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The American Dream Is Dead. Millennials Are OBLITERATED
The American Dream Is Dead. Millennials Are OBLITERATED
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0:00
Millennials are dying. Literally. And no one seems to care.
0:04
This generation, constantly criticized by Boomers and mocked by Gen Z, is quietly struggling to
0:09
survive. In 2019, Millennials aged 25 to 34 hit 128.8 deaths per 100,000… a number not seen since
0:18
the mid-90s. Then COVID pushed it past 180. Why is this generation facing a crisis no one
0:24
talks about? What made Millennials this way, and who - or what - shaped their struggles?
0:29
I’m Josh, and on today’s episode of The Infographics Show,
0:32
we’re exploring the psychology of a millennial. Whether people like it or not, Millennials are
0:36
shaping the world. With 72.1 million of them now outnumbering the Baby Boomers, their impact is
0:42
impossible to overlook. There’s some other good - and unexpected - data points about Millennials.
0:47
They’re the most independent generation in history. Not just in recent decades.
0:52
But in recorded history. 2025 data by Solsten shows that, contrary
0:57
to what Boomers - their parents - might think, Millennials rank extremely high in self-reliance
1:02
and autonomy. In other words, they don’t just go with the flow, they carve their own path.
1:07
Makes sense.
1:08
They’re the only generation left in the office who can use the computer without assistance.
1:13
But a lot of other things in their lives… aren’t going so well.
1:34
In 2022, nearly 16% of Millennials still lived with their parents. And at that time,
1:39
the youngest millennial was already 26 years old. Let’s say you’re a 32-year old millennial who’s
1:45
moved back home with your parents. Over the past year, you’ve sent out 500 job applications. You
1:50
started with positions in your field, then tried ones somewhat related… and now? You’re just
1:56
sending applications to anything that pays. And the worst part?
1:59
You’re a month away from seriously considering an OnlyFans account.
2:03
Your father doesn’t understand why you can’t just go introduce yourself to someone at the
2:07
company and say you’re looking for work. 62% of his generation agrees with that tactic,
2:12
compared to only 40% of Millennials. Boomers stayed at the same job an average of 10 to
2:17
15 years. Millennials? They’re lucky to get 3 to 5 years at any one company.
2:22
Living together also means bringing two very different psychologies under the same roof.
2:27
Especially when it comes to their actual psychological state. Millennials are much
2:31
more open about their emotions, their struggles, and are not against seeking
2:35
help. In a 2021 survey of 2,000 Americans, 45% of Millennials said they’re willing to seek therapy.
2:41
Baby Boomers? That number barely reached 8%. Associate Professor Felix Danbold of the UCL
3:01
School of Management found that these two generations express a lot more animosity
3:05
towards each other than anyone else. But while Boomers worry that Millennials’ values
3:09
will upend their way of life, Millennials are worried about something much more practical
3:14
They see older generations refusing to leave their jobs or sell their homes,
3:18
and it’s blocking Millennials from building their own future. The result is real, tangible damage
3:23
to their careers, finances, and opportunities. That difference in viewpoint might explain why
3:28
Millennials are so open to addressing their issues. They were raised with a Boomer “tough
3:33
it out” mentality that didn’t really help anyone in their family. So today, they try
3:38
to actually work on their mental health. They’re going to need a lot of work.
3:42
Because the era Millennials were raised in did serious damage to their psychology.
3:46
Imagine it’s 2003. You’re a Millennial just starting high school. Your body is changing,
3:51
and you’re feeling a little self-conscious about it. Pretty normal teenage stuff. But in the 2000s,
3:56
when most Millennials were just teens, something went wrong. Media, society, and even their own
4:01
families didn’t just notice their struggles They amplified them and made them
4:06
a thousand times worse. In the early 2000s, the “heroin
4:09
chic” look of the 1990s had fully taken hold in popular culture. In magazines and TV shows,
4:15
most women had basically become skin and bones. The consequences were real.
4:19
Rates of eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia skyrocketed. According to a
4:24
study by Zhao and Encinosa, between 1999-2000 and 2005-2006, eating disorder hospitalization
4:32
exploded. This was especially noticeable among Millennials, then in their preteen,
4:37
teen years, and early 20s. Hospitalizations increased 18% for people aged 12-19, 19% for
4:44
people 19-30, and 119% for those under 12. An entire generation was under attack.
