10 Legit Life Lessons for Baby Boomers from a Millennial

Baby Boomers made us, so I guess you could say they taught us a few of these lessons. Now it’s time to remind them of why Millennials do what they do.

1. We clean our tables when we dine out.
   Yes, there are people who are paid to clean up our messes when we leave a restaurant, but Millennials believe in lending a hand to everyone. Keep an eye on Millennials when they’re about to leave their tables. We grab up all the trash and stack our dishes to make it super easy on the employees when it’s time to clean up.
   Fun Fact: We do the same thing with our hotel rooms. We pick up all the trash, strip the beds, and pile up our towels in one corner to make it easier on housekeeping.
2. We say “I love you” at every chance to our friends and family.
   It doesn’t matter if we’re hugging goodbye after our outing, sending a good-night text, or hanging up the phone—Millennials are very vocal when it comes to loving their friends and family. We don’t ever want to miss an opportunity to say “I love you” because it could be the last time we ever hear it back.
3. We understand the need to unplug.
   While we love technology and the advances it’s afforded us, we know the toll it can take on our overall well-being. So we choose to unplug when necessary. For example, we will unplug on a self-care day, which means we will not answer texts, emails, or social media notifications all day. We do this more often than you think.
4. We take mental health days.
   Last year, I took a mental health day, so I had an automated email that said: “Hi there! I'm taking a mental health day to recharge, spend time looking at art, and give my little brain a break. I will reply to emails tomorrow. Thank you!”
   Here are the responses I received from Baby Boomers:
   “OK…are you okay?”
   “Why, what’s wrong?”
   “Oh no. Hope everything is all right!”
   Um. I took a mental health day so I would be “okay.” It’s called being proactive. I’ve learned that pushing myself too hard results in nothing but a bad attitude, fatigue, and low-quality work. It’s about burnout prevention, my friends. It doesn’t mean I’m wearing a straitjacket inside a padded room.
5. We are obsessed with donating our money and time.
   Despite having less money than Gen X and Baby Boomers, Millennials give more time and goods than any other generation. In fact, 84% of Millennials give to charitable organizations. Why? Because we believe in helping everyone. We have a very serious desire to give as much time and money as we are able to, even if it strains our budget. Plus, with the ease of online giving, it feels . . . wrong . . . not to give. My favorite organization to donate to is The Dragonfly Home, a nonprofit in Oklahoma that helps human trafficking victims and survivors.
6. We overtip our waiters.
   “Why do we give only 10% to God but 15 to 20% to waiters? I won’t tip more than I give to God.” —Actual thing a Baby Boomer said to my face
   Well. Here’s the deal: The Bible says that 10% belongs to God. Period. So I already know that money belongs to Him. Then, I can give above that! I can give to faith promise, I can give love offerings to those in need, and I can donate money to other things such as my Sunday school or the building fund. In reality, I’m not giving only 10% to God. I’m giving way beyond that.
   So what about waiters and waitresses? Should I give only 10%? No. I give way above what’s required. Why, if no one is forcing me? No one is forcing me to give more to God and His people, right? Same thing. I choose to give more because I want to. I want to help my church with their needs, and I want to help my waiters and waitresses with their needs. Also, you don’t know what that person is going through; your extra tip could bring about tears of joy.
7. We constantly educate ourselves and pore over self-help books.
   Come to my office/library, and there’s a chance I’ll have a self-help book for anything you want. I love to better myself! In fact, I’m kind of obsessed with it. My least favorite word in the dictionary is “content.” I don’t want to be content. I want to live a purposeful life that leads to a legacy. How can I do that if I’m not constantly learning or making clear attempts to better myself? Pay attention to how Millennials are using “those dern smartphones!” I guarantee you, if you were to look a little closer, you’d see we’re reading in-depth articles, looking up a word in our dictionary app because we didn’t know the definition, or swiping the page on our Kindle app in a self-help book on relationship building.
8. We are super open about discussing the hard things.
   In past generations, from what I understand from my parents and my friends’ parents, you just didn’t talk about certain things. They were taboo, depending on how you were raised. For example, talking about depression in front of people? Uhhh. Y’all best not do that! Stuff those feelings down in there and ignore ’em. But Millennials strive to be open about depression, anxiety, and physical ailments because we know our candor could potentially help another person. (Are you starting to see a pattern?) If I’m open about grief, for example, I can show another grieving friend that it’s normal to burst into tears out of nowhere. I can comfort her and tell her, “It’s okay to cry. I love you.”
9. We document everything so we never miss a moment.
   Millennials are often reminded, “All you do is take photos and never, ever print them.” Funny. Baby Boomers printed every single photograph, stuffed them in photo albums, and shoved them in the back of the closet, rarely to be seen again. Both generations are guilty. Millennials document everything because we cannot bear to know we missed out on something incredible. Like every generation before us, we have dealt with the loss of life. Being able to look back at photos of that person with the click of a button is an unbelievably calming experience. We can relive our moments with that loved one instantly. When I’m missing a girl named Lauren, I can hop over to her Instagram and see her again. (And yes, I have printed photos of her too.)
10. We invest into memories, not material things.
    You all have no doubt seen the articles: “Why Don’t Millennials Buy Diamonds?” and “Have Millennials Killed Department Stores?” Erm. We just don’t want stuff like that. We want to spend our money on memories and adventures and places. The best money I’ve ever spent has been on excursions to cool places with my friends or family. I’m a sucker for free or budget-friendly stuff too, such as a Readathon (I hosted one at my house with snacks, coffee, and hot chocolate, and my friends and I read books into the night) or simply driving into the country to hang out with some horses. Those moments are more meaningful to us than diamonds.

So I want to know: Do you agree or disagree? What did I get wrong or leave out? Let me know!

An expert editor, best-selling author, and book marketer, Shayla Raquel works one-on-one with authors and business owners every day. A lifelong lover of books, she has edited over 400 books and has launched several Amazon best sellers for her clients.

Her award-winning blog teaches new and established authors how to write, publish, and market their books.

She is the author of the Pre-Publishing Checklist, The Rotting (in Shivers in the Night), The Suicide Tree, and The 10 Commandments of Author Branding. In her not-so-free time, she acts as organizer for the Yukon Writers’ Society, volunteers at the Oklahoma County Jail, and obsesses over squirrels. She lives in Oklahoma with her dogs, Chanel, Wednesday, and Baker.