I and most of the people in my circles are Generation Wise… I, like many of my peers enjoy being analysed by Baby Boomers and Gen X’s as if there is some great code to crack. To me, the general gist of a generation is a cocktail of two things –people and their environment.

Firstly lets sum up the characteristics of the people that make up Gen Y. The biggest characteristic is that they are young. They are un-educated in the ways of the world, brash, eager to learn and experience, and exposed to peer pressures and social obligations.

The rest of the generational stereotype is dictated by the environment. The difference in technology available to the generation and the current political climate shapes how they behave. For example, if you have peer pressure and social obligation at high school when you’re a kid, then coupling that with Facebook or MySpace and a whole lot of time is like throwing oil on the fire.

Now when you take these characteristics and apply them to the environment, it is really quite simple to understand Generation Y. An eagerness to learn when you were a kid in the 1930’s was quenched through reading books and asking family members… Now we have Google, which provides mostly accurate results instantly… and they wonder why we’re impatient?!? Therefore theory and intellect are easy and for the most part we can get it whenever we need it, but our memories are absolutely shot because we have little need to commit things to it. My total dependence on technology has removed my thought process so much so that when I drive somewhere beyond my norm I am completely dependent on the GPS in my car. So much so that sometimes when I drive out of work to go somewhere and the tracking signal hasn’t picked up yet I drive completely in the wrong direction. People say, ‘I would be lost without my GPS’ – I think I’d start remembering where the hell I was going!

This is my observation of our generation. We are no different to how any other generation has been created, however we were brought up with loads of technology and in somewhat peaceful circumstances. We probably need to consider generational gaps much closer now as the technology changes so quickly and this is truly what affects the behavior of the generation.

With this in mind, how does an impatient, yet incredibly fast paced generation find fulfillment in the workplace? We are labeled as being selfish and arrogant, un-loyal and quick to jump ship for more money. I don’t believe that this is entirely true – whilst many of us are, many of us aren’t and often the reason behind changing jobs is due to boredom in a role.

Consequently, how can we achieve long term career success if we can’t tolerate the same job for a decent amount of time? Is this patience? I hope not, because I lack that virtue. This is what I will explore through the Generation Why Not series.