Millenials lack basic life skills

[unfilteredJW]

I wonder if older people way back then thought something along the lines of how young ones have no idea how to wrestle with a bear? I'm obviously over exaggerating with a dumb example, but I think it's just natural that some very useful skills to have way back then become less useful over time.

They did. There's a quote from Socrates that's relevant.

[Swizzington]

Being a boy scout (and whatever the girl version is called) should become compulsory. Like pseudo-military service. But for kids. To learn how to live.

It's genius!

[Draconian7972]

I don't understand all this hating on millennials. They are the new whipping boy. Used to be people hated on baby boomers when they were young. Baby boomers were the original "Me" generation, and are the ones likely to bankrupt America with their health care costs. Then people hated on Generation X for being jaded.

How long until people start hating on Generation Z?

[Forgettable]

Practical skills such as:

Tying a knot
Fishing
Map reading
Starting a fire

Are you joking? Are we back to the caveman days? These are not required skills these days.

Although I'm a millennial and I know how to do all of those things because I enjoy camping, I'm not about to go all old fogey and say "Kids these days don't know nothin'!"

[Runenwächter]

Dont be stupid folks and make this about some camping skills. You are missing the whole argument otherwise.

If you think that because "there is an app for that" or "i know which button to push on the fully automated machine" learning the manual skills yourself is obsolete you set yourself up for failure in life. I dont mean that philosophically, like you miss out on some important deeper meaning in the seemingly meanial task. There is that too but thats a matter for another discussion altogether.

Every advanced skill builds on a basic skill and if you dont incorporate the basic skills into your toolset but replace their repeated practice with just "looking it up on google if the need arises", you have no foundation to build skills that are valuable and MARKETABLE in todays world. The difference between someone who just looks shit up if the need arises and someone who could basically do it in their sleep form practice is that the later has a much easier time applying that skill to other fields, alternate the method for individual circumstance or develop derviative methods.

Essentially it is the difference between borrowing and owning the knowledge / skill. You are MAD to believe that the advantage of OWNERSHIP is a thing of the past.

[Logwyn]

A sheepshank is a crappy knot and a bad example. So over half don't wear shoes that need to be tied? Tying a shoe is a knot.

I don't get how using waze or google maps to navigate isn't having a life skill.... I guess being able to navigate from the stars got thrown out of the over 55 crowd with paper maps.

[KrazyK923]

Shitting on millennials is so 2016.

Its almost like when the media only shows spoiled brats, idiots think we're all like that. When its probably less-than-half ONLY upper-middle/upper class millennials who are like this.

Most of us are fine.

Also...why the fuck would most of us NEED to know how to tie a knot like that, or start a fire from scratch? We don't live in prehistoric times. Those are not really basic life skills. Those are wilderness survival skills.

Actual basic life skills are:

Learning to cook
Learning to do Laundry.
Learning how to essentially lobby for themselves (vs having a parent do it)
Learning how to plan and pack for a trip
Learning how to Drive/Pumping Gas
Learning how to do your taxes.
Learning basic homeownership things, like property taxes, insurance, ect.
Learning basic self-defense.
Learning how to tie a tie.

[Concequence]

You know I learned a lot of shit out of school that I never learned in school. I sort of feel like Highschool was dumb. It felt like an abusive place where they shit on you every day, and you learn nearly nothing. College was a place I learned my way... and it worked. and Im nearly 40. so...

I wish in my time, and in current schools they would teach real skills. Like, spend an hour every day on a current political figure, especially on the ones who you'd be voting for in your state. Go over their history, their political stances and how they have voted historically. That'd be useful. Especially taking a week or so to go over how the teacher would obtain such a history so students could do the same after their schooling.

Next, going over how to invest money. And specifically making this a long term course, like from Middle School to Graduation. Allow students to research investments, and allow them to go through the entire process of purchasing and managing their stock portfolio, so they would in fact leave school with a working stock portfolio. And go over how their portfolio earned over their schooling and how to improve their research of companies.

Another course on home management/sales, how to begin the process, what House Taxes are like, what paying utilities like Public Water, and how to get permits to build and dig on your own property. There could be a week in there about HUD and purchasing a building with a HUD loan, how to fill out a 50059 form, and how to process your HAP at the end of the month, and how to market and rent your units.

This is just the top #3 I can think of which I honestly would have been better off knowing about. (Also that everyone gets an entry position... and you will never get out of school right into your job of choice, you work from the Support position answering phones, make connections in higher departments doing what you want to be doing, make friends with them, learn what they do, help out when you can, Once you know people, getting positions in the "rock star" jobs becomes more of a reality, assuming you want to work for a company instead of self employment)

[endersblade]

I can't figure out if I'm considered a Millennial or not. I was born in 1981. Some sites say 1981, some say 1982. I'd really rather not be.

And I'm sort of curious what counts as life skills now. I can balance a checkbook, not something people do anymore, but I can also use a smart phone. I can read a paper map, which nobody does anymore, and I can also use google maps. I can ask people for directions, which people don't do anymore, but I can also ask my phone or google it.

So what life skills exactly are millennials lacking in? Oh, and I can also spell Millennial right, even without having to use error correction or spell check.

