Generation Hand-Off

The end-times crowd is fond of the clunky acronym — TEOTWAWKI — but, when you think about it, every single instant is The end of the world as we know it. Per Heraclitus roughly 500 B.C., “no man steps into the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” The river of time as we know it ends with each next step. It’s this . . then this . . and now . . . . 

And so it is with each rolling generation. Our next Member Monday (11/28) session will focus on the generation hand-off, from the Boomers (and before) to the GenXers to the Millennial GenYers (and later). This pass-the-torch-to-a-new-generation discussion will neither sentimentalize the past nor prejudge the future.

Let’s start off with this blinding insight: people are people. What we learned some years ago in our book discussion of the The Fourth Turning (note full introduction to that discussion, attached below) is that the real lesson of history is generation archetypes arrive in a fixed pattern as life phases intersect with events and react to the generation(s) which spawned it. Generations, even neighboring generations, thus have markedly different attitudes, behaviors, and self-identity. History creates generations, just as generations create history.

May our focus be on what each generation can hope to learn from the other(s). Our club is the ideal discussion container: first, every generation archetype is represented; second, there is profound  respect among members, no matter their respective life stage. The GenYers recognize the accomplishments of the Boomers (and earlier) while the latter are often in awe of the energy, talent, and incredible potential of the former.

Member Aaron Perry has put much thought into the challenges and opportunities facing the so-called Millennials. By exploring the knowledge and wisdom from prior generations, he has captured his own perspective and vision for the future in his forthcoming book “Y On Earth” (book summary attached below). Let’s combine his insights with those of other members as we triangulate on the truth about how we got here and where we're going.