The Blessing And Curse Of Being A Millennial

Sociologists have shown that being born in a recession dampens your earnings throughout your lifetime, simply because the first jobs you get are the ones that define much of your success in later life. Almost all the wage increases that you’ll get arrive before you’re 40. Thus, if you enter the workforce and struggle to find a job, you’ll be consistently hobbled by a lack of experience and tenure.

But maybe that’s a good thing. It may be that millennials are a generation apart in one sense that hasn’t shown up yet in the data: Plagued by dead-end career prospects, many seem to have turned to everything from crafts to self-improvement as a way to find meaning outside of what they do. A less materialistic, more happiness-focused generation seems like a very good thing given how obsessed America has been with simply getting more, no matter what. But it might also be that a lack of prospects makes this generation the most entrepreneurial we’ve ever seen—after all, innovation is usually born during times of hardship.

Full article (with pretty infographics): http://www.fastcodesign.com/1665648/infographic-of-the-day-the-blessing-and-curse-of-being-a-millennial