Here is a headline I am certain a group of people I am fond of, admire and respect would love to see! I was at a meeting earlier this week and the presenters used the word over and over again, not reading the audience and eventually getting an earful of how this word is offensive to a group of individuals who happen to be born in a range of years.
How do you generalize a population, which, by definition was born during a timeframe of over 15 years? The image of a specimen jar comes to mind, which is why I chose it, this group looked at for trends, opportunities, poked and prodded for profit, predictions of the future. I agree, the word is offensive!
From this day forward, I declare that the people in the media, marketers, advertisers, financial firms, etc. who are trying to capture and appeal to this group be referred to as “Young Professionals”. A group of individuals that have a passion for many things, especially individualism and doing good with their lives, so much so, if there is a cause great enough, Young Professionals would do it for free, because purpose is so important to them and should be for all of us! Not all of the people born during this period possess this same level of enthusiasm for doing good, but for sure, the majority of Young Professionals that I know embrace these qualities.
I am fortunate to work with many Young Professionals and felt that an brief article to share my experiences over the years may be beneficial for those of us that believe the use of this word is acceptable and complementary, in my experience it is polarizing! So to my Young Professional friends, I thank you and want to be accepted into a club a you have inspired, I call us the Perennial Young Professionals! Young at heart and doing good things with our lives. Live with Passion!