Gen Y Burnouts

An interesting little article from CNN here on workplace burnout among Gen Yers.

It states...

"This year's graduating seniors may face higher risk for job burnout than their parents' generation, say business and career experts."

While that may be true, I do sometimes wonder whether all of the hype is first and foremost a problem of social forgetfulness.  If we went back into the NY Times or WSJ archives and searched "Burnout Baby Boomer," would we find articles expressing similar sentiments?  You have to wonder (and if someone wants to try, please let us know what you find).

Similarly, could it be that the internet and constantly expanding world of time-saving devices and services in the market have just shifted the source of burnout?

I asked my favorite barista the other day if he had big plans for the weekend.  His response caught me off guard. He said, "yeah, as if it matters that it's the weekend, right?"  Then, he rescinded and said, "actually, with all of the online shopping and everything else these days, you can actually get your errands done in the evenings and use the weekends to relax and have fun.  It didn't use to be that way."

So whether Gen Yers really more overworked than our parents may be largely a matter of what constitutes work.  My weekdays are almost fully devoted to my job, and I often bring a few hours of work home over the weekend.  But I guarantee you I'll be sipping gin and tonics on my patio and spending time with my wife and dog for a good portion of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  Life could be worse.