Generation Y: Millennials need to keep pursuing their aspirations and face today’s hurdles head-on

'We are the first generation to have grown up in the digital era, opening up whole new fields of opportunities'

(Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Being a millennial or from Generation Y, according to just about every article on us in the past few years, means we are destined to be worse off than our parents. We are facing the combined threats of debt, rising house prices, and joblessness. Most will probably move back home after university, or live with their parents throughout their first job.

As the Guardian’s report recently revealed, while 30 years ago young adults had salaries more than national averages, in many countries they now face earning as much as 20 per cent below their average compatriot. Here in the UK, it has also been widely reported that a pensioner’s disposable income has grown three times as fast as that of young people.

These statistics do not paint a rosy picture, and more definitely needs to be done to help young people overcome the hurdles which are causing an entire generation to stagnate. Not only will this be an issue for us, but if the inequality isn’t solved, the economy will suffer under the strain of a generation unable to prosper.

As a student in my last year of university, I know all too well the sudden panic and stress that kicks in when you realise you’re about to enter the ‘real world’. I’ve heard many friends in moments of panic, declaring they would take a job with anyone who will have them, are planning to take part in the Help to Buy mortgage schemes, incentivising them to save £4,000 a year towards buying a home and generally allowing the scare stories to dictate their futures.

Recent research by Yorkshire Building Society revealed that, in the UK, owning a home is more important to young people than a career or finding a partner. Three in four young adults stated that “owning a home is essential to feeling I have succeeded in life,” but with the possibility of this happening being low, perhaps this attitude needs to change - at least at this early stage in our lives.

Policy on housing for young people undoubtedly needs to be addressed, with prices for a first-time buyer being more than five times their earnings and steadily climbing. But, any change that happens is unlikely to produce quick results with the situation as it is.

Therefore, rather than bankrupting ourselves over the dream of owning a home, perhaps we should focus more on our career aspirations and enjoying life than on a goal that is likely to have a detrimental effect on the other aspects of our life.

Young people appear to have lost hope that they can have the freedom to choose their career paths and, instead, seem to allow the dream of homeownership and large salaries take precedent over aspiration.

Yet, if anything is going to ensure that our generation does stagnate and fail to reach the heights of our parents’ generation, it is a lack of aspiration. Just because we’ve been told it will be impossible, doesn’t mean it has to be, but it definitely will be if we don’t reach for what we want to be possible.

Many in my age group have supposedly decided the picture is bleak and there’s no changing it, so we may as well settle for the least bleak option. Pursuing your aspirations is never going to be easy. There were always bound to be obstacles, but giving up and falling into whichever path opens its gate to you first should not be the go-to option.

Being a millennial is not all doom-and-gloom like the mainstream media would have us believe. We are the first generation to have grown up in the digital era, opening up whole new fields of opportunities. More of us than ever also have access to higher education. While this may have increased competition, once again, though, it has given more of us access to opportunities our parents may not have had.

“I feel sorry for the kids these days” may be a phrase that’s unlikely to ever die away. Every generation will face new hurdles as the world changes, no generation is ever going to be able to follow the same paths as their parents, and we need to stop believing we have to. Instead, we should face the hurdles of our time head-on - and not try to tackle them with the view that our lives need to mirror our parents in order to reflect success.