The very end of X. But it’s not a sharp line.
I wish I’d’ve posted this. I’m 63 and think the millennials are pretty much the shiz. We Boomers had a lot of good intentions but we were a little sloppy and undisciplined and now a lot of us have been sucked into the dopamine-pleasure of watching Fox News (not me, though). Take us forward, young people!
42, and I’ve been telling my wife a lot lately how awesome I think the millennials are. I love this generation! They’re entrepreneurial, quirky, engaged, opinionated and taking our tech culture to another level.
What’s gen is a 1984 birth?
That’s a Millennial (aka Generation Y), by every definition I can find. Because I read Strauss & Howe (generational sociologists) works back in college, 1982 is what I consider the start year for Millennials, but, depending on whose definition you use, it can go back as far as starting in 1977. Typically, though, the start year is 1980-1982. I’ve never seen it any later than that, though. But, remember, it’s also fairly culturally specific.
Generations are weird. Obama is a baby boomer, but he always had a Gen X vibe to me. He doesn’t seem of the same generation as Clinton, Bush Jr and Trump.
I’m 56, and I feel the same way about the “Millenial” generation – or at least the ones that I know, personally.
He’s right on the cusp. Born in August 1961. Depending on the definition, Gen X starts anywhere from 1960-1965, so your observation is correct. The sociologists Strauss & Howe I mentioned above has the start point as 1961, so that’s good enough for me (although they called it the “13th Gen” rather than Gen X, which was a Douglas Coupland appellation, I believe, or at least popularized by him and his novel.)
I think those of us born in the very early '60s feel more like Gen Xers than Boomers. It always felt like the Boomers had just used the last square of toilet paper, swallowed the last inch of milk in the carton, and taken the last chair a minute before we got there.
I like a lot of the millennials too.
To echo a previous sentiment, broad generalizations of amorphous groups seems somewhat pointless. I don’t get the maligning of boomers and other generations that worked to create a society that’s pretty affluent and comfortable.
I’m 49, and happy to join this dog pile of approval. I work with a lot of millennials, and - just like boomers, Greatest Generationers, and the Gen Xers like myself - there are are some amazing, world-changing millennials, and some total tools. But I tend to notice the amazing ones. I’m a grumpy enough middle-aged fart to dislike some of their fashions - trim the beards, boys, and buy pants and sportscoats that fit - but in general, I’m hopeful about the future. The kids are alright.
I agree 1984 is decisively in the generation, but it’s very interesting to read the countless articles about us as an old Millennial because we’re so clearly not what the writers are thinking of. They seem generally intent on keeping us as young as possible.
At least, I have yet to read anything that seems aware some of us are 12-15 years into our careers, have kids in school, etc. I get that we’re the leading edge of the generation but nobody seems to want to acknowledge we’re here.
By the way I highly recommend the Chrome Extension ‘Millennial to Snake Person’. I had to disable it in my last post so I could quote pulykamell without it changing all the words. I’ve had it installed for years and it still amuses me.
…for them. Not so much everyone after them.
I’m on the edge, being born in '78. I feel like I have way more in common with people born after me than before (or even at the same time). But I’m at the age where people may or may not have had a tech upbringing, depending on their parents, schools, etc. I had home internet access for most of high school and a computer all my life, but many friends only encountered a PC when they got to high school (or if they did have exposure at home, their parents kept it as a work computer and the kids never got to use it).
Anyway, on average, people 10 years younger than me are way smarter, harder working, and enthusiastic than people 10 years older. I don’t seek out the crowd but my interests overlap with the younger crowd way more than the older. 49 year olds are basically my parents.
Well, if the generations are labeled based on when they come of age, someone born in 1984 would be ~16 at the beginning of the millennium, which sounds about right.
Amen to this! i will say that I hate the generalization of any age group, basically it’s just another form of dividing people, and I think we’ve had quite enough of that going around. I am 41 myself, so a late gen-X’r if we need that definition, with a 20 year old daughter. What I have seen from her, her friends, and those around her age that I have interacted with at work, is strongly encouraging. They are not afraid to go after what they want, and if they are willing to work very hard to get it. They don’t care about archaic notions of “paying your dues”, or just accepting “that’s the way things are”, they are making things happen for themselves. Funny thing is, they know it’s going to be tough, they know they are going to be broke for a while, and they are still just jumping in with passion, and care for one another!
Bushy beards and tight suits? That’s the best part!