4:51
Millennials grew up with some of the most distorted body images of all time. And that
4:55
hasn’t changed for many of them. In a 2020 survey tracking body confidence, the least
5:00
confident group of women were Millennials. Women aged 25-34 rated their body confidence 37 out of
5:07
100. That’s barely half of a failing grade. If you’re enjoying this deep dive into the
5:12
psyche of a generation that once thought avocado toast was an investment, make sure you like,
5:16
share, and subscribe. It makes our writers feel slightly more like adults, too.
5:20
If constantly fighting your body to stay skinny wasn’t exhausting enough,
5:23
Millennials would get their first taste of another mindset that would haunt them for life…
5:28
Hustle culture. Otherwise known as “the road to burnout”.
5:32
You’re a millennial in 2006, just about to graduate high school. Your parents,
5:36
your guidance counselors, the entire world is telling you college is not only important… but
5:41
necessary. You might even be the first generation in your family to get a university degree.
5:46
You start applying to the best schools you can get into… and then it happens. You get accepted to
5:51
your dream school. And then… you see the tuition. Your jaw drops. Maybe you can pick up some extra
5:58
work to cover it? Maybe not. Not so fast.
6:02
One study found that from 1988 to 2018, tuition at private colleges increased by 129% on average.
6:09
The more 'affordable' public school options? Those skyrocketed by a massive 213%
6:15
In the past, people could use the salary from a summer and/or part-time job to pay off their
6:20
tuition costs. That wasn’t really the case for most Millennials by the time they got to college.
6:25
Guess it’s time for a loan that will in no way, shape, or form,
6:29
affect your future. After all, that degree is going to get you a job making serious money,
6:34
right? Right?
6:35
Not for most Millennials. One study found that by age 35, 17% of Baby Boomers had followed a
6:41
path through college to a prestigious - and well-paying - professional career like law or
6:46
medicine. At age 35, only 7.3% of Millennials had done the same. That’s less than half.
6:52
So why aren’t Millennials making their way into high paying careers,
6:56
worsening their psychological load? Well, because the system has made
6:59
it almost impossible for them to do so. Creating the awful “hustle culture” that
7:04
quickly became “psychological burnout” for most. And why are Millennials burning out?
7:09
They entered the job market during one of the worst recessions in recent memory.
7:13
Jobs on the ground were scarce, entry-level wages were relatively low, and people were
7:17
grateful for anything they could get. Kellogg School of Management professor
7:21
of strategy Nicola Bianchi studied the conditions that produced the millennial
7:26
“grind” mindset. His work gives us an idea of just how hopeless the job market was for Millennials.
7:31
If you were entering the job market in 2010… good luck to you. The global economy
7:36
fell into a hole. Unemployment among your generation is around 12 to 19%,
7:40
according to the Pew Research Center. Even though you have a bachelor’s degree in economics you’re
7:46
paying thousands in loans every month, all you can get is a job in retail.
7:50
It pays the bills. Sort of.
7:52
After a couple of years, a position at a company that’s actually related to your field opens up
7:56
and boom… you get the job. Just grind for a few years and you can start moving up the ladder.
8:02
But soon you notice you’re not moving anywhere at all. And neither are most people around you. Why?
8:07
The recession and its aftereffects created a climate in which the Boomer generation became
8:11
more hesitant to retire from their senior positions. Moving up the ladder became
8:16
more difficult than ever. The result was a mix of hopelessness and endless grinding.
8:21
It’s the defining struggle of the Millennial generation.
8:24
It also makes Millennials more likely to change companies and careers. They are less optimistic
8:28
about the perks of company loyalty and corporate America in general. But they do work much longer
8:34
and harder to try to make ends meet, and make a better case for their own path forward.
8:38
So contrary to popular belief, Millennials aren’t lazy and blowing all their money. They’re
8:43
overworked and poorer than other generations. Worker productivity has increased rapidly from the
8:48
time of Boomers in the workforce to today. Between 1979 and 2021, average US worker productivity
8:54
increased 64.6%. But wages only went up 17.3%. Oh… and your 64-year-old co-worker at the office
9:03
is being paid way more than you. In fact, more than you’ll probably make any time soon. Between
9:09
1979 and 2018, the wage gap between workers over 55 and those under 35 increased by 61%.
