How the Great Recession of 2008, COVID-19 Pandemic, and Caregiving Have Shaped Gen X and Millennial Lives
Amanda Miller Littlejohn
Author:The Rest Revolution ?? | I write about midlife mental health & ambition ?? | Executive coaching high achievers to find purpose, beat burnout, make room for what matters | ?? Package Your Genius??Brand Strategist
Issue 04 | Midlife Reflection ???
I've been talking a lot about how I'm personally looking back to the past to find inspiration for the future.
It turns out, I'm not alone.
Many fellow members of my generation are in a deep period of reflection. I caught up with a handful of them and interviewed them for my latest column for Forbes:
For many millennial and Gen X professionals, the Great Recession of 2008 and more recently the COVID-19 pandemic have been particularly formative, shaping their outlook and approach to work.
Now entering midlife as caregivers to children and elder parents, these professionals are reevaluating their goals and looking to the past to find inspiration for the future.
Dr. Reisha Moxley is a psychologist who studies high-achievers and counts a number of Gen X and millennial high-achievers among her current and past clients. She says many midlife professionals who survived the Great Recession of 2008 were at a critical developmental stage and are now after the COVID-19 pandemic are naturally entering a phase of reevaluation and reflection.
“Millennials especially were at a pivotal point in their career, educational, and personal development - right at the crux of the prefrontal cortex’s development - as the Great Recession hit,” she said. “I do believe many of us internalized the economic downturn right as we lost the ‘I can be and do anything’ phase.”
Now having repeatedly weathered an uncertain job market and economy, Moxley says midlife professionals are healing old wounds and revisiting abandoned dreams - using them both as a catalyst for growth.
“Following the trail that leads back to your ‘old self’ is a journey worth pursuit as it may be signaling to you that you are ready to heal from the covered wounds of your past,” Moxley said.
?? FORBES - How the Great Recession, Pandemic, and Caregiving Shaped Gen X and Millennial Lives ?? Read the rest of the article
? Realigning Question of the Week
?? WHAT IF ... What fell was no longer meant to stand? What you lost was not meant to stay? What if something breaking is your OPENING to reimagine how things could be? What if this is your chance to build what should be NOW?
?? Idea to Consider
?? Ideas for Action - Make a List of Past "Failures" That All Worked Out
One of my top Clifton Strengthsfinder Strengths is context. I love looking back to the past to get confirmation (or at least comfort) that even when I thought things were falling apart, in reality, they were coming together for my good.
领英推荐
Make a list of past failures that worked out for you - big changes that set you up or put you in place for something you couldn't imagine your current life without.
?? Recommended Listening
D'Angelo - Voodoo (2000)
I can't believe I didn't list this for my throwback playlist last week. I added it to my listening rotation last weekend and it did the trick!
?? Recommended Learning
?? NEXT WEEK ?? - Story Thrifting: Sustainable Storytelling for Thought Leaders
On Thursday, June 20th at noon, I'm hosting my first online workshop in two years - have you registered yet?
In Story Thrifting: Sustainable Storytelling for Thought Leaders, I'm planning to share:
If at any point in the past, you've created resonant content - like a blog, a book, a podcast, YouTube channel, newsletter, a live stream series, or even a conference - you've got archives we can mine.
Some things just get better with — and stand the test of — time.
Let’s sift through your best vintage ideas and give them new life using my content strategy and original frameworks.
The Workshop is in Less Than a Week >> Register here.
Talk to me ????
Do you have a past failure that ended up serving you for good?
What fell apart only to later come together even better?
Share some inspiration for the rest of us.