Loving the Millennials

A few weeks ago, here in Washington, I was on a conference panel with two women whose combined ages were less than mine.  They had invited me to join them to talk about women, technology and generational communication.  It was great.

Much has been made of the tensions between us "Fifty-Somethings" (and higher) and these younger folks and I think it's sad.  We're all worried about the economy, no matter how old we are.  But did you know that for many many young people their social security tax is far higher than their income taxes?  That they have grave doubts about their futures?  And assume none of the benefits due us (soon, for me) will have evaporated by the time they're in their 60's?  Can't blame them for being testy.

Remember when we were in our twenties?  We thought we could do whatever we wanted, and many of us did.  Some of these younger people will have that chance, sure, but many more will make their way with great difficulty.  All that was true before the crash.  Now it's much worse.

I'm pushing for outreach.  Maybe at your church or even in a supermarket line, try to reach out and connect.  We need to be sure we understand each other.   They have their own baby boom and they're going to have to figure out how to survive.  We know things that can help them -- and they have a lot to teach us.  Let's try.

Cynthia Samuels, a writer and Internet consultant in Washington, DC, and a Contributing Editor at BlogHer.  She also blogs at her personal blog Don't Gel too Soon.