Do you fit in your generation? 🤔
What's your "soul" era? Is it the one you were born into?
Do you ever feel like the generation you were born into doesn’t match you?
For today’s Fun Friday, I’m excited to discuss something I’ve been reflecting on since I was about ten years old: the era into which I was born.
I was born in the year 2000 (which I used to joke makes me a baby, but now that people born in 2003 are turning 21, that’s not so funny anymore… 😢). This birth year places me squarely in Generation Z, along with 69.31 million other Americans. We’re the generation of Silly Bandz, Webkinz, and TikTok. The oldest of us turn 27 this year; the youngest turn 14.
There are of course good and bad things about every generation, and I’m not here to praise or bash Generation Z. What I do want to discuss is the nagging feeling of being a misfit or an oddball in one’s own generation. My generation is especially known for being more liberal, later to marry and have kids, and more tech savvy than any generation before it. I don’t feel as though I have any of these characteristics.
Although I grew up listening to 70s and 80s music, enjoying 50s pop culture, and loving my American history classes, today I’m not discussing the anecdotal evidence that makes me prefer to have been born in another generation. I’m talking about the hard facts that show I don’t fit the trends.
A large part of being an odd-one-out comes from the way in which I was raised. According to data from Exploding Topics, 1/4 of my generation spends more than 5 hours a day on TikTok. I don’t have the app. I had it one time for about 3 days, and quickly realized its scarily addicting properties. I deleted it and never looked back. Similarly, almost 1/2 of my generation spends more than 3 hours a day streaming on Netflix. I do like Netflix, but only as background noise so my workouts are more bearable. I’m not into the show-bingeing fads. On average, Gen Zers have their own cell phone by the age of 12. I got mine at 13, but with very limited access. I was supposed to use it to let my parents know when my dance rehearsal schedule shifted or a practice ran late, and I was required to leave it in the kitchen overnight. I didn’t have full phone access until 16, because that’s when I started driving (and dating; which, by the way, I also wasn’t allowed to do until 16).
I was raised in a conservative, Christian family. A major part of my generation rejects conservatism, with PRRI reporting that Gen Z adults are the most likely of any generation to self-identify as liberal (at a staggering 43%). According to Religion in Public, Gen Z is the least religious generation in American history. In school, it was difficult for me to find like-minded friends my age. Maybe I was simply a dork, but I tended to bond more with my teachers than my peers - they had beliefs and interests that aligned better with my own.
Today, I’d rather read a book than stream a show. I’d rather write a story than film a TikTok. I’m struggling to teach myself social media marketing as an adult because I was so late to the social media game - both due to my parents’ healthy rules and my self-imposed internet abstinence.
Reflecting on my generation makes me wonder whether there are others who feel isolated amongst their birth group.
What generation were you born into? Do you fit your generation’s trends? Do you feel like you “belong” in your era? Let me know if I’m the only one who feels like an oddball! :)
Hi Emma, a very interesting topic and an extremely well written post. First, I am a dinosaur, born in 1954. To tell you the truth I've never given much thought or put any real value on the assigned generational names and letters. There are statistics and facts that are used to define the characteristics of all the different generations, however to me, it's like trying to herd cats. Yes, there are some common tendencies and like habits that can be identified, but humans are individual humans, and they can and will define themselves - or they should, like you have. My youngest daughter was born in 2000 just as you were, and while she fits some of the common Generation Z identifiers, she certainly doesn't fit them all. Not by a long shot. I have no statistical data to back it up, but I would venture you are certainly not alone. As for me, I suppose I'm the boomer poster boy by definition, but I never give it a second thought, nor do I care. I am me, luckily raised by a mother and father who I greatly admired and respected. I have personal faults, triumphs, defeats, good memories and bad, good traits and bad. You seem to be very grounded and extremely well versed. Just live your life as you see fit, try to do what You think is best and you'll be in the 'right' generation. Thanks for a wonderful read and thoughtful post. - Jim
A late Millennial here, I've often felt my preferences to be anachronistic, often more analogue than digital, but I do think there is a purpose that we are given the times we are given. There are foolish iterations of our fellow generation members, but there is also a modernity that we get to cherish in the Grand Narrative of History - I still try to think that there is more good than bad to be found even while feeling out of place with my generation.
Lovely article, thanks for sharing.