How Do Millennials Avoid Being Chumps?

by Kristin Ivie on 10 Mar 2010 1
CHUMP

When I first saw the headline “Will Millennials become the chump generation?” I was gearing up for another intergenerational throw down. I wasn’t exactly sure what we were being accused of this time, but last time I checked with Fred Durst, being called a chump was not a good thing. After reading Robert Samuelson’s column in the Washington Post, I realized that it was a more of a warning than a criticism. Samuelson discusses the recent Pew research on Millennials which shows that our generation is taking the effects of the recession hardest of all. Thirty-seven percent of Americans 18-29 are out of work, and proportionally more Millennials have lost jobs during the crisis than those over the age of 30.

Says Samuelson: “The adverse effects could linger. An oft-quoted study by Yale University economist Lisa Kahn found that college graduates entering a labor market with high unemployment receive lower pay and that the pay penalty can last two decades.…As baby boomers retire, higher federal spending on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid may boost Millennials' taxes and squeeze other government programs. It will be harder to start and raise families. Millennials could become the chump generation. They could suffer for their elders' economic sins, particularly the failure to confront the predictable costs of baby boomers' retirement. “

Having repeatedly heard the suggestion that Millennials might be the next great generation, I’m much less excited about this new potential tag line. Millennials: The Chump Generation is not a phrase I want to see inscribed on anything. While we may be saddled with some unfortunate economic circumstances, both now and in the future, I hope that we can do something more than sit back and watch it happen.

The traits of our generation may give us an advantage in facing these economic challenges. We are a tech-savvy, collaborative, upbeat, pragmatic and innovative generation, so, with the right resources, we should be able to dodge oncoming bullets…especially if some of said bullets are coming from 20 years down the road.

According to Pew, we are bound to be the most highly educated generation in America. I hope this means we should also be the most prepared to face some of these challenges. But education isn’t everything, so what else can we do now to ensure that we don’t end up looking like chumps?

We respect older generations and recognize we can learn a lot from them. Even if they’re not going to balance the national budget, perhaps the generations before us could try to atone for their economic sins by helping to prepare us now for the challenges to come. They could invest in us through career development, helping to make sure we get the opportunities for collaboration, resources and learning experiences that will help us thrive. Or they could provide advice and funds for Millennial start-ups, both in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. Since we respect those who have gone before, we would be happy to have Boomer and Gen Xer mentors and partners.

We not only adopt new technology at astonishingly high rates, but we’re helping to shape it. Many of both the most used and most innovative technologies were created by Millennials - Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook, Jack Dorsey's Twitter and Chad Hurley and Steve Chen's YouTube being the most obvious. And others are applying technology and new platforms to bring about social change. There's a great list of our generation's social entrepreneurs started on a previous post, and there are surely more to come.

We are the most diverse generation, respect those who are not like us, and hope this leads to a more just and open society. After use of technology and music/pop culture, Millennials reported that our liberal and tolerant outlook made us distinct as a generation. The Pew study confirms that we are the most open to interracial and same-sex couples, immigrants, and nontraditional family arrangements. Maybe our openness will translate to a willingness to work in nontraditional ways and arrangements to face the coming challenges.

What else can Millennials, and Boomers and Gen Xers for that matter, do to help prepare us to face a potentially shaky economic future?

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The New Dork: An Entrepreneur State of Mind

by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 8 Mar 2010 1
Remember when being a dork meant you just weren’t cool? That was before “The New Dork” – a spoof of Jay-Z and Alicia Keyes’s "Empire State Of Mind" which pays homage to the rising generation of geeky entrepreneurs – or, what we like to think of as the new trendsetters.  
 
While “The New Dork” just started hitting the interwebs this afternoon, it’s already being deemed the anthem for entrepreneurs, and why not? It paints a picture and tells the story of entrepreneurs doing what they love – and we think there’s nothing dorky about that.
 
So, who's your favorite "New Dork?"
 
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Oversharing 2.0

by Kristin Ivie on 1 Mar 2010 2
girls sharing

Today's topic: oversharing. I will admit I'm a repeat offender. I can't count the number of times I've been enjoying a meal with a new acquaintance and inexplicably started sharing personal information in excessive detail. Before I know it, the words are just rushing out of my mouth like water from a broken dam, and there is literally nothing I can do to hold them back. Usually my oversharing is forgiven; occasionally I'm delighted to find it matched, or even one-uped, by the person across the table; and, yes, every now and then, it's met with visible discomfort and the notable lack of a follow-up get together, but overall, it's a relatively harmless vice.

Having slightly more potential for harm, however, is the habit of oversharing online. It's no secret that we at Social Citizens are all for being active online. We love to see people blogging, tweeting and posting videos about their thoughts on issues, brands, and experiences, but is there a point where all that social networking is TMI?

When I helped my dad sign up for Twitter over Christmas break, we had an exchange which demonstrates what I think is a common generational difference. He was a little bit horrified by the public nature of everything he was being asked to post on Twitter. He was not so sure about sharing his location, his photo, nearly anything he was doing or even his real name. ("Kristin, you have heard of identity theft, yes?")

According to the recent Pew study on Millennials, we're actually more wary of others than previous generations. Perhaps our penchant for transparency and our comfort online overcome this stated mistrust and lead us to post too much information about ourselves online because I hadn't really given much thought to the dangers of talking about myself in such a public way, and based on some of my friends' online activity, apparently neither have they. Whether it's airing private grievances, posting pictures I wish I'd never seen or just making your daily routine public, oversharing online can lead to discomfort and danger.

