Generation experts love to label each generation, and the buzzword nowadays seems to revolve around Generation X and Millennials. However, for someone born in the late 70's and early 80's, it seems to be a peculiar time to be born in.
While experts usually classify these people in one of the two groups previously mentioned, they’re actually stuck in the middle. This micro-generation carries the cynicism of the Generation X and the optimism of the Millennials. For now, we’re referring to them as Xennials - but there’s still a lot more to it that needs to be covered!
The Oregon Trail
In the old days, computers were bulky and the only place you could use one was at the school’s computer lab. However, today there’s computers small enough to be carried around in our pockets. Xennials are the ones inspired by the Oregon Trail game; a game that carries a lot of unintended funny lines (e.g. "you have died of dysentery").
Xennials are the generation who grew up figuring out how computers work, rather than having an innate understanding of them (a quality of the Millennials).
Love and Hate - Social Media
Xennials are a unique bunch as they grew up with sketchy chat rooms, and typing the letters "ASL." In fact, they’re the generation that truly foresaw the power of the Internet - while the previous one just saw it as a fad.
On the other hand, Xennials also had a childhood of outdoor playing and hanging out with friends. In fact, most Xennials will tell you that there's such thing as visiting your friend's home without telling him or her in advance (via messenger or text).
The Music Pirates
Every Xennial knows what Napster is. In fact, they had the power to accumulate a massive music library like no other generation had done before. Today's adoption of music streaming and MP3 player apps was initiated by the Xennials. And yet, they’re a generation that had a taste of analog-based music technology (like recording music from the radio, buying cassettes and carrying bulky Walkmans).
Pre-Facebook Era
The Xennials are the last generation who finished college without getting tangled with Facebook and other social media networks. For some, middle school, high school and college were already challenging, and the introduction of social media only made it worse!
Xennials gossiped about each other, took pictures without consent, and did a lot of inappropriate things. However, they’re the last generation to do stupid things without having to worry about images and recordings that would probably last forever. They’re also the first generation to have a taste of the consequences of "oversharing" on social media sites.
