Gen Z vs Millennials

Millennials (sometimes called Generation Y) are those who were born between 1981 and 1996, the youngest being 28, and the oldest 43. Gen Z (sometimes called iGen) are those born between 1997 and 2010, the youngest being 14, and the oldest 27. While these two have plenty in common, there are generational differences between them. So, let’s unpack what Gen Z vs Millennials share in common and what they do not.

4 Areas of Similarities Between Gen Z and Millennials

The title of this article seems to imply that Millennials and Gen Z are at odds in all aspects of their lifestyles, values, and belief systems. In reality, it is not so simple, for they do share some key traits in common. So, let’s look at these first before we begin to speak to the differences between the two generations.

1. Support for DEI

While diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) have become politically charged concepts, there is no confusion about where both Generation Z and the Millennial generation stand on the matter. They both stand firm in their support of justice for all racial and ethnic groups and insist that companies with whom they do business have strong initiatives in this area.

And when and if they do go to the polls during elections, they will vote for candidates who support DEI as well. Many Millennials have even moved into politics. Gen Z may soon follow.

One celebrity hero in the area of DEI is Taylor Swift. On National Voter Registration Day, sponsored by Vote.org every September, Swift posted on Instagram urging her 272 million followers to get registered and make their voices heard at the polls. On that day Vote.org had a 23% increase in young voter registrations– something they attribute to Swift’s involvement. While she herself is a millennial, her appeal reaches down throughout Gen Z.

2. Concerns For Climate Change and Sustainability

Climate Change

A recent Pew Research survey points to the fact that Millennials and adult Gen Zers are talking about and acting upon global warming concerns – much more than past generations. Both want to see more actions taken, even if this means taking money away from other areas of funding. Both generations are also getting involved through volunteering and attending protests and rallies as well as taking to social media platforms with their concerns.

What’s more, a higher percentage of these two demographics have contacted elected officials, donated to causes, and participated in events than previous generations.

Both Millennials and Gen Z voice anxiety about the future of the planet along with anger at the lack of decisive action on this issue. Many of them follow climate-focused social media accounts where these emotions are. Previous generations, while expressing some concern, do not feel or express the same urgency.

Where these two generations part company on this issue is that most Millennials feel optimistic that the world can ultimately solve these issues while Gen Z respondents, not so much.

Sustainability

The “Great Recession” which began in 2008 had a huge impact on the career goals and dreams of Millennials. Saddled with student loan debt and forced to take lower-paying jobs (even moving back home with their parents), they were unable to save money and they had less to spend on goods and services. They had to learn to live with less, and buying cheap became the norm, including resale clothing and other goods.

The COVID pandemic hit Gen Z like a bomb, especially the older components who were beginning to reach beyond high school for education or who were entering the job market. They had to work and go to school from home; they learned to spend less and to preserve more. That carried over as the Pandemic eased, and Gen Z began to see the value of sustainability- keeping things longer and buying used rather than new.

But this whole priority on sustainability has carried over into what both of these generations now demand from the companies they do business with.

According to researchers from FirstInsight.com, about 62% of Gen Z and most Millennials want to buy from brands that practice sustainability, and they are willing to pay more for products and services from such enterprises.

Let’s take jeans as an example – the absolute wardrobe “must” for the Millennial generation. It has been estimated that it takes about 998 gallons of water to make a single pair of jeans, from the cost of growing the cotton to the final rollout of the finished product. This is not acceptable to either of these generations and so jeans manufacturers have now found ways to drastically reduce the amount of water used and to recycle what they do use.

If manufacturers intend to keep the Gen Z and Millennial markets (billions of dollars right now), they need to focus on sustainability from raw material resources through packaging and shipping and see to it that these consumers know of their efforts. And publicizing these activities should become part of their marketing strategy.

