Woman explains why Millennials and Gen Z don't prioritize work as much as older generations did

There are quite a few disparities between the older generations and the younger generations. Technology, economy, dressing styles, values, and societies are ever-evolving through these generations. The difficult part is to accept that times are changing...for good or for worse. When it comes to working styles and work culture, it is often observed that employees from the older generations are loyal to a single job for most of their lives and have good pension plans to live by. However, the younger generations differ in not just the frequency of switching jobs but also the kinds of jobs they choose and their work ethics. These disparities in work values of Millennials and Gen Z often baffle the boomers. To explain them better, young woman Demi Kotsoris (@millennialcrisis) has taken to TikTok. 

The video clip was captioned: "Access to information really does change your outlook and pathway or mental state lol" and garnered more than 30 thousand views. "Older generations are so confused about why we don’t want to work hard anymore or prioritize our careers," Kotsoris begins to say. "We know how short life is now...and it didn't have to come from a life-changing or life-altering experience like it did for those before us. You know that older person in your life that had someone closer then passed away maybe when they were young and they live life to the fullest because of that...now we have that access to that information," she continues."We also had this Global panini (pandemic) that happened so we view life way differently than we ever had before. Even for a lot of us, if we've got a workplace that is purpose-driven and they've got great values and they're doing amazing work, we're still like...I want to travel. I want to do other stuff with my life."

She shares that this also confuses the younger generations themselves because they are aware of this privilege and their great work but they still end up disliking their lives and feeling depressed. They wonder why they still feel unmotivated and do not want to work. "That is because we don't place the same value that was drilled into us before on that and so we shouldn't. The access to information has made us smarter," she explains. Kotsoris struggled with her life's direction, feeling lost, stressed, anxious, and frequently apathetic about her future. She felt trapped in a career she didn't know she wanted at the age of 22. In 2017, she founded "Millennial Crisis" to help others who relate with her by providing a sense of community and unity.  

There were people who supported her ideas. "Work was a completely different deal for bloomers. Work now. Buy a cheap house, you'll get easy promos, respect at work, and a golden handshake at 55," wrote @kingsullers. "We know working is a scam. Sorry, but we don’t pay the government's wages to do the bare minimum for the people. We can’t even buy a house if we worked," added @taylamuscatt. Some said that one could have fun and work hard simultaneously. "I wanna say u can do both - a career and pave a meaningful life. It’s not mutually exclusive. I moved to Paris at 22 and worked hard. You can do both," commented @lisamonique_. Some also wished that they had spent less time working. "I think it’s great I regret wasting so much time working I just lost my husband he was only 51 life is too short," shared @heathermcnerney23. 

However, this disagreement didn't sit right with a few and the responses got heated. "Yeah and so many still live with their hardworking parents," observed @camilles990. "There are still bills to pay," pointed out @fluffydoodle222. "I don’t think access to information has made people smarter at all, it’s made them think they are smarter because it does their thinking for them," debated @johngoodallsmith. It is important to keep in mind, there are no clear rewards like pension plans, buying a house, or bonuses for working hard anymore. A college degree was also far more uncommon in the 1980s. Now that nearly everyone in the job market has a degree, workers' competitive advantage is eroding. Upward mobility has slowed, and inflation is on the rise. As Kotsoris mentioned, the global pandemic changed everyone's work culture. All of these factors have caused younger workers to question the importance of company loyalty and long-term careers.