Micro-Generation Born Between 1977-1983 Given New Name | Sammiches & Psych Meds
Xennial. I kinda like it.
Anyone else a Xennial and can relate to the analog childhood and digital adulthood?
I'm fascinated about generations and the different common personality types that make them up and the circumstances that create it.
What's probably driven that is that my generation is seemingly the one that many of the people in the field are having such issues with. Some simply have them on the cusp of X and Millennial. Others have them clearly as the earliest Millennials. While others assign us to a unique generation or micro-generation that goes by a host of names such as Generation Y, Xennial, The Oregon Trail Generation, or Generation Catalano. I think the later option is definitely the most accurate ,as I believe this generation is distinct both in it's experiences and it's attitudes from both GenX and the Millennials.
This is specifically speaking to those born in the late 70s to early 80s. I'd personally push it past '83, as this article does, into the '87 range.
I think Technology is one of the real hallmark differences between the three, while highlighting the realities of what a Y/Xennail is; an odd hybrid.
X'ers basically grew up their entire life free of "modern" technology of computers and cell phones. They were the last generation to experience a childhood and adolescence that was in the pre-digital age mold. As technology expanded, they were coming of age as adults and were able to embrace it as a useful and powerful tool. They often find technology as a convenience but also a nuisance in how much it permeates things.
Millennials have basically existed entirely in the digital age, and the adolescence of most was awash in the web of social media. Technology is not simply a tool, it is simply a reality of life; a necessary part of functioning and instrumental component within the world. Their exposure from the very onset of their existence has led them to naturally pick up, adapt, and make use of technology.
Y's/Xennials are blended. They spent the early years of their life outside of the digital age, and have memories and recollections of a time where parents couldn't instantly reach their kids on their cell phone, or you were going to the families Encyclopedia Britannica to research a topic for a school report, or where if you wanted help on a video game you had to hope it'd come out in next months Game Informer or have a friend that figured it out. Yet they experienced an adolescence that was in the midst of the digital age's onset. Computer labs began to flood schools (thus the "Oregon trail generation" moniker), the personal computer entered the home, and things like AOL suddenly brought the internet to the masses. They experienced life without endless technology, and yet were still in a developmental stage when technology boomed, giving them a better handle at adapting to it. They viewed technology not merely as a tool as X'ers, but also as a new means of entertainment and enlightenment. They entered college or high school as social media was just coming into fruition, leaving them somewhat naïve to and overwhelmed by the quick and rapid changes of the social media landscape today compared to their own experiences in the early days of it.
tl;dr
X - childhood and adolescence in pre-digital age
Millenial - childhood and adolescence in post-digital age
Xennial - Childhood in pre-digital age, adolescence in post-digital age
I actually think this is why Nostalgia is so strong with the Xennials, far more than it seems with any other generation. Their early lives were in such a different world than what came later, and was so short compared to Xers, that there's more of a natural gravitation to the past. With technology, you have this mix where there's a longing for a simpler time that was only there for a moment, while having the capacity to indulge easily and quickly in things that directly remind you and link you back to that time.
I could go on and on about more because I find the whole thing fascinating. But yeah...there's definitely a distinct group between X and Mil