9:17
That’s not just a U.S. phenomenon either. Bianchi’s study found that after Italy raised
9:22
its retirement age to 67 in 2011, things got worse for younger workers. Suddenly,
9:28
all the rewards were going to senior workers. Everyone else struggled just to get by.
9:33
From 1985 to 2019, the mean worker age in Italy increased by 19%. Over the same period, anyone
9:40
over 55 also started making bank. 56-year-olds saw a 33% increase in wages, while 65-year-olds saw a
9:47
53% increase in wages.
9:49
But those under 35? Their wages only went up by 14%. The difference in mean wages
9:55
between older and younger workers almost doubled, increasing by 96%.
10:00
No wonder Millennials are ending up completely burned out, and much sadder than their boomer
10:05
co-workers. Multiple studies have found that they are the most burned out generation of
10:09
all. One study found that 66% of Millennials report moderate to high burnout, compared to
10:14
39% of Baby Boomers. It gets worse.
10:18
Another survey of 1,000 US employees found that 77% of Millennials have experienced
10:24
burnout symptoms, compared to only 38% of Boomers. That wage gap coupled with no room for growth is
10:31
really doing a number on their mental state. Which is obvious in another survey question,
10:35
which found that only 47% of Millennials rated their personal well-being as above
10:40
average. 84% of Boomers did the same. We’d all be thrilled if our house
10:44
values had quintupled… while we also got the highest raises by far right before retiring.
10:50
Scientists aren’t just “guessing” that finances are the main cause
10:53
of Millennial burnout and stress either. The APA’s 2023 Stress in America survey
10:58
found that Millennials are drowning in financial stress. 67% of 18–34 year olds
11:04
and 63% of 35–44 year olds feel completely consumed by money worries. Boomers? Just 13%.
11:12
Money is crushing Millennials. And while they have gotten some
11:15
pretty weak raises, it doesn't translate to a better quality of life. Oxfam found
11:19
that workers aged 25 to 34 are earning about $4,200 less than they would have 30 years ago.
11:26
It’s partly a result of increasing inequality across the board in wealthy countries,
11:31
something that has been happening for a while now. And general corporate stagnation. Millennials are
11:36
better educated than previous generations…while being underpaid, overstressed, and in way more
11:42
debt. And they need way more money just to get by, since their share of the nation's wealth is vastly
11:47
lower than Boomers at the same age. Progress? Forget it.
11:51
But the Federal Reserve has another theory on why Millennials are spending less.
11:55
They have less money.
11:57
Millennials are not even getting the perks that were almost guaranteed years ago. From
12:01
2000 to 2021, the number of college grads who got employee-provided healthcare as a
12:06
perk dropped by 22%. It created a much more insecure generation. One that hesitates to
12:12
pursue major life goals… like starting a family. Millennials are also part of the “sandwich
12:17
generation”. That means many are caring for both young kids and aging parents.
12:22
It adds even more stress. Part of the reason they are
12:25
a “sandwich” generation is because they are waiting until they are older to have
12:28
kids - or to be able to afford to have kids. This is thanks to the very high cost of living
12:33
in most of the West. It takes people longer to become financially stable these days.
12:37
And by “longer” we mean “potentially their entire lives”.
12:41
Between 1980 and 2023, the median age for marriage for women has increased by 29%,
12:47
from 22 to 28.4. The median age for first birth for women went up by 23%, from 22.6 to 27.9.
12:56
Only 13% of Millennials opted for “early” marriage and parenthood. 27% of Baby Boomers did the same.
13:02
While this isn’t necessarily a bad thing for some Millennials, waiting for marriage and
13:06
kids isn’t a choice, but a financial necessity. Let’s say you’re a millennial woman, 32 years old,
13:12
looking to have a child. You know you’ll have to go back to work pretty soon after giving birth,
13:16
as your office doesn’t offer much maternity leave. It’s not like you
13:20
can easily hop into another job in this economy. So you try to figure out the cost of childcare
13:25
and start calling daycare centers in your area. You come up with an average based on
13:29
all the quotes you heard. $2,500 a month.
