The Most Self Centered Generation Ever?

Published by Ryan Paugh on March 9th, 2007 in Work | 6 Comments

There's an enormous problem with vanity in this country. It's in the malls, on the television and, of course, here on the Internet. Nobody's guilt-free in this self-centered world of the Twenty-first Century. So why, all of a sudden, is my generation the one with the problem?

CNN published an article last month suggesting that narcissism is on the rise among college students. A group of psychologists at the San Diego State University have been conducting this study since 1982. They call it the Narcissistic Personality Inventory. And guess what? We're the most selfish brats they've ever seen!

Before I delve too sarcastically into this brilliant study, I'd like to say kudos to another group of psychologists attempting to explain the generation gap through the flaws of Gen-Y. Way to step it up a notch.

Let me first and foremost refute the reasoning behind our vanity (according to this study). Professor Jean Twenge and her colleagues blame the "you're special" message. I'll be the first to admit, we're told that way too much, but when you really think about it, what's wrong with that? Maybe it's made us a little self-centered, but more importantly, maybe it's made us a little more self-driven.

So yes Professor Twenge, too much of this "you're special" talk can be dangerous, but the byproduct isn't vanity, it's confusion and apparently, a very real generational misunderstanding. Confusion as to why older generations don't think they are special, and a misunderstanding about what an entry level job should be.

What's more likely to happen when those post-college years creep up and the majority of us realize we're working lame, run-of-the-mill jobs that don't exactly confirm our beliefs that we are special? Is it vanity? Or is it confusion and misunderstanding? Maybe it's a little bit of both.

I'll tell you what will happen. In fact, it's happening right now. We're going to start demanding more than a cubicle and 8-hours of mundane busy-work. We're going to demand a "special" job, and we won't quit searching until we find it.

Maybe this is why we see so many articles focusing on the generation gap in terms of Gen-Y's flaws. The "Boomers" and the "X-ers" are scared of the fact that we are going to turn their world upside-down…

I digressed – let me get back to our inflated egos. Twenge and her colleagues simply lose their credibility when they suggest that Web sites such as MySpace and YouTube reinforce our narcissism. This is a ridiculous generalization based on a brand name.

Speaking as an avid user of both these technologies, I know that there is little to no vanity associated with them. In fact, they offer an opportunity for people of ALL ages to share information about themselves with one another. It's like creating a social resume, but get this, it's actually fun! It's an environment that makes exclusion literally impossible. Find the vanity in that and I'll give you a gold medal.

There's one piece of Twenge's study that does bother me about our generation. According to the survey, being well-off financially was one of our highest priorities. Okay, I understand completely, money is important and it will buy SOME happiness, but what about fulfillment? You really have to love what you do to get that.

I'll tell you right now, I love seeing that huge direct deposit in my bank account every Friday, but that alone will never make me love my job. I can't stress this enough, find something you like to do.

I'll leave you with this. Sure, maybe we're a little more narcissistic than we used to be, but let's look at the big picture here. It's not just Gen-Y, it's everywhere. And maybe it's not all bad either. Gen-Y is learning to harness that self-centered attitude to their advantage. Take some notes on our behaviors…maybe you'll learn something.