false

After reading, it's not a stretch by any means to connect the dots in this article's findings to the gobs of twentysomething hipsters found at the Occupy protests.

(02-23-2012 09:02 PM)nomad2u2001 Wrote:  We'll straighten up when we see that the generations immediately before us stuck us with a pile of steaming dog sh*t

(02-23-2012 09:30 PM)flyingswoosh Wrote:  i grimace when I think about how pathetic my generation is. You think this current generation of young parents is awful? Wait till you see what we do.

(02-23-2012 10:11 PM)nomad2u2001 Wrote:  With all of this being said there hasn't been one generation than didn't think that the one after it was altogether worse than theirs. I can only imagine the group that was pissed that their kids had it easy because of the wheel.

(02-23-2012 10:17 PM)AtlanticLeague Wrote:  

(02-23-2012 10:11 PM)nomad2u2001 Wrote:  With all of this being said there hasn't been one generation than didn't think that the one after it was altogether worse than theirs. I can only imagine the group that was pissed that their kids had it easy because of the wheel.

Those liberal kids with their "dancing" and bare ankles!

(02-23-2012 10:21 PM)nomad2u2001 Wrote:  I bet you George Washington's dad would've hated those kids who would stand up to the crown.

(02-24-2012 12:10 AM)Max Power Wrote:  In fact, legend has it Baby Boomers all emerged from the uterus wearing suits.

(02-24-2012 12:13 AM)aTxTIGER Wrote:  I think we are overgeneralizing. I've hired 100+ 20 somethings over the past 5 years and they complain a lot less about the 50+ hours a week I make them work than the 30+ year old employees I've hired. There are exceptions obviously, but I know that bitching rate will probably be smaller from a young kid than for someone a bit older.

From my experience, the biggest issue from the 20-25 year olds isnt work ethic....it's lack of formality. You have to drill them in appearance, professionalism, organization, and consistency.

(02-24-2012 09:27 AM)Motown Bronco Wrote:  The column targets a specific demographic as a case study, and I'm sure the author didn't intend to indict every individual born between 1984 and 2002. But over the years I've just been fascinated with how communication technology - Internet, email, smartphones - have impacted how society lives and works in general. For better and for worse. Being immediately reachable and having instant communication at your fingertips was unheard of just 15 years ago. The positives are aplenty and well known, but nothing comes without its negatives.

(02-24-2012 09:02 AM)ImMoreAwesomeThanYou Wrote:  

(02-24-2012 12:10 AM)Max Power Wrote:  In fact, legend has it Baby Boomers all emerged from the uterus wearing suits.

So you think a picture of a bunch of draft dodging hippies represents the baby boomer generation? Wow...reach much?