Our childhood and our legacy
Pavan Bhatia
Founder GenWE.today and Co-Founder CareerGPS.me Board member and Board observer.
We grew up in a different world. A simpler and yet tough world….
A world where making homemade toys was as much fun as playing with them.
A world where our iPhone was 2 cans joined by a long string.
A world where Siri and Alexa were human beings.
A world where PlayStation 1 was the tree in the park and Playstation2 was football on the streets.?With kids of various shapes, sizes, colors and gender.
A world where we inherited clothes and books. It wasn’t called “pre-loved”. It was simply second hand.
A world where the cassette would get stuck and we used a pencil to spool it back to listen to our favorite song.
A world where, we added water to the ketchup to make it last longer.
It was special because it taught us street smartness, value for money, self-management, doing more with less and relationship skills to navigate situations.
The younger generation is growing up differently?in a different world … a tougher more judgmental and unforgiving world.
They are growing up in a world, where social media is the biggest contradiction – they are connected with many and connected with very few outside their bubble.
A world where looking down at phones is more common than looking into the other person’s eyes and listening.
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A world of targeted marketing and echo chambers that puts pressure to get the latest brands, gizmos etc.?
A world where looking good has become paramount and doing good a tick in the box for college admissions.
A world where they get pressured to focus on academics and building their resume for college.
A world where answers are easy to find but questions difficult to formulate.
These may sound like strong words. It is NOT a criticism of the younger generation. It’s a reflection on how we have brought them up. There are 2 legacies we are leaving behind –
Legacy #1 - We are responsible for the younger generation growing up social bubbles, with high pressure to constantly compete to get the best grades, isolated, over protected and I dare say spoilt.
Legacy # 2 - We are also responsible for leaving a legacy of a divided?world. A world where bias and discrimination is common.
No wonder we see issues of emotional wellbeing in the younger generation.
We cannot undo what we started. But its never to late to take steps to leave a better legacy.
GenWE, is a passion project to leave a better legacy. We pair teenagers from different backgrounds (country, culture, socio-economic).to have real conversations, pause judgement, listen, build relationships without the need to look good or fit in. It’s about connecting 1:1 with someone different facing similar pressures. And it’s about learning some real-world leadership skills, dealing with pressure through reflection and sessions with experts.
Our mission at GenWE is to bring the world closer by enabling this super smart generation to be a collective of change with every pair, every conversation.
Its not about turning back the clock… its about making it turn forward better.
Senior Vice President - Human Resources, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia at InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG?)
1 年Very insightful Pavan! And beautifully written. Wish GenWE the very best!
You were right, can so relate! And yes, it’s totally about how (gen)WE move forward, better!
HR Consultant | HR Leader | Business HR |
2 年Totally resonate with what you have written….and it’s exactly the scenario today. I believe strongly in the saying “ Disconnect to Connect” …..Which is disconnecting with the gadgets and screens for not just kids but also adults so we can connect with each other better. Wonderful initiative- GenWe ! Very hopeful that it could build better relationships and kids can understand the importance of connecting with each other 1:1 ??
I help businesses with Innovation, Strategy, New business models, to create sustainable growth
2 年Pavan Bhatia fully resonated with your article. Indeed, it’s a world today, where for the youth, where on one hand there is so much more at hand of everything and on the other hand, so less of what matters. Yet, what gives me hope is that several of this generation are driven to leave this world better than they found it. I see it in the choices that they are making and the actions they are taking. More insights, more empathy, more one to one interactions can only strengthen & multiply that resolve. Love how GenWE aims to catalyze this intent. More power to you!
HR Vice President Total Rewards, PepsiCo Europe Sub-Saharan Africa at PepsiCo
2 年Beautifully articulated, Pavan. Great initiative by GenWE thriugh the teenagers. More power to GenWE!