Millennials: Our Hope for the Future?

Photo by double : zanzo

Those who regularly read my Thoughts by Scott know I am fascinated with the subject of Millennials, those born between 1980-2000.  You know this particular age demographic are a conundrum to me.  In this past week I have heard of several different stories regarding Millennials which have had me wrestling with my thoughts regarding this younger generation.  

There has been a lot written about this generation and the frustrations older generations have with them.  They say things like this generation is self-absorbed, lazy, disrespectful, and the list goes on and on and on.  I would concur there is a portion of this generation that fits these generalizations regarding this generation.  I would also be quick to point out that every generation has had people that fit those kinds of descriptions as well.

There is another group of Millennials that is rather encouraging to me.  These are the stories in which I am referencing.  Dave Ramsey on his daily radio program has a portion set aside on almost every hour of his show called the debt free scream.  People come on the show and tell how much debt they have paid off and how long it took.  For about a week Ramsey had a lot of Millennials on his show telling of their journey to being debt free and for many of these Millennials that also included their house.  In other words, there were Millennials who had zero debt of any kind and no monthly house payment because they paid their homes off as well.  

Some other stories about Millennials dealt with those who have started their own businesses.  I must be honest, there is a side of me that is jealous as I heard about the four twenty-seven year olds who sold their start up for one billion, yes billion, not million, billion dollars.  Then the kicker was one of those four young men had a little brother who did the exact same thing and his start up also sold for a billion dollars.

I mention these brief stories because these stories give me hope.  Not every Millennial is lazy and self-absorbed (well the billionaires might be, but they were smart enough to start a business that was worth that kind of sell price).  For all of the negative spewed about this generation, I also think this generation brings to the table a lot of hope.  When this generation does get committed to something, there is really no stopping them.  They are some of the most passionate and dedicated people when they buy into a cause.  This fact gives me hope for our future.

What are your thoughts about this Millennial generation?  Do you have a hope for our future?  Let me know by commenting to this post.

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