3. Digital Nativity

Here is where a lot of researchers speak to a major difference between Millennials and Gen Z. Both are considered digital natives, that is, they grew up with screens. Millennials were the first generation to be introduced to computers and the Internet. Granted, in its early days, the Internet was dial-up and phones were rather limited, primarily for calling. Social media was young and undeveloped. In short, for the oldest Millennials, the Internet age was in its infancy. Still, it had a major impact. Their younger counterparts had the advantage of more developed screens and phones.

Gen Z, on the other hand, has and is still growing up with smartphones, other mobile devices, and Wi-Fi as a given from a very young age, and with social media well entrenched in their daily lives. And for those Gen Zers who are young adults, everything is done online – shopping, banking, and, of course, making and keeping connections on a variety of social media platforms.

But Millennials are quick studies, and most members have fully embraced the newest technology. So today, there is very little difference between these two generations in terms of digital expertise. It is a digital-first world for them both. And frankly, Gen X and Baby Boomers have followed suit.

4. Rejection of Traditional Work Environments

“More people are resetting their priorities and maybe forcing policymakers to do so, too. After all, no one dies wishing they had spent more time in the office.”

LZ Granderson, a journalist and LA Times writer

This phenomenon began as Millennials grew to see the inefficiency of the traditional workforce – reporting to work at 9 and staying on the job until 5 and, more recently since the Pandemic, even being available after work hours and on weekends at an employer’s “beck and call.” Both Millennials and Gen Z want a different work environment and, as studies show, a better work-life balance.

• 9 – 5 is not when many people do their best work
• In-office work environments can be wasteful of time and energy and detract from productivity
• Being on call detracts from personal time

It’s being called the “Great Reshuffle” or the “Great Resignation” according to a recent LinkedIn blog. Here are some staggering figures:

• In April of this year, 4 million Millennials and Gen Zers quit their jobs.
• The numbers who quit in July were close to the same.
• A good percentage of these resigners do so with no prospect of a job at all. Many are taking time to re-group or pursue other education and training to get less demanding jobs.
• There are close to 10 million open positions that companies cannot find the talent for.
• In a recent survey by Adobe, 66% of Gen Z and 73% of Millennials stated they would change jobs with the same or even a bit lower pay if they could have more control over their work schedules.
• 60% of those in the Adobe study stated they wanted jobs with the opportunity to work remotely or at least in hybrid environments.

Related Reading: How to Know Your Worth

With all of these similarities, it’s a little hard to come up with differences between Millennials and Gen Z. But there are because each generation has its uniqueness. So, now it’s time to unpack those differences and determine how significant they may be, if at all.

5 Ways How Millennials and Generation Z Are Different

1. Education

Millennials placed a high value on formal education and were happy to pay the price for a college degree even when it meant going heavily into debt with student loans. The oldest Millennials entered the job market during the rise of financial problems of 2008 and quickly discovered that there were no jobs for their qualifications. Their life was severely upended as they were forced to take lower-level positions – can we say Starbucks baristas?

Gen Z was being born and raised as their parents were facing the same recession, and they were raised with a much more frugal and practical outlook. They were also witness to the struggles of Millennials posted all over social media and on other online news feeds. Determined not to meet the same fate with their lives, they looked and still do look for alternatives to that expensive degree. Gen Z strives for practicality, taking cheaper online coursework that provides specific expertise or trade skills that are easily marketable. A prime example is gathering IT certifications to support the demands of newer technology.

2. Work Environment

We’ve already talked about how both Millennials and Gen Z reject the traditional work environment. And companies that want to keep their talent face the challenge of creating work environments that are appealing enough to make them want to stay. These include such things as flexible work schedules, hybrid environments, commitment to diversity equality and inclusion, and of course real activity that supports sustainability.

Where Millennial and Gen Z employees part company, though, is in how they prefer to accomplish work.

The Millennial is a collaborator. Whether it is physically in the workplace or via the many virtual meeting platforms, they want community building with teams that attack projects together. To them, these groups produce high-quality work with better productivity.

For Generation Z, better work is accomplished by going it alone. Their adage seems to be, “If I want something done right, I’ll do it myself.” The majority prefer working solo. This attitude may come in part at least as they watched their parents struggle through the recession on their own with little support from the outside. They did it on their own. Life for Generation Z is something to be faced individually and independently.

