Ahhhh… to have a second home in Turks and Caicos, to drive a bleach-white Camero, to vacation more often than not and to be able to afford a fresh pair of socks each day would be a cushy life. However, to quote Plano’s Small Business Person of the Year Kasey Hollon (along with her hubbs Bill) of PASCO, “There’s no luggage rack on a hearse.”
And this is why I am more-than-slightly enamored with millennials. Working for a company with a social cause is more important to them than making $1 more an hour. Staying true to themselves ranks higher than shifting their morals and values to fit in with the corporate world. They desire quality of life more than quantity of goods. Experience (even if it’s just to showcase an Instagram post more glorious than the one the night before) ranks higher than toting a Neimans’ bag.
Sure, some kids suffer through college studying something in which they have very little interest in thanks to parental pressures. Hopefully they move on to something which inspires them. Or maybe they continue to play the game either learning to love or just learning to cope. It literally makes me cringe to hear, “I didn’t have much of a choice. Everyone in my family is expected to be a doctor or a lawyer.” Who will they be pleasing when their parents have passed away?
I know, I know… it’s a fine line. Some of us would have continued to float down the river of life if no one had ever pushed us off the diving board.
Sir Elton John severely disappointed his flight-lieutenant father when he chose the musical path. Who would have rocked (with such whimsy) Bernie Taupin’s tunes had Elton become a banker? His path was not Easy Street (even attempting suicide when trying to live out a lie), but that’s what makes for a great story, an interesting journey and a life worth living. Check out his story on the podcast “Imagined Life from Wondry”.
Whether our millenials choose college, a trade school, the military or just the School of Hard Knocks, most of them will eventually find their way and make us proud.
I must admit, when our son announced last summer he was jumping majors from entrepreneurship (gosh darn it) to Marine Biology (and no, he’s not looking to find Nemo), the step back created for me a short-lived irregular heartbeat. However, I quickly felt relief, knowing that I wasn’t going to be a grandmother in the next nine months. It’s his life, after all, not mine.
Ahhh…. Young adults and particularly high school seniors. They are indeed my favorite subjects. Just beginning their journey. And here’s the inspiration behind this blog: Eli, who will be headed to Tulane in the fall. His field of study? “Business, for now, anyway,” he told me. And Mom liked that answer, giving her son permission to change his mind (and even wrote a blog about the less-than-perfect path). She herself owns and operates a thriving business, where philanthropic efforts are just as important as the paperwork.
Maybe Eli will never have to wear the same pair of socks twice or maybe he’ll create a future where he gives more than he takes and embraces the small things in life, all while his pinky toe peeks out of his well-worn Toms (get a little, give a little).
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