How Millennials Will Change in 2018

It’s a new year which means America’s largest generation gets one year older.

And that’s good news for those who parent, manage and sell to these 83 million Millennials. 

Winston S. Churchill supposedly once observed that anyone who was not a liberal at 20 years of age had no heart, while anyone who was still a liberal at 40 had no head.

I am often asked if Millennials will change as they grow closer to 40. The simple answer: of course.

Millennials, born between 1981 and 2000, are sitting comfortably as the largest part of the workforce.

They have changed the way we work, opting for flexible work hours and less stuffy office spaces. Millennials have shifted the responsibility back on companies to prove their loyalty to their customers and their employees.

2017 marked the first year that Millennials made up the majority of the consumer market as well—despite making an average of 20% less than their parents did at their age according to the Young Invincibles.

However, they make their money count. Millennials have demanded transparency from brands, one-click purchasing and an experience not just a product. 

But they aren’t done yet. There is already a change taking place as we enter 2018. How well you embrace this change will determine how well you capture the new Millennial market.

1. Millennials will want different jobs

As Millennials creep towards 40, this generation will take on more jobs they didn’t go to college for. Their attention will be pulled between jobs that give them a lifestyle and those that give them a paycheck. As their expenses grow, the paycheck will become increasingly more important.

This also includes a revival of jobs in the trades and manufacturing space. Millennials want to know that their work matters-that won’t change. But the type of work they are willing to take on will certainly change as they begin to apply their passions and abilities to new and traditional industries alike.

2. Millennials will have more babies.

In 2015, over eighty percent of all new babies were born to Millennial moms.

Millennial women have smartly waited to start families.

A 2017 Pew Research report showed the mean age of their first child was 26, as opposed to Baby Boomers whose average age was 21. As the economy continues to grow and their student debt seems more manageable, more couples will start families in 2018 than ever before.

This will impact nearly every industry, leading to growth in the real estate market, a boom in luxury SUV’s and organic food delivery services.

3. Millennials will ditch media.

Or at least try. As Generation Z begins to enter the scene, Millennials are hitting digit-fatigue. From media fasts to cutting the cable box cord, older Millennials will swing back to local communities and less media in 2018.

This means more neighborhood barbecues and events featuring local artists, food and culture.

Millennials will continue to use media to stay abreast on what is happening in the world, but they will opt for more streamlined media experiences and less bulk.

The Millennial generation continues to change and grow as they grow up. Their purchasing habits will grow closer to Gen X but never mimic that of their parents. This generation will travel more but live closer to family.

What won’t change in 2017: The Millennial avoidance of the term “Millennial.” 

Gabrielle Bosché is known as America's Millennial expert. She is the bestselling author of 4 books on her generation and regularly speaks on how brands can attract and engage Millennials.