We millennials have our birthyears between 1981-1996. In the history of mankind’s existence, every generation has faced its own share of struggles and benefits. So, how does it feel to live in a pandemic-inflicted world, in this 21st century, racked by horrendous acts of terrorism, sexual assaults, economic and job crises, student loans, political scenarios, and now, the COVID-19 – as a millennial? And yes, let me add that we are NOT the ‘ok Boomer’ generation. Our succeeding generation would know that better! But yes, we do have our own dictionary.
If you ask me, I can go on and on about how hard life is getting with every passing year. It definitely feels like you are climbing a steep mountain. With every step, I try to convince myself that the struggle would be worth it. With increasing negativity prevailing around, internally and externally, it is hard, but not impossible. So, go get up there and host your flag of success!
Build your mental resilience step-by-step
Honestly, each time I take a new step to a new endeavor in life, things somehow start to fall apart, personally or professionally. But hey, what’s life without the sugar-and-spice combination? I have always been an emotional mess, each time I am stuck. Now I have promised myself that nothing is going to cross my personal walls of mental fortitude. You should try it out. In the long run, it would prove to be a blessing for you and me. I have been witnessed this in my close ones who have experienced life well enough, so yeah.
Take on one problem at a time
Life is so weird when it comes to challenges. They do not come in singles, akin to rapid meteor showers. It is perfectly okay to choose the issues you want to tackle head-on and let go of the others. When it comes to conservative family cultures, it is nearly impossible to cut loose from the shackles of elderly decision-making process, leading to more conflicts at home. I know it is all the more harder, with the pandemic and the WFH environment we have been circumstantially forced to work in. Let’s keep pushing ourselves though. We are young and our minds deserve to get stronger with time.
Seek out a mentor – personally or professionally
Frankly, I am yet to find my mentor when it comes to my profession, but I am grateful to have a wonderful family where there are a few elders I know I can approach for advice or solution. With the crazy maze of life out there, I have realized it is perfectly okay to reach out for help when in need. But you may also encounter rejections when asking for help. I am struggling with that and I am okay to admit it. The hard truth is that there are not many people out there willing to help you and you must be mentally braced up to face those nays. But never lose that hope, because eventually you will find your go-to person in your life, from your family, or social/professional circles.
Adopt the no-shortcut path to overcome your roadblocks
We have always been termed as the ‘lazy’, ‘entitled’, ‘self-centered’ generation. Well, I would hand it to the Baby Boomer generation for ingesting in all their hardships to make our lives better. But that doesn’t exactly make our lives easier, to be very honest. It is better, not easier. As a school student, you would have had to deal with bullying – online or offline, and then the academic pressure which continues well into the university phase. Most of us would have heard of the phrase ‘work hard and smart’. Smart work does not mean taking shortcuts to achieve your desired results. As we grow, with time and experience, we get to truly understand the difference.
Take some timeout from smart gadgets
Well, apart from proving to be handy, during the pandemic, smart gadgets have been doing more harm than good. Our circadian rhythms are totally off the mark, our WFH lives mean staying put in front of our computer screens, obsession with social media, throwing away all our privacy into the trash for all sorts of unwanted reasons is not going to take us anywhere. Right now, we may not have many options on our platters, but we always have that choice between healthy and unhealthy lifestyle, physically and mentally.
To sum it up, we need to realize, it is okay to mess things up, and not have your lives all figured out by the time you turn 25 or 30 years old. After all, we do not want to die from burnout or stress before we turn 50, do we? So, let’s get set to kick all that uncertainty away and earn the lives we have always yearned for.