The boomers speak...

What do I think? Many things. Firstly (and this will sound terribly condescending) it's about time.

You, the latter edge of the baby boomers, have lived in the world you describe: The space age through perestroika.

The fact that you can try to make people happier, one person at a time, just didn't seem to occur to the boomers. Become a millionaire, run the corporation, then the world. And where's it gotten them? They're still working because they live to work, not the other way 'round. Sorta sad, really.

I'm proud to declare myself on the OTHER side of the dividing line (and it depends where it's drawn) Gen X starts between 1963 and 1966.

The Gen Xers experienced a very different world, where it was important not to be driving "your Father's Oldsmobile". Or a Mini-Van, for that matter. Life fast, die young.

But as perhaps, a tweener, one sandwiched between the views of the boomers and the Xers, have an interesting perspective. Me, and my peers, have discovered something that those before and those after seem to have missed.

Credit where credit is due, some of this is both a paraphrase of, and an agreement with, a short "rebuttal" by a good friend of mine, which she send along a few weeks ago:

From: Liz
Sent: Wednesday, October 11, 2006 10:52 AM
Subject: Gen X - Rebuttal to the Gen Y Doc

I thought you guys might get a laugh over some of my thoughts and feelings as a gen-xer.
So, it's in an email - not a fancy smacy PDF doc with pretty formatting like those Gen-Yer's. It's not that I'm low tech as a gen-xer - it's just that I've seen how expensive and time consuming technology can be - so I use it with care.

Gen-X is a perfect description of my generation. X is a mathematical identifier used to label unknowns or variables. That's us. We actually came out of the box (out of University) like the baby-boomers. For the first few years, in the corporate environment, we moved through the ranks like any boomer would have, and it was even based on our performance. Then something strange happened none of us were expecting. Our careers hit, not a glass ceiling, but a concrete one. Sitting on top of us was an army of baby boomers consuming all the positions in middle and upper management - the very stepping stones we needed to ever have a shot at the executive level. It is my opinion that a Gen-Xer is not defined by their age, but by circumstance.

Now some of us have come to that realization, some of us not. So, here's what many of us have done. We've become very involved in our families. It's why no one is allowed to spank or yell at their children anymore - in any generation - cause we're watching all of you. Any parents, in any generation, will now need to spend countless hours reviewing with their children the consequences to the world when they misbehave - and believe me - it takes hours. But, we have the time and think you should take the time too. So after you've put in your 80hr work week, you'll need to prepare a delicious and nutritious meal that the entire family can sit down to, review carefully the day your children have had and then taxi them to their many many organized activities so that you'll be able to make your mark in the world through them.

Now, we've been in our jobs, at the same level, for some time. We are experts at them. We don't need to put in overtime to perform. We know how to do our jobs in the most effective manner. We do them once and do them correctly the first time. We define execution excellence. Please don't tell us how to do our jobs - we know! And could someone please get rid of the term 'talent management'. Why can't the term be career management or job management?
I'm really interested to see what will become of the corporations as the boomers retire. Oh, did I mention that we'll be retiring early and probably the same time as the bulk of the boomers. But, I think it could all work out okay if you think of my generation as a generation of consultants. Remember executives, the best consultant you could ever hire - already works for you. We could help bridge the gap, as consultants, while you ramp up the Gen-Y. But I'm thinking you boomers should think about eliminating the mandatory age of retirement. I think you guys will need to keep working.

Signed, the unknown gen-xer, Liz.

And I'm good with that. What's important? Take the time to raise the kids well. Get involved. Mom's place is not In The Kitchen, and Dad doesn't get to come home and kick of his shoes and take a nap until dinner's ready. There's Ballet, and Softball and Soccer, and Drawing Class and Swimmming and all sorts of stuff. There's Dad And Kid Time, which is impromptu, extemperaneous, and hard to decline. And while the boomers are still trying to take over the world, and the Xers are still trying to "bust a perfect Smith grind in the half pipe", we're preparing the only lasting legacy we'll ever have.

You wanna talk "The Final Frontier" and the end of the Cold War? Go back and watch "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country", and just pretend Praxis was Chernobyl, and substitute "Russian" when you hear the word "Klingon". It's a very meaningful tale.

The US drives so much of what happens on this planet. I cannot tell you how sad I am to report that my "CNN Breaking News" flash on November 7th, (The day of the US MidTerm elections, in which George Wildebeast Bush) is set to be kicked in the kahoonies) was rushed to my inbasket to let me know that Brittany Spears had, in fact, filed for divorce. What the F---? THis is headline news? Bloody sad, that.

So, leave the celebrities to make their movies. Care about something that actually matters.

Whew...