Hello forgotten generation! Or, if you’re not a Gen X’er congratulations for being one of very few who are remotely interested in learning about us; the middle generation and baby bust generation. Then there’s the descriptors; slackers, apathetic, lazy, sulky…you’ve heard it. Well, as a middle child, I’m fed up with it being used to describe some pathetic, whiny child. Think Jan Brady ‘s voice, “Marsha, Marsha, Marsh!” Yes we’ve all felt that way at one time or another, but now that I’m mid-life my reaction to these comments is, “Whatever.”
I’m not alone in realizing we aren’t going to change the opinions of others. Harkening back to our teen years we know this isn’t a new thing. A lot of us did a good job of shaking it on and getting to work on our lives in spite of the low expectations. We showed them!
Many of us, parents or not, feel the pull of Boomer commentary: This generation is so sensitive and doesn’t have the backbone we had. We were hard-working…look how lazy they are!” If you’re like me, you also immediately cringe at the thought of becoming like it, no matter how accurate the commentary.
We’ve made it this far by using our strengths, our Superpowers, to succeed in life. We’re hard-working, self-reliant, adaptable, and use our gallows humor to cope with all the crap life throws at us. We’ve applied it to all areas of our lives. We worked hard knowing not to expect praise for doing so. We didn’t expect others to swoop in and save us; we had to save ourselves and those we care for. Change is constant and has been since we came on the scene so we’re baffled at everyone railing against how everything is different than when they were young. Duh. Finally, we’ve been through a lot. Recession, cold war, AIDS, dot com bust, another great recession and let’s not forget Covid. Our Generation’s response has been to joke our way through because what was the alternative? We put our heads down and kept working. This has helped us succeed and yet we’re seeing diminishing returns.
The world seems to reward our grit less every year. Laughing off serious issues brands us as, at best, insensitive. Working hard seems to result in more work being put on our plates through this never-ending pipeline because we always seem to figure it out and make it work. The solution is not to abandon all these skills but to apply them in a new way. We’ve changed, the world’s changed and it’s time we adapt to it. Like all generations, when we hit mid-life most of us start to reflect, reassess, and start searching for what’s next. I hate the Boomer term Mid-life Crisis because it’s so dramatic and black and white. Sure, some of us do have a crisis, but most just have a change in thinking and priorities.
Stay tuned for more in my upcoming book……
GenX Superpowers 