Millennials and the Military

Millennials get slammed for being lazy and entitled, but we know better. We saw our older siblings graduating from college under staggering debt before we even graduated from high school. We’ve watched family members struggle to find employment in a crappy job market. We aren’t lazy — we’re looking for a life plan that works.

Some of us have found an answer that defies those millennial stereotypes. We’re flocking to enlist in the military.

So, What’s the Sitch?

It’s only natural for a generation brought up on Kim Possible to care about world events. Do we continue to care even though we’re stereotyped into an obnoxious category? Of course we do!

We care so much that nearly 21% of the military is between 26 and 30 and 40% is under 25. That’s right, 61% of the total military force is made up of millennials. Slowly, we’re working to save the world in our own way.

Our supposed sense of self-absorption with technology is something bigger and better than our critics imagine. Technology has taught us power, not entitlement. We’re more interested in domestic and foreign policy than generations before us because we’ve been embroiled in political debates online since we were old enough to hold our phones.

Taking our sense of activism to the military is a logical next step — it’s a shame we can’t do it with Rufus 3000 as a companion.

What Do We Want?

Change. When do we want it? Now!

We’ve seen what doesn’t work, so we want to try something new. The military might be about as old school as it gets, but the military gives us a sense of purpose instead of replicating the flailing and job insecurity we’ve seen in our elders.

A traditional job isn’t the only — or even the best — option anymore. Millennials are the driving force behind flexible work schedules and the rise in freelancing, and that’s a good thing.

We’ve decided our happiness is more important than our finances. How dare we put our happiness first! (Go team!) So maybe we do want it all, and maybe we feel like we deserve it all, but we’re willing to work to get it.

We refuse to take the same path our grandparents and parents took because the world isn’t the same as it was 40 to 50 years ago, or even 20 to 30 years ago.

Whereas our parents took big risks that occasionally paid off to achieve their dreams, we’re looking for stable choices to increase our quality of life. So if you want to question why the military provides a better quality of life than working in the civilian workforce, maybe you should consider it a reflection of an entire generation growing up during a recession.

We aren’t lazy, we’re cautious!

OK, We Want Money Too

Change is important, but we also don’t want to struggle for financial independence or security. The military is an easy out for us that provides a package we want: travel, job security and a future.

The GI Bill is nothing to sneeze at when so many of our peers can’t pay the rent because they’re drowning in student loan debt. Plus, military vets get the added benefit of colleges with additional flexibility. We can have the most secure job in the country, while taking online classes to earn a college degree paid for by the government.

Entitled? Nah, we’re brilliant.

Millennials are enlisting for all the right reasons. We want to be happy and we want to be involved in the world around us. We’ve been thrown into a world with an overall weak economy, poor job market and polarized politics.

The world sees us walking around with our phones in our hands and wearables on our sleeves, but in reality we’re more in tune with the world’s pulse than any generation before us.

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