What I love about Millennials and Generation Z

originally posted by: JBIZZ
Its hard to be materialistic when previous generations stole all your wealth before you were born.

Oh this should be good.... stole what wealth.

If you start talking about federal debt, most of that is fake.

You cannot loan money to the Government when it didn't exist before. Typing numbers into a computer saying you have more money is simply expanding the money supply through inflation.

We do not owe the Federal Reserve anything as they did not "loan" us anything they had.

a reply to: JAGStorm

Baby boomers had parents that were from the Depression era and I totally believe that the pendulum swung in the opposite direction because of that.

I dont think its so quite cut and dry. A simple way of looking at this is that if children are exposed to good habits at an early age by role models ie parents, financial education, learning how to count without a calculator, ( mental exercises ),
they will tend to be more savvy with finances than their peers.

Whilst the amount needed to be saved for a deposit on a house is larger than its was for their parents compared to their salary bracket.



This took me all of 5 minutes to research. What chance does ATS or our children have if we don't take the time to be informed before making broad generalizations.

Which in around about way proves my point that depending on our own success's/failures and our motivation for success or financial stability we are doomed to go backwards or forwards.




www.telegraph.co.uk...

Do millennials hold the same social values as older generations?

Millennials’ behaviour is a regular talking point, particularly their spending habits. This scrutiny has often led to the younger generation being labelled materialistic.

While it is true to say that financially they are worse off, the report highlights that money is seen as more important to them than other generations - simply because it's harder to come by.

www.hcamag.com...

it actually reveals that millennials aren’t as materialistic as they are often portrayed.”

Indeed, only 48% indicated financial security is important to ensure high levels of personal wellbeing compared to 60% of baby boomers and 54% of Gen X, according to the survey of more than 1,000 Australian employees.

“Forty-two per cent of workers define wellbeing as balance in physical, mental, social and spiritual life and only 12% said it is having their desire for a house, income and success met,” Dr McMillan said.

“The implication for business leaders is: how do I motivate my younger employees if half of them want a kind of success not related to how much money they earn?”

a reply to: JAGStorm

You are correct up to a point. Our parents and my wifes ( who were immigrants to Australia in the early 60's ) strived hard to catch up and worked more than 1 job and saw the power of saving to achieve their objectives of providing security for their family and where possible helped send us to higher education ie Uni, Inst of Tech, etc.

They also helped with house deposits if they saw we had plans to better ourselves once we got over "playing" in early adulthood.

There's actual science behind this....

skygatefinancial.com...

Delayed Gratification: Secret of Financial Success

Success in Life Success usually comes down to choosing the pain of discipline over the ease of distraction. And that’s exactly what delayed gratification is all about.

originally posted by: JAGStorm

originally posted by: mamabeth
a reply to: JAGStorm

I am a baby boomer and I would love to know what you
think of my generation! Let me get that bottle of eggnog
first before you begin. I also promised my husband we would
watch some movies this afternoon.

This is my opinion, and I've read a lot of stuff backing that opinion up. Of course not true in all cases.

When I think of Baby boomers, I think of excess. Nick nacks, gizmos, gadgets, china cabinets filled to the brim. Displays of collections. I think of the exact opposite of minimalism. I think Baby boomers were similar to the Victorians.
Baby boomers had parents that were from the Depression era and I totally believe that the pendulum swung in the opposite direction because of that.

I was born on the cusp of GenX, the very end of the Baby Boomer cycle. I can see the differences between the pre WWII generation, their Baby Boomer children and my Generation. I agree with your idea of each new generation reacting in an opposing manner to the earlier one.

My grand parents were born in the early 20th century toward the end of the Progressive Era or Late Modern Period. They were conservative and hard working. They started out poor, lived through the depression, worked up to middle class status and saved everything like hoarders. They did everything for themselves they could from scratch.

My parent's were born during the depression and grew up through WWII rationing, so they knew poor. They came of age in the 1950s Cold War or Early Post Modern Period. They had more to start with including a better education, a better economy and blue collar jobs in the auto industry that paid well with upward mobility. They invested more, owned more and had more leisure time than their parents. More material possessions, but less hoarding. They knew how to do for themselves but did less as they prospered.

I was born in the mid 1960s, grew up in the 1970s hippie era and came of age in the 1980s materialistic "Me" era. My family was solid middle class and was doing well with investments. The auto industry was strong until about the time my generation hit the work force. We were well educated and hit the ground during a decent economic period, but a time of changes was making a solid career choice difficult and retirement plans uncertain.

My parents generation did better than their parents generation. My generation did well but we were sliding into a situation were our children wouldn't do as well as we did, nor would our grand children.