13:33
The cost of childcare has increased 220% since 1990. And it’s not even completely
13:38
reliable. The 2023 Kids Count report found that more than half of working parents have had to
13:44
get to work late or leave early in the last 3 months because of issues with childcare.
13:49
Even worse? 23% of those
13:51
parents report being fired for those issues. You look back over the budget sheets realizing
13:56
not only can you not afford childcare, you might end up losing your job because of it.
14:01
That’s not even taking into account all the new clothes, cribs, bottles, and diapers you’ll have
14:06
to purchase. Babycenter found that the first year of baby-related costs comes out to around
14:11
$20,400 for parents. That doesn’t include giving birth. Or daycare, for the most part.
14:16
The costs of raising a baby can eat up to 22% of a household income.
14:20
Care.com found that the average parent can give up 29% of their savings for childcare
14:26
costs. To put that into perspective, the US Department of Health and Human Services
14:30
recommends families should be spending no more than 7% of their household income on childcare.
14:35
Because of these extreme costs, half of moms have changed their family plans. A quarter of potential
14:41
moms have decided to have fewer children. Extreme costs have influenced every aspect of Millennial
14:46
thinking, even one as personal as giving birth. But while a big chunk of the Millennials are
14:51
struggling to get by, another segment is doing better than ever. That’s because inequality
14:56
has rapidly increased over the years, with the Gini index rising by 25% between 1968 and 2022.
15:04
That has created a huge gap in welfare within the Millennial generation. For example,
15:09
low-skilled service workers in the Baby Boomer generation could still look forward to a decent
15:14
life. 63% of them owned their own homes at age 35. In that same group among Millennials, only
15:20
42% own their own homes. The poorest Millennials – around 14% in total – actually have negative
15:27
net worth. Compared to only 8.7% of Boomers. This huge inequality gap creates fractured
15:33
communities and resentment, which often translates into crime and violence. Coupled with stricter
15:38
policing, this has led to a massive increase in incarceration rates among Millennials, compared
15:43
to previous generations at the same age…even though the crime rate in the US has gone down.
15:48
What does it all mean?
15:49
Millennials have lost their faith.
15:52
In 2014, the Pew Research Center found that only 50% of Millennials said they definitely believed
15:57
in God. 64% of Gen X and 70% of Baby Boomers said the same. In fact, 35% of Millennials aren’t
16:04
affiliated with any organized religion at all.
16:06
The scandals that came to light in the Catholic Church probably didn’t help in that regard.
16:10
All this has set some Millennials back and fueled
16:13
depression for others. But many, being fiercely independent, are just forging their own path.
16:19
Psychologists call it ‘milestone agnosticism.’
16:22
Many Millennials don’t believe that there’s a certain age by which they should have
16:25
gotten married, started a business, or finished education. People are getting married in their
16:29
40s. They’re going back to school in their 30s. Or completely changing career paths at multiple
16:34
points throughout their lives.
16:35
And this doesn’t scare them as much as it might scare other generations.
16:39
That might be because Millennials came of age during terrorist attacks,
16:42
international recessions, and one of the worst job markets in recent history. So
16:47
there’s nothing this world can throw at them that they haven’t seen some form of.
16:51
But it could also be because
16:52
according to the same Solsten data, Millennials also scored the highest of any generation on the
16:57
trait labeled as “actions”. Solsten uses that to assess a person’s openness to new experiences.
17:03
Which will serve Millennials
17:04
well when they have to deal with the future novel reality of never being able to retire.
17:09
The silver lining is that, according to a 2015 study by American University,
17:14
speaking about mental health has been normalized in the millennial
17:17
generation. Since they grew up hearing about anxiety, depression, and eating disorders,
17:22
they’re much more willing to talk about their problems to their friends or with a therapist.
17:26
Let’s face it, it’s something they’ll need. And if you want to see how Millennials fit
17:30
into the bigger picture - and how every generation got shaped differently - check
17:34
out “Every Generation Explained in 10 Minutes.” Or click on this video instead.
