Cranky Middle Aged People in a Millennial World

A friend recently shared a link to an article about no one wanting our parents' things when they downsize or die.  Yep, I knew that already! At this point in my life, I don't even want my own stuff.

What troubled me about the article was not that the next generation doesn't value the material items older generations have accumulated -- I get it, it's not their stuff -- but that the poster's sentiment was so bitter.  She was lamenting how things change with a very old school "get off my lawn" attitude.  She's one of many of my fellow Gen X’ers who hear a favorite old restaurant or bar they haven’t been to in years is closing and immediately adopt the stance that everything good ends, change is bad and “kids today” don’t appreciate the past.  The really scary part is that she's actually a year or two younger than I am. 

Change is hard.  But, when we stop embracing change, learning and moving forward, we stagnate.  Every generation FOREVER has criticized the next about lifestyle, fashion, work ethic, etc., but I think there's a lot to be shared and learned from both my position of experience and a millennial’s relative business innocence and fresh perspective.  Sure, they may approach business in a way I’m not used to but it doesn't mean they aren’t smart or could be one idea away from an innovation that will shake things up for years.

Ironically, at the same time I find myself shrinking from my less open-minded peers – the ones who poo poo the “kids today” -- I’ve also found that quite a few of those innovators and entrepreneurs who have real decision-making power (at an age when I was still figuring it out), are just as closed-minded as my peers about the value the previous generation can bring to the table in business.

Instead of looking at people over 50…or 40 even…as stale and old school, shouldn't the goal be to have the smartest people in the room backing up the leaders at all times?  Experience, when pertinent and current, should be grabbed and used to its full potential to help everyone succeed.  Sometimes the smartest one in the room is twice as old as the guy on the other side of the open plan, shared workspace table who is calling the shots.  And sometimes, it’s a fresh recruit, just getting a foot in the door.  Good ideas and smart people are not limited by age. 

I’m pretty flexible when it comes to the means to achieve an end. I’m not stuck in the past nor married to anachronistic ideas of how things should work.  I’m annoyed by people who can’t change. I’m 53 and I’m one of the smartest guys in the room some days because I’m lucky enough to work where my experience and expertise are appreciated.  I wish everyone had the opportunity to shine, regardless of age.