Over the past month I've been making a series of client presentations featuring our latest Gen Y research findings. In addition to discussing the findings from our most recent study, I have also been giving a re-cap of ten trends we first spotted 12 to 18 months ago and what has transpired since as well as preview of ten trends we're keeping an eye on now. The objective in this is twofold: first, give our clients a macro and micro level view of top lifestyle and media trends as it specifically relates to their business. The second objective is essentially to show how our finger (or whole hand for that matter) is truly on the pulse of the market. Having a panel of 22,000+ tweens, teens and college students and running multiple communications with segments of the panel continuously means at the end of the day, we don't have to guess, toss up a coin, or offer some bullshit prediction on what's really going on in the marketplace. Case in point. For the past year and half we've discussed the social impact the older segment of Gen Y (college students and the most recent college grads) will have in the job marketplace. As I've mentioned several times before, Gen Y is ultra casual, and sometimes this general persona can be perceived as being rude or trite. Along with their casual behavior and attitude, there is a feeling among many that working to live instead of living to work is the way to go. Why not leave at 2:00 on your first week on a new job to catch a ballgame. Why not demand an extra two (not one, but two) weeks of vacation a year? Why not ask for a telecommuting day? Why not change jobs when you feel the good vibes are no longer there, and that could be every six months, yikes. Much to my delight, today's LA Times goes into a lot of same issues you've been hearing from us over the past year. Be prepared, these are your new interns and hires.
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