Stand Up Gen X – your time has come!

What does our new Gen X government means for Gen Y?

OK, I can hold my containment no longer and I have to shout from the rooftops. I am so excited about the coalition agreement made in UK politics between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, mostly because I am so excited to have Nick Clegg in a senior position. While I did not really favour Cameron, I must say that throughout this whole process, he and his party have handled the situation with grace, humility and a spirit of collaboration which we, as a generation, have never seen. But mostly what excites me is a shift from baby boomer leaders to Generation X leaders.

Baby boomers are notorius for having a great vision and assuming that we will all follow suit. They want to help and can mollycoddle; look what they did to their Gen Y children, they were the original helicopter parents! Generation X on the other hand are so much more individualistic and as such, more likely (as we have seen) to preach personal responsibility, which I believe will fill the gap I see so often in our youth.

For these of you who are not aware or familiar with Generational Theory, Generation X is commonly abbreviated to Gen X,  the generation born after the baby boom ended, with earliest birth dates used by researchers ranging from 1961 to the latest 1981. In Generation Theory, generations are split into four cycles, describing their job in the world, so to speak.

Now, Gordon Brown was in the Baby Boom generation and here is what Howe and Stress say about that generation.

Prophets are values-driven, moralistic, focused on self, and willing to fight to the death for what they believe in- and they can convince other people to join them in the fight. They grow up as the increasingly indulged children of a High, come of age as the young crusaders of an Awakening, enter midlife as moralistic leaders during an Unravelling and are the wise, elder leaders of the next Crisis. The Boomers are an example of a Prophet generation.

Have we not seen Gordon Brown do all of these as he tried to cling onto government? As I said before, Boomers can have a tendency to tell us what is right or wrong and convince them that they are doing things in our interests.

However, enter Generation X, a whole different ball game – known as the nomads, here is what Generation Theory says about them.

Nomads are ratty, tough, unwanted, diverse, adventurous, and cynical about institutions. They grow up as the under protected children of an Awakening, come of age as the alienated young adults of an Unravelling, become the pragmatic, midlife leaders of a Crisis and age into tough, post-crisis elders during a High. Generation X and the Lost Generation are examples of Nomad generations.

As a Gen X myself, I would certainly say that that is true. The explosion of youth culture and punks really does align with what we know of Gen X – they are the rebels. Is it no surprise that they went against the institution and formed a coalition?

So we can expect our government to be tough, cynical and pragmatic and Gen X do become leaders in midlife, so it is all looking good for us as we move forward. However this tough individualistic style is something the millennial/Gen Y have not yet seen. For our little Gen Z coming up behind, it will be an approach they are very familiar with, seeing it in their parents, but for their older counterparts a shock may be in store.

Here is what Generation Theory says about Gen Y, who are considered the hero generation.

Heroes are conventional, powerful, and institutionally driven, with a profound trust in authority. They grow up as the increasingly protected children of an Unravelling, come of age as the Heroic, team-working youth of a Crisis, become energetic and hubristic mid-lifers during a High and become the powerful elders who are attacked in the next Awakening. The G.I. Generation that fought World War II is an example of a Hero generation. Millennial are expected to emerge as the next generation of this example.

So, we have young adults who grew up protected, being governed by people that grew up very unprotected, institutionally driven youth with a trust in authority being governed by a mistrusting pair who are cynical about institutions. On the surface it looks like a mis-match. However, as Gen X finally get their day, I feel can learn a lot from them.

Firstly, I want to say that as most Gen X had such difficult childhoods, feeling very unwanted by society, that they believe in the potential and power of the youth that they missed out on. Therefore, I believe they will approach them in a very helpful way.

What our new PM and his deputy will teach the youth.

1. I think they will teach them to toughen up. So far they have had it easy, looked after and loved well by their parents, who step in to help. I think Gen X will teach them to stand on their own two feet a bit more and will encourage them to go out into the big wide world unaided.

2. The youth will learn what relatiism is, something that up to now they may not have encountered. A generation that were brought up being told they could do anything, they will soon learn to take a realistic view at things. Our new government will be pragmatic and real and will I think tame the lofty heights and fantasy worlds that Gen Y sometimes live in.

3. Gen X are extremely individualistic; they learnt from a early age to take care of themselves, taking personal responsibility. Gen X parents will never take the blame for a mistake their child has made and this government will not take the blame for youth not taking responsibility for their own actions.

4. Gen X are not known for their result-focused attitudes, so it may be that we see some reform of the education system. We may see a shift from results to pastoral care, which will have a huge impact on our youth.

And I also think that this government, should it choose to do so, has a lot to learn from our youth. Since they are in collaborative coalition, who best to turn to than the generation who do collaboration standing on their heads? Their young society will not stand for quibbling between these parties and will demand that they govern in a respectful, authentic way. The youth, if they are listened to, may also be able to raise the expectations of these two leaders. Gen X are highly practical in their outlook and may lose some vision and enthusiasm for what they do. While the Baby Boomers tried to keep them on the moral path, this government could become very uninspirational.

Like anything, this is just speculation, but I think that we are in for a highly interesting time….