Amy Poehler sums up how boomers, Gen X, millennials, and Gen Z think about money in one sentence
'The Boomers are all about money. Gen X is like, ‘Is it all about money?’ Millennials are like...' the celebrity began.
Different generations have fostered varying, strange relationships with money, right from having loads of it to struggling for it, to uncovering smart ways to make lots of it. Actor Amy Poehler explained this difference accurately with a single statement. In a clip shared by @nowthisisimpact, the comedian was seen talking on her podcast “The Good Hang with Amy.” She had a clear contrast of what money looks like for Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z, and the internet agrees. According to Fast Company, actor Freddie Smith also shared an insight on why she hit the nail on the head with that one phrase.
In the 11-second clip, Poehler confidently said, “The Boomers are all about money. Gen X is like, ‘Is it all about money?’ Millennials are like, ‘Where is the money?’ And Gen Z is like, ‘What is money?’” Breaking down the clear explanation she gave, Smith noted how “money has been declining over the past 40 or 50 years.” He shared a visual representation from Visual Capitalist, which revealed that Boomers had the bigger piece of the monetary pie. The baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964 had around $83.3 trillion value of assets of around $83.3 trillion.
@fmsmith319 When spending power declines and wages don’t increase fast enough, the American Dream becomes harder to reach for many Americans.
♬ original sound - Freddie Smith
The next generation, the Silent Generation, born before 1946, had around $20 trillion in assets. For Gen X, it was still better with around $46 trillion. When it came to Gen Z and Millennials, they had just $17 trillion combined. These statistics were reportedly taken from UBS and the Global Wealth Report. Smith explained Baby Boomers had an “economic boom.” However, when it came to Millennials, they were given a “road map” which promised a treasure chest, but after decades of following that plan, they’ve been disappointed with almost nothing. The actor noted, "It’s no wonder the Millennials ask, 'Where is the money?'”
The state of Gen Z is even worse. Smith revealed that paychecks help scrape through regular bills, and after paying those, there’s nothing left. It’s as good as working for free whilst being provided with housing and food. “They never actually see the money. What is going on?” he asked. An interesting graph from Statista revealed how the older generations started with more. Starting with an 80% share of total wealth in the U.S., they already had the kickstart. In the meantime, Generation X and the Millennials had barely anything. Even by the early 2000s, the latter two groups had just around 5% of total wealth. As of 2024, Baby Boomers still hold 51.4% of the total wealth in the United States. Millennials have just a little over 10%.
Gen Z is often not included in the statistics and is just included with the Millennials because the shares are just too small to split and account for. Different generations on the internet agreed with this. @ASWebb wrote, “As a Millennial, I can 100% attest that we all want to know where the money is.” @AnPotato revealed, “I'm Gen Z. I live with my mom, who's living with her parents. I can't find an apartment that doesn't ask for my entire paycheck or more in rent. I'm barely managing to keep myself alive.” @slimtee2 explained, “In the early 90s, I made less than $10 an hour; had my own apartment, car payment, utilities, groceries, etc, and was able to save a little. I feel bad for the American people’s livelihoods today. Something is awfully wrong here.”
More on Scoop Upworthy
Gen Z woman cites bizarre reason for not wanting to work but people feel she's just lazy
Share on Facebook
