21 January 2011

It's generational!

Co-worker Rocky’s topic for our monthly share-in was “how to understand and deal with millennials in the workplace”.  Millennials are those born in the period 1977 to 1998.  They’re collectively marked by dependence on technology and social networking, a neo-liberal approach to politics and institutions (especially religion), and ecological awareness.  At work, they perform well in groups, are in constant need of mentoring. It’s also easy for them to quit and look for better opportunities, being risk-takers.

Generation X (1965-1976) are a much more independent lot.  They’re usually referred to as the latch-key kids whose parents, the Baby Boomers (1946-1964), were busy improving and redefining social, political and economic conditions, and rebuilding everything that the second world war destroyed. The Gen X profile is grunge-loving, indifferent, alienated, distrustful of authority and rigidity; while Boomers, are idealistic, have strong personal values and an overachieving, competitive work-ethic, always yearning for recognition in terms of visible rewards.

A discussion on these three diverse generations would require a long sociological dissertation.  Based on such profiling, I could at best try to name the movies that best mirror each generation.

Baby Boomers:  The Graduate (1967)
Angst-y Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) rejects his parents’ (born pre-war) artificial values, and wants to take a path that’s different from what his parents planned for him.  He seeks emotional attachment with cinema’s first significant cougar, Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft).  He turns his back on his Republican beginnings, and rides (a bus) off into the sunset with his true love, intent on leading a life that’s more meaningful.





Generation X:  Reality Bites (1994)
Lelaina: I just don't understand why things just can't go back to normal at the end of the half hour like on the Brady Bunch or something.
Troy Dyer: Well, 'cause Mr. Brady died of AIDS. Things don't turn out like that.



Millennials:  Juno (2007)
Her androgynous name alone tells you that her generation is not bound by traditional gender expectations -- they celebrate diversity,  Juno the millennial is smart, confident and knows what she wants.  If she were a boomer, she would’ve been tormented about teenage pregnancy.  She’s actually blasé about the results of the frog test, keeps her baby, woos her boyfriend back, goes back to school because she’d like to have a career after giving birth.  Her world is teeming with opportunities, in spite of temporary complications.


Did I get it right?   Boomers, X-ers and Millennials, speak up!  



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