I actually like that article way more than I thought I was going to.
Especially this
Quote:
With a smoother, more positive life experience than that of their own parents, Lucy's parents raised Lucy with a sense of optimism and unbounded possibility. And they weren't alone. Baby Boomers all around the country and world told their Gen Y kids that they could be whatever they wanted to be, instilling the special protagonist identity deep within their psyches.
|
But seriously, it was truthful without being all "YOU GEN Y'ERS ARE THE WORST PEOPLE EVER" which feels like the tone of many of these types of articles. I particularly enjoyed the illustrations
I have to admit that I definitely suffer from that social media envy.
3 months into starting my career, I really felt like I was doing a so-so job. I didn't think I was doing a bad job at all, but I didn't think I was anything outstanding.
Within a year, I had 2 glowing reviews, a promotion, 33% in raises (maybe I was just severely underpaid? lol) and CONSTANT praise by superiors. Needless to say that boosted my confidence, and perhaps inflated my ego, just a bit.
So take that and the fact that due to the way my agency (and most big agencies) was structured, and I was left feeling that I would be promoted to a supervisory role sometime next year or so.
Then I moved and started a job in the same field but at a place that is structured very differently. It immediately became very clear to me that as long as I am out here, I will NOT become a supervisor. There are others who have 10+ years experience on me that share my job title--they are obviously up for a promotion before I am.
That realization left me very upset and jealous. I felt like years from now, old co-workers might come across me on LinkedIn and see that I am still in the same position I was in when I left my job back home. That made me feel like others would see me as a failure--a horrible thought after having so much "early success". I was super jealous when I saw a sorority sister in my industry just recently get promoted to "supervisor". "WHY NOT ME?!"
I'm not looking for any sympathy and in fact, I feel VERY silly admitting all of this. I guess my point is I understand 100% how people can let something like social media put some sort of extra, non-really-existent-in-reality pressure on themselves. It's dumb, but I completely get it.
ETA: And for the record, I'm accepting the differences between here and my old job. I am realizing that a title is not something that is a true measure of your success.