We can often hear comments about people born in the 80ies that they are narcissistic, selfish, unable to focus, lazy. Their families and employers do not know how to deal with them. They ask for top notch working conditions and are never fully satisfied. Why? We gave this topic a bit of thinking and have come up with certain conclusions on what happened with the generation of the eighties.
Technology
There are basically two key aspects when we consider the influence of technology: creating fake images and the chemistry behind it.
The psychologists say that people who do not use social media are far less prone to depression. And the generation of the eighties lives online. Depression comes from creating fake images on Facebook, Instagram, etc. and high expectations developed as a result of living in this fake world. Nowadays, people strive for ultimate beauty, money, comfortable life. Instagram displays the results of someone’s work and efforts. However, it never shows the actual work behind it. Therefore, it creates the fake impression that all things nice can fall from the sky with little or no effort at all.
Secondly, it has been proved that big number of likes on social media stimulate creation of dopamine in the brain. Dopamin is the stuff that makes you happy. It is the same hormone that increases when people smoke, for example. Although it is biologically induced, it puts us on a wrong track. This chemical reaction is misleading because it takes the focus away from the real world. Fewer people use social media wisely today.
Environment
It is not strange that people who are so immersed in technology and online world have difficulties in creating and maintaining relationships in real life.
Most of the relationships the generation of the eighties creates later in life are superficial. They often claim that they are aware the friendships do not last. They party together and have fun, until something better comes along. Why? Because many people do not have the experience of actually practicing and developing social skills.
Furthermore, the lack of social skills eventually leads to inability to deal with stress. Man is a human being. Each of us is biologically predisposed to live in company of others, to be social. Discrepancy between our nature and the way of life enforced on us by the factors mentioned above, creates stress.
Impatience
Inability to fight stress and create long-term relationships inevitably leads to a certain stage when a person feels he or she has had enough. At one point, we may feel we want it all, and we want it now. And the best part of it is that we actually get everything instantly, which closes the vicious circle. Impatience is an intriguing feature.
We are living in an instant world where we can fulfill many of our desires very quickly. Almost anything is just a click away. Except for human relationships. This is the field where we need to work hard to create the fulfilling bond. The question is whether we are ready to do that, equipped with Instagram pics as our ideals and TED talks as the ultimate source of knowledge.
Do not get us wrong, we love millennials. We are actually those people who are constantly striving for higher meaning and ways to change the world. However, we are also aware of our weaker side. Maybe we should learn to recognize one another to be able to join forces, instead of focusing on quick, media-induced impressions of the life that will never become reality.