As for how GenX and the Millennials are compared to my generation on the cusp of GenX, I can only really guess. I would think that there is less to believe in like God and country or a strong work ethic and being part of the corporate culture. Perhaps uncertainty rules the day due to a saturation of information, an abundance of lifestyle choices, unstable social and economic conditions, and no real vision for a free and prosperous future.

These are just my guesses, I've never studied the generations that closely to know anything for certain.

ETA: "Gen X and the Millennials" sounds like a good name for a band. I claim it here first, so don't getting any ideas folks.

a reply to: JAGStorm


The young ones are definitely different than my generation.
I'm not sure I would say they are not materialistic though, it's just different material.

They are the ones buying thousand dollar I phones and $7 craft beer.
Living with your parents until your 30 helps that lifestyle.

originally posted by: Bluntone22
a reply to: JAGStorm


The young ones are definitely different than my generation.
I'm not sure I would say they are not materialistic though, it's just different material.

They are the ones buying thousand dollar I phones and $7 craft beer.
Living with your parents until your 30 helps that lifestyle.

This for sure. I see a lot of today's kids walking into the Electronics department and walking out with hundreds of dollars worth of gadgets. Not a parent in sight either. Looks like mom and dad just hand them the bank card and let them run wild. I'm also seeing a lot of parents spending hundreds of dollars on gaming consoles, TV's, games and other accessories for their kids. And there isn't a kid that walks in there above a certain age that doesn't have a high dollar iphone in their hands.

I also have noticed a great deal of "kids" (meaning well over the age of 18) who are following mom and dad around while they buy the 'kid' some seriously expensive stuff. I'm sorry, but all my girls have jobs. If they want a Nintendo Switch, or a 65 inch TV, they're gonna damn well buy it themselves.

Back when I was a kid, it was the norm to see kids driving around in old beater cars because mom and dad wouldn't buy them a new car. Today... not so much. The kids around here are sporting better cars than I've ever owned in my entire life.

Maybe it's a difference in where we live, but I'm just not seeing this lack of materialism.

a reply to: JAGStorm

Again you are seeing this in the wrong way. They don't need to hoard not because of Amazon but they haven't the financial acumen to buy in bulk when things are on "true special pricing".

She may have had extra cleaner because like you say she saved petrol not going to the store as often. Houses are often smaller as well so less storage is available.

Another important aspect is that houses in Europe are apartments style and hence they have smaller kitchens and fridges. Now get this - they go to markets and shops everyday and get fresh produce and cook just enough for a meal.

They get their exercise ( walking distance ) meet their locals and talk about current affairs, bargain with the market holders.

a reply to: iplay1up2

Thank God for Amazon!

Thank god for Interwebz - came before Amazon


wiki

Method
1 Vinegar and Dish Soap Mix one cup of vinegar and 1/2 tsp dish soap with one gallon warm water.
2 Pour in a spray bottle and use as you would with any glass cleaner.


6 Ways to Make Your Own Glass Cleaner - wikiHow

www.google.com.au... wikihow.com%2FMake-Your-Own-Glass-Cleaner&usg=AOvVaw23qPfxwdjMcNgxFmhbcl0b

a reply to: infolurker

Again generalizations......

3 out of 4 of our kids seem to be happy living broke

3 out 4 of our generation are quite happy working till 60 and then getting the bare minimum pension $200 per week to survive.

They to my mind are living broke, they have a scarcity mentality, as they never stop about how life is so expensive, co-payments for medicine expensive, fuel expensive....blah blah blah.
In their defence the Govt hardly index's their pension with inflation

The Aust Govt made it mandatory that Employers contribute to employees superannuation on a sliding scale. Its now 9.5% contributions on top of your salary. Both Labour and Libs embraced it. hahahaha......

The wealthiest nation on the earth ( US ) and so much poverty in the streets.

a reply to: JAGStorm

Better yet,that mom could learn how to make her own cleaning supplies.

a reply to: JAGStorm

I see that as just as bad a generalization of saying/implying baby boomers and Gen Xers are uber-materialistic.

A lot of things go into that, and I would gather that as generations come and go, the younger ones are less materialistic than the older ones, and one big thing that adds to that is a lack of financial ability to be massively materialistic.

I do, however, agree, that more thought is put into things from younger generations as a whole, but that could be just as much out of necessity as it is about a generalized truth based on ideological approach.

Enjoy your shared experience, though...I agree that experiences are much more valuable than crap things that will be thrown into landfills probably by the next time Christmas rolls around.

a reply to: mamabeth

My wife does that...vinegar, water, thieves oil, and other things are some of her favorites.