Related Reading: Self-Reliance: How to Be in Charge of Yourself?

3. Idealism Vs. Pragmatism

Again, let’s talk about how these two younger generations were raised.

Millennials were raised by Baby Boomers who were idealistic among many other things. They have often been called the “Me Generation” because the focus was on their own well-being. And they passed that idealism onto their children along with a commitment to making them feel good about themselves in all aspects of their lives. So, no matter where they “placed” in a competition, everyone got a trophy. And the overriding philosophy was that everything was going to be just fine, no matter what setbacks may occur. This is how the Millennial earned the reputation of being the “coddled” generation. When they faced hurdles or issues, their parents tended to rescue them.

Now this is not to say that young Millennials become dysfunctional adults – far from it. But they entered adulthood with a rosy view of their future that has not always panned out. Still, they hang onto their idealism. For example, they still believe that somehow the global warming crisis and the impending water crisis will be solved by “somebody.”

Contrast that with Gen X parents who have been raising Generation Z. These parents faced the Recession head-on. Many saw their retirement accounts wilt away; they struggled to hang on financially and worked hard to dig themselves out. Their children, Gen Z, witnessed that and the aftermath – a commitment to frugality and a far more realistic approach to life as they have raised their kids. As consumers, they have been practical. Yes, Gen Z is the only generation to have multiple devices and screens early on, but they are also far more pragmatic and aware of the reality of a shrinking globe. This pragmatism is also reflected in their bent toward caution as they connect with the world.

Related Reading: How to Be a Better Person: Unlock Your Authenticity

4. Public Revelations Vs. Privacy and Caution

The Millennial generation is often called the “pioneers” of our digital world. They remember life when cyberspace was new and developing. And every new development became their playground. Members of this generation quite literally pounced on every new opportunity that research brought on. And they were so enamored with social media that they began to use it like their own diary. Every thought, opinion, life event, and more was fair game to be shared, with little thought to data privacy.

Now, Gen Z uses social media just as much for entertainment, connecting with friends and making new ones, and responding to the posts of their ever-widening circles. And those who are of age to do so rely on the opinions of others as they become consumers. What they don’t do is share a bunch of private information or air all of their feelings and emotions through posts that will be out there forever. Data privacy is important to them. For this reason, Gen Z has taken to Snapchat where their posts have a shelf life of 24 hours.

5. Body Beautiful Vs. Body Diversity and Comfort

Every generation has its concept of the ideal image. An older generation, let’s say from the ’50s, would be adult females with decent bodies in dresses and heels and men in suits and ties. For young people, it was a diverse generation regarding lifestyle and dress, from middle-class guys in khaki pants and loafers to the lifestyle and dress typified by the movie Grease. Still, there was an ideal body image – trim and slim. Moving on to Millennials and Gen Z.

Millennials have an ideal body image that members of this generation strive for. It’s an image that is inspired by skinny jeans fitted tops and shoes that hide socks. The goal of Millennials is to have a body that can wear these styles, and they have worked hard to get those bodies. The focus on physical appearance has made them consumers of everything from tight-fitting jeans to plastic surgery.

Gen Z has a completely different attitude about style, reflecting its value of diversity and inclusion. For this new generation, every body has a value, no matter what its shape or size. They support a wide range of clothing styles. But the most common are baggy pants, unstructured sweaters and blazers, skirts and dresses with combat boots, and retro styles. But in general, anything goes with this generation, at least for older ages of the demographic. How those of the younger age of this generation will take to trends is a matter for future research.

In general, for millennials, the body must fit the style; for Gen Z, the style should fit the body.

Time to Recap

Younger generations, specifically millennials and Gen Z span quite an age range, specifically from ages 13 to 38. With that age range, of course, they are not all interested in the same things. Nor are members of each of these generations marching in lockstep. But the future of our world overall, Millennials and Gen Zers do appear to be in sync.