Now a possible recession on the horizon has added even more burden causing millennials to crack. These young entrepreneurs—often between the ages of 29 and 44—are increasingly being confronted by a new host of economic headwinds. Unfortunately, this generation has already experienced their share of financial catastrophes. Now they’re afraid they’re about to experience their own “once-in-a-lifetime” recession. The constant state of economic instability is wearying and infuriating for millennials after living with the threat of economic instability during their developmental years.
Millennials have, historically, grown up with a series of economic failures beginning with the dot-com bubble burst in their formative years as children. As they entered adulthood, the Great Recession struck, forcing many to accept temporary jobs instead of securing full-time employment after college. The Covid-19 pandemic made their attempts to stabilize their careers even more difficult. It just added a new layer of anxiety to an already pregnant landscape.
Taken together these experiences have created the deep-seated belief among millennials that they’re teetering on the cusp of entering their fourth recession. Yet, they haven’t even turned 40. Many in this generation graduated into the recession between 2007 and 2009. This made it difficult for them to find stable jobs, which pushed back their big life decisions purchasing homes, entering into marriages, and buying cars.
Jeremy Dozier, a Class of 2008 real estate agent who is 38 years old, shares the lessons he learned going through the Great Recession. He remembers being pushed to accept contingent work because there were no full-time jobs available. His sentiments are echoed by the thousands of millennials who, like him, find themselves stuck in a spiral of poverty.
“Millennials preparing to live through their 4th recession before hitting 40.” – Jeremy Dozier
Dozier further expresses his disillusionment, stating, “Every time we start to get ahead or it starts to feel like, ‘OK, things are going to work out,’ the other shoe drops.” This feeling is representative of the overall fear most millennials feel as they wait for yet another recession to hit.
Today, thousands of millennials are using social media platforms to address some of these same, longterm issues. As costs continue to outpace incomes, they’ve taken to TikTok to vent their economic concerns. Content creators such as Christie Cronan have gained traction by addressing recession fears and fostering a sense of community among viewers. Cronan hopes her videos offer comfort and validation for people struggling with the same fears.
“Everyone feels validated. This is what people are expecting, that we are in an economic downturn of some sort — whether they want to call it a recession or not.” – Christie Cronan
Social researcher John Sabelhaus, who has studied this emerging online discourse, observes that this online conversation frequently mixes humor with real-life conversations about economic hardship. He describes how, though people post their struggles in the chat, it still has that playful, positive atmosphere.
“While people in the comments are talking about the struggles they’re going through, it’s all kind of handled with a sense of humor and a sense of community.” – John Sabelhaus
This is all being processed with the help of memes and comedy that have turned into protective and even productive safety net through our shared humor. These new digital platforms liberate everyday people to voice their concerns and apprehensions. In addition to feeling the pressure of a society that values proper stability, they discover a sense of community among those with similar experiences.
Pamela Aronson, a sociologist recently quoted in the Washington Post, points out that social media outlets are just a symptom of the broad anxiety affecting millennials. Together, they reframe the millennial narrative on economic issues.
“It both reflects and transforms how we think about things.” – Pamela Aronson
Millennials have endured a double-dip recession followed by a decade of economic malaise. Because of this, they are left with an acute sense of anxiety about their monetary lives. Psychologist Jean Twenge, who specializes in generational differences, draws attention to this trend. She argues that millennials have faced challenging economic circumstances at pivotal points in their life.
“Millennials went through these horrible economic times at the beginning of their adult lives, then built everything back up, did really well, and now are rightfully concerned that if there’s another recession, that they could lose it all again.” – Jean Twenge
As they prepare for potential downturns, millennials continue to navigate their careers and personal lives amidst a backdrop of anxiety. As someone optimistically tweeted the other day, they just all have to be able to ride out these storms together.
“We’re going to weather the storm together.” – John Sabelhaus