I must ask you how many times you have witnessed the use of the ‘M’ word completely turn off a group of people in an older generation. Think back to the reactions of people you have seen when they read or heard that word. Though members of my generation and I can calmly mention that word around one another, I vehemently suggest the removal of the ‘M’ word from your vocabulary when you are addressing someone of a younger generation. On top of it being the label placed on us as a result of how we approach and see the world, it is an exclusive tag we placed on our foreheads that wrongfully suggests we are the only group within society that understands how the world works or should be ran. That, my friends, simply should not be the case.
Where the label, Baby Boomer, speaks of the generation of my parents, my parents did not adopt it as a mark of identification like my generation has done with the ‘M’ word. We have allowed this word to become a method through which people categorize us, and a lens through which people see us. The worse thing about it is that we did it to ourselves! Add to that the fact we are the generation having emerged, or currently graduating, from college while dealing with the horror of the student loan business and the market returning to and surpassing its former glory. All of this is while we are struggling to find careers and jobs that are willing to see things through our eyes and do things our way! We are expecting a world that has seen the emergence and dying off of previous generations to treat us as if we are fresh, new, and the best thing since indoor plumbing, air conditioning, and the Internet. We are a generation fueled by the things that deeply touch us. We have a strong desire to figure out who we are at the core, Who created us, and why. Our inquiries are sometimes perceived as disrespect when challenging authority, but it through that curiosity, salvation is found.
I know it is frightening to accept, but I will say it anyway: The same way previous generations have come and gone is the same way ours arrived and will leave.
Think about it. No matter the generation, there are aspects of each of them that bleed into latter ones. Each generation has its own way of perceiving and approaching the world. Add to that generation a specific group’s ethnicity, socioeconomic level, and their particular faith. With all of these variables interacting with one another in one particular person, how can we rightfully use a word to distinguish ourselves on a macroscopic scale from everyone else when the same variables are affecting each person within the ‘M’-word populace on a microscopic scale?
Each and every person on this planet is different. How each person is different when we all share over 90% of the same characteristics in our DNA chain is beyond me. I do not understand how 10% of a DNA sequence can give rise to 7 billion completely different human beings, but I do understand that the only way each of us will survive and live healthy, productive lives is together! It is our differences that make this world such a beautiful place. It is our different perspectives and perceptions of a shared story that makes people get behind our brands and become self-proclaimed champions of our beliefs. Why, then, would any of us use a word in our marketing strategies and online posts that would put forth even the smallest idea that our social groups are specifically for “this” genomes and not everyone?
This is not just for the ‘M’ word. This is for any word (within reason) that would give off the feeling that the mission is specifically for a small group of people and not to be experienced by even the curious mind. Let’s eradicate the labels and replace them with love. Let’s find a way to make unity the driving force behind our understanding about what’s different. Let’s close the gap among generations, culture, and race.