From Generation to Generation

I have always been interested in the social sciences.  Learning about people, what drives them, and how they relate to the world is fascinating to me.  I think that is what drew me to my major in college (advertising) and my current job (managing people).  Being a parent puts a whole new spin on this interest of mine, because I am now molding two people and teaching them how to relate to the world.  In that regard, I constantly find myself faced with generational differences.  Since my children's generation hasn't really been defined, and because the traits of generations are directly related to those of the parent generation, I have been reflecting on how the traits of my generation will shape the generation of my children.  I guess my hope is that this self-reflection will help me understand how my values, character and ultimately my behaviors will help shape who my children become. 

I have always thought I do a decent job of relating to different generations.  Traditionalists (or the silent generation) value morals, loyalty and integrity, all of which I strive to maintain, making me more conservative than most of my peers.  I can relate to the baby boomers work-hard-to-achieve-your-goals attitude.  I am not afraid to dig in and get my hands dirty, and I have always been told I am extremely independent.  I want to chart my own destiny.

I was born right on the cusp of Generations X and Y, so  I can relate to almost all of the characteristics of each. 

• I've been told I am both independent and resourceful (X). 
• I value flexibility and work/life balance.  I actually use the "work hard/play hard" mantra during my introductory meeting with any new members of my team at work (X). 
• I admittedly put my family first and greatly value my role as a wife/daughter/mother (Y). 
• I also like working in teams and am achievement oriented; I want to succeed, and I want to do it as a team, whether that be coworkers, friends, or family (Y). 
• I do a better job of achieving my goals when I am incentivized.  For example, if I finish all of the laundry before dinner, I'll make brownies for dessert (Y).
• To quote a study on generational characteristics the Everett College website, I "crave attention in the forms of feedback and guidance. [I] appreciate being kept in the loop and seek frequent praise and reassurance."

While I can relate to other generations, because I am so much a part of Generations X and Y, this sometimes puts me at odds with people from other generations.  The value I place on independence and flexibility is in direct conflict with the value traditionalists place on conformity and consistency.  My desire to find balance between my family and my career can be seen as a lack of commitment or work ethic by the hard-working career-focused boomers.

As I consider the characteristics of my generation and myself, I wonder how the children we raise will relate to the world.  They obviously will have technology ingrained in their existence.  How will social media impact their ability to relate to other people?  Will the constant flow of information cause them to be scatter brained or better at knowing how to focus and tune things out?  Will they even know what it is like to work in a cube in an office building? Will they ever win a first place prize trophy, or will they always get a trophy no matter where they rank?  

I ask these questions not because I expect to get answers.  I ask them because I think it is important to consider the world around us as I make decisions about how to let my children interact with that world.  At some point, I will have to decide if/when to allow my children get cell phones, Facebook accounts, and participate in activities outside of school.  In making those decisions, I will have to weigh my own values with those that the world promotes as "right." To be quite honest, my instinct is to shelter my children from those worldly influences as long as possible.  I realize that isn't the best approach, and I do not plan to do that.  I strive to find balance for myself and my children. 

Next week, we go to a kindergarten open house at Audrey's elementary school.  I know that has prompted much of my recent reflection on this generational topic.  I could stress myself out over trying to perfect the way I raise my children (and believe me, perfectionism is my tendency).  Instead, I'll entertain these questions from time to time to feed my interest in the social sciences, but I'll focus my time and energy on loving my children the way Christ loves me and teaching them to share that love with the people in their lives.  Whatever generational influences they have, I pray those influences won't get in the way of my children growing up to always know and serve their heavenly Father.