[Concequence]

I mean they could teach an entire class these days on how to spot lies in the news. How to research news, and find reputable sources. How to prove those sources are reputable. That speaks to the situation we all live in.

- - - Updated - - -

And I'm sort of curious what counts as life skills now. I can balance a checkbook, not something people do anymore, but I can also use a smart phone. I can read a paper map, which nobody does anymore, and I can also use google maps. I can ask people for directions, which people don't do anymore, but I can also ask my phone or google it.

Im sure some of that is what the people in this post mean. However I know plenty of Baby Boomers who can do none of those things. So... there is that. I can change a tire. I can change my breaks and do my oil, never had a class in school on that shit, but I can do it. Why? My dad showed me how, and I helped him many times on his own vehicles.

Now-a-days, balancing a checkbook is outdated, Budgeting and paying "ahead" on your budget is how you really get yourself in a good place. Maps are obsolete, I can use them, I prefer Google Maps, My paper map cant tell me what the traffic is like on Route A, B and C, and give me estimated times on those routes.

[Flaks]

I think they're referring to PAPER maps.

As someone who grew up using paper maps I can tell you that if you aren't mentally handicapped and able to comprehend how the local area you're visiting is oriented, you can grasp paper maps. And that a gps without this basic understanding is a bitch to use since a lot of times if you need gps it can't draw out direct navigation to certain places. So either way you're useless without such basic comprehension skills.

[Tyrianth]

Shitting on millennials is so 2016.

Its almost like when the media only shows spoiled brats, idiots think we're all like that. When its probably less-than-half ONLY upper-middle/upper class millennials who are like this.

Most of us are fine.

Also...why the fuck would most of us NEED to know how to tie a knot like that, or start a fire from scratch? We don't live in prehistoric times. Those are not really basic life skills. Those are wilderness survival skills.

Actual basic life skills are:

Learning to cook
Learning to do Laundry.
Learning how to essentially lobby for themselves (vs having a parent do it)
Learning how to plan and pack for a trip
Learning how to Drive/Pumping Gas
Learning how to do your taxes.
Learning basic homeownership things, like property taxes, insurance, ect.
Learning basic self-defense.
Learning how to tie a tie.

That's a good list. I would also add using a computer. Computers are everywhere in our modern world and knowing how to actually use them is an extremely useful skill to have. 26% of adults can't use a computer, and 14% of adults who can use them can only do something as simple as deleting an email.

https://www.nngroup.com/articles/computer-skill-levels/

[Powerogue]

I remember being taught how to write in a checkbook like it'd be the most critical skill in the world.

I have written one check since then. Debit cards are the best.

Same goes for library research we had to do. If we could add one class to the common education standards I'd say "finding accurate information on the internet" because of the sheer amount of other things that would save teaching.

[Molis]

Actual basic life skills are:

Learning to cook
Learning to do Laundry.
Learning how to essentially lobby for themselves (vs having a parent do it)
Learning how to plan and pack for a trip
Learning how to Drive/Pumping Gas
Learning how to do your taxes.
Learning basic homeownership things, like property taxes, insurance, ect.
Learning basic self-defense.
Learning how to tie a tie.

My Sister in Law knows how to do about 3 of those things. I am sure she will be fine when and if she ever moves out.

[KrazyK923]

My Sister in Law knows how to do about 3 of those things. I am sure she will be fine when and if she ever moves out.

Good thing about the [current year] is that you can learn most of that on the internet.

[Molis]

Forget the tire or knot.

I think the real question here is can a Millennial survive without the internet?

[Tanro]

Sorry we don't have time to learn. We work 2 jobs 80 hours a week and barely make ends meet. We have so much debt to pay. Plus the older generations raised us.

All thanks to that older generation that completly and totally fucked the economy.

[Valech]

The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise. Children are now tyrants, not the servants of their households. They no longer rise when elders enter the room. They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers.

[Yvaelle]

I feel the same.

You have a modern oracle of Delphi in your damn pocket. You can learn how to do anything you bloody want.

On topic: Pretty sure what are considered basic life skills will change over a period of time no matter how much you pine for the 50s.

^ This.

This is how a millennial, who has never had to build a fire in the wilderness, builds a fire:

"Siri, I'm cold and lost in the forest, how do I build a fire?"
"Step 1: Buy a Galaxy Note 7. Hah. Hah. Just kidding, my phone-based humor module is still in beta. Rate my joke please on a scale of 1 to 10"
"Siri, I'm serious, it's cold out"
"It's cool, I was just biding time while the youtube How To Build A Fire video buffered, here you go"
*plays youtube video*
*promptly forgets how to do it after it's done, because it's not useful information every other day, either before or after in this millennials life*

The past generations needed to know how to knit their own pyjamas and milk their own cows and churn their own butter - or whatever the hell people did before computers. Millennials need to know how to navigate geopolitical discussions in youtube comment sections, how to predict technology trends so we can select careers that won't become fully automated in the next decade, and how to navigate all the apps on their phones they are expected to know how to use, to function efficiently in modern life.

[unfilteredJW]

*promptly forgets how to do it after it's done, because it's not useful information every other day, either before or after in this millennials life*

My brain has adapted I think rather well to it's new role as processor rather than a memory storage device.

The kids coming after me/us even more so.