A few months ago, however, I was asked by a student whether my view on millennials matches those of the general population or if I'd consider hiring one. The truth of the matter is that I didn't answer right away. I couldn't answer right away even if I wanted to. I know that millennials are more tech savvy and, therefore, probably a better fit in and around the digital ambiance of the office, the lecture hall, the lab, and the archive (at least when they're not taking selfies or looking at YouTube videos). Yet, I still resisted to answer. To be honest, part of the reason, might have been because deep down inside I knew that that there was no way I'd hire this particular student. But, it did cause me to think about the greater question: what is it about the millennial question that takes me aback?
To tell the truth, I'm actually quite conflicted about these millennials. Many of them have become friends and I work with some extraordinary younger people who are more adult or mature in their their thinking and in their views of the world than many of their older counterparts. I've been blessed to meet amazing individuals who are far from narcissistic, self-absorbed, or sheltered. I've met younger folks who are studious and bright, and quite a few of them possess that seemingly uncommon attribute among all generations, common sense. But, the hesitation is still there. I've mulled it over. I've tried to understand my hesitation. I've tried to mentally grasp the essence of this generation. After all, I relate to much of it. Most are digitally intelligent. Many are far more concerned with finding meaning in their work than my own parents' generation. Quite a few of them even know how to work less to get the same job done. These are all things I admire and, to be frank, the world has been placed in the very palms of their hands by scientists, academics, and entrepreneurs. It should be an easy fit, the world and them.
So, what exactly don't trust about them?
It all started with a pharmacy student. The individual with whom I was having a conversation was a pharmacy technologist who seemed to know his stuff. Yet, he was flustered by the success of his superiors. And with good reason. The pharmacy students and residents with whom he worked were all "preparing" to take whatever accreditation exam is necessary for pharmacy school and they were all cheating off each other. I heard stories about how they would share test questions, pictures of exams, copy each other's "homework" assignment and research, and turn in all of this as their own work. It was rampant, this cheating. When I told my friend that this was all wrong and that it was now impossible to trust one of the very professionals in whom I place my health he responded in the most typical of millennial ways: "It' not a big deal. Everyone does it."
WTF?
I couldn't believe this came out of his mouth and I therefore started to reprimand him for this type of thinking and to tell him that life is more than just trying to get ahead. He just shrugged it off. Again, in typical millennial fashion. Since then, I've purposely observed my students a lot more closely and I've come to understand what it is I don't trust about millennials. It's the pervasive culture of cheating that defines them for me. This, of course, does not mean that other generations and other subcultures haven't cheated. There are examples of it in every generation and in every group, but I've never seen it as rampant (ingrained might be a more appropriate word?) as I see it in the millennial generation and, even more so, in the one that sits in front of me in my lecture rooms. For many of them, "everyone else does it" is just as good a response as anything else.
Thus...if you're willing to cheat your way through exams; if you're willing to lend your "work" to others; if you're willing to take the easy way out and not put in the required work that success necessitates; if you're willing to copy and paste your way through your research, etc...then you are the problem. You are the reason so many people mistrust millennials. So, here's my response to that student with the "would you hire us?" question. The one and only reason I don't instinctively trust millennials and the one and only reason I wouldn't necessarily hire one is that I could not be completely and absolutely sure the millennial actually knows his/her stuff. I have no guarantee they've absorbed the material, the knowledge, the application required to get the job done. Sure, they can use a computer and sure, they can use the Internet. I have no problem with that. But, I have so many millennial students who are clueless when it comes to applying knowledge to solve current issues...regardless of discipline. They fail to see the bigger picture not because they haven't been taught it. They fail to see the big picture because they've been so ridiculously busy taking the easy way out of life that life passes right over them. The effort and the zeal required to appreciate life does not come from copying off a friend's paper or by taking the short cut. It comes from the academic, professional, emotional, and spiritual sweat (and the mistakes that come of it) that is result of owning one's life. Until you can show me that you've done this, then of course I won't hire you.
Want to change this? Then, do what so many others have done to own their lives. Prove you know your stuff and don't just rely on googling it. Prove you have the gumption to do the work required to be the expert you so desperately want to be considered. Stop YouTubing stupid singing parrot videos and read a book...not just as a requirement, but to understand the human condition and to be able to read between the lines. Analyze - really think about - a film, a story, an article, a political view. Read people's emotions. Know and appreciate what others do for a living and what it took for them to get there. Be aware of the cultures around you and stop taking everything so damn personally. Millennials have so many good characteristics and are the generation to date most blessed with technology and other advances. Use that for something other than your own singular entertainment. The world is so much bigger than you and the obliviousness that comes as a result of the distance between you having an opened mind and the songs you've downloaded into your smartphone. Realize that everyone suffers, and that the importance is in how you respond to that suffering. Finally, stop taking the easy way out of things, because in the end the person being cheated is YOU...and, quite frankly, life doesn't get any easier as you age. It's quite the opposite. #RantOver