Foursquare is a fun application encouraging people to check out new places in their city, but we might need to think twice about how we use this and other location-based applications. Perhaps in an effort to rack up badges, some users have taken to checking in literally everywhere they go. (I am of the opinion that if someone cannot join you there, it's not kosher to check in.) In addition to annoying their twitter followers, these overzealous check-ins are also establishing their itineraries by chronicling when they get to work, when they go out for lunch, back to work, at the Dupont Circle metro (where they're clearly starting their commute) at the Clarendon metro (where they're clearly ending their commute) and at their apartment building. You do that every day for two weeks and as PleaseRobMe.com tries to demonstrate, you are giving opportunistic evildoers a leg up.

A recent survey indicated that the majority of Americans think it's wrong to friend your boss on Facebook. Likewise, an even higher percentage of bosses (62%) think being friends with their employees online is weird. I tend to disagree, but I'll concede that I have a particularly social media-friendly office environment. But the survey results touch on a common concern about sharing too much via social networks with coworkers, as well as potential employers, clients, students, exes or parents.

This concern is complicated by the fact that many people don't even realize who they are sharing all their information with through Facebook. Every now and then, there's an uproar about Facebook, and the changes to its privacy settings - who owns your information, who can see your information and whether you can really remove your information might surprise you. Nick O'Neill has a helpful list of privacy settings every Facebook user should know, or if you prefer, you can watch the video version. 

Where do you draw the line on talking about yourself online? And how do you take advantage of the utility and fun of social networks without putting yourself at risk?

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Young Donors Want More than a Party!

by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 19 Feb 2010 2
Party?
Today’s guest blogger, Derrick Feldman, is CEO of Achieve where he provides guidance to organizations to help them develop new fundraising strategies. Today, Derrick focuses on the importance of engaging young professionals as donors in a more meaningful way.
 

Walk into a hip bar in a metropolitan area after work and there’s a chance that you’ll be greeted by a table draped with a banner bearing the logo of a local nonprofit. Over the music pulsing in the background, two young staffers will welcome you and offer you a name tag. On behalf of the nonprofit’s Young Professionals Group, they’ll thank you for coming, encourage you to enjoy yourself and offer you information about the organization.

 
This has become an increasingly likely scenario, which is why, during a recent conversation with a university vice president, I listened as he expressed concern about such groups. “More than 10 organizations in the city have some sort of young donor group with an affinity to the organization,” he said. “They’re all competing with each other for attention.”
 
It’s true: The concept of the Young Professionals Group (aka, Young Donors Society or Young Donors Group) has spread faster than a funny video on You Tube – which explains why, when we speak on young-donor engagement, I’m always asked whether these groups work. Of course, as a consultant, I have a famous answer for this and many other questions: It depends.
 
Let’s first look at the positives:
 
Right idea. By establishing such a group, a nonprofit takes a step in the right direction, demonstrating that it recognizes the need to involve the next generation.
 
Front-line experience. Some Young Professional Group activities do engage young people in the work of the organization through group volunteerism and other opportunities, giving the young professionals an opportunity to have an impact on the organization.
 
Creative fundraising. These groups raise support for the organization, often in creative and nontraditional ways. It’s fun to see some of the fundraising ideas that come out of these groups – granted, some are a little tacky, but others are pretty interesting.
 
Energy boosts. Young nonprofit leaders can be reinvigorated by the organization’s interest in working with young donors, and they’re often excited to help craft activities and events to pull more young professionals closer the organization.
 
Now let’s break down some of the cons:
 
Poor substitutes. These groups too often act as substitutes for real relationships. Recently, when I asked a fundraiser how many of her donor visits were with young professionals, she said, “None … that’s why we have a young donor group: to create that relationship so I can focus on larger donors.” True, the Young Professionals Group is an opportunity to create new relationships, but real donor engagement goes beyond that. As donors, young people expect a call, a conversation and a personally meaningful engagement opportunity.
 
Social, social, social. Trust me: I like a party as much as anyone. But, social activities can’t provide real young donor engagement. It’s demeaning and disrespectful to assume that the key to engaging young professionals is throwing a party in a bar. Would you hold events at bars if you were pursuing your top 50 donors above the age of 40?
 
Benefits vs. Philanthropy. There’s a difference between a Young Professional Group and a dues-paying society. If you pay dues, you expect a personal benefit; with philanthropy, however, you expect to give for the benefit of the community or the beneficiary of services. If Young Professionals Groups are established with dues expectations – even if the contribution is to the organization – the donor will expect some sort of personal benefit. As a result, once a young professional feels the value of the relationship has diminished, he or she will leave. On the other hand, if his or her personal philanthropic interest and engagement is high, that person will stick around.
 
So, nonprofit leaders: Here is your opportunity to think beyond simple activities to personal relationships.
 
Undoubtedly, some organizations will say Young Professionals Groups can have great benefits. I agree. But that doesn’t make them substitutes for personal relationships. As in life in general, a party, event or activity is a great way to meet people, but not a great way to forge real relationships.
 
So, what’s an organization to do? Utilize these groups to ignite engagement and then take a traditional approach to relationship building. Call and invite a young professional to hear more about the organization. Understand his or her personal motivations and match interests to opportunities beyond the Young Professionals Group.
 
Like an annual event, that Young Professionals Group might one day lose its flair; when it does, you’ll want to have a relationship that can outlive it. That way, you’ll still have access to your young professionals’ talent, motivation and passion long after the party’s over.
 
 
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