Change

We are in the midst of so much change and turmoil.  Millennials and Generation Z think about their careers differently than past generations.  I had dinner with a group of women with young children who are plotting their careers very differently than the women of my generation.  They are all figuring out how to keep their career and be present in their children’s lives.  They are all driven by different things but the prevailing factor is continuing to work with their own rule book.

I spoke to a founder this week who said something that stuck with me.  His parents assumed that he would graduate college and move into the world of investments and banking.  That is what they expected for him.  Instead, he is an entrepreneur, on his second business.  He told his parents that he did not want to follow the system but pursue his own dreams.  I am seeing more of this every day.

Some people are driven by happiness and others by financial success.  The up and coming generation seems truer to who they are vs the past generations.  They are taking different paths because different paths are available.  Most people in their 20’s are not going to take a job somewhere and be set for life but go through several jobs figuring out what works and learning along the way.  Those who find themselves unhappy in their careers feel comfortable making moves that past generations wouldn’t have made so easily.

I have always been enamored with the European lifestyle where family, friends, and meals were more important than anything else.  Essentially life came first.  Millennials and Generation Z are putting life first and I really believe that doing has a long-tail of better economies, better communities and overall just a better mindset for everyone.