I Just Found Out I'm Actually Gen Z And I Am Shook

Talk about an identity crisis. (This is for the Editorial Fellowship)

It was just a regular Thursday. I was minding my own business and hanging out. And then it happened. My cousin told me that she read an article about Gen Z entering the workforce and that the youngest Millennials are currently 24. I'm 23.

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All my adult life, I've been thinking I was a Millennial. I've even had people refer to me as a Millennial. Are you saying I missed the cut off by a few months??

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Millennials and Gen Z (or as some people call them "Millennials on Steroids") have a some differences between them, but for the most part, are pretty similar. The biggest difference is the fact that Gen Z grew up with technology while Millennials technically grew into it. Basically, Gen Z revolves around technology and their devices have shaped who they are and what they aspire to be. Even social media preferences between the two generations are different. Most Millenials prefer Facebook while most Gen Z'ers prefer Instagram and Snapchat.

I thought I was the end of the Millennials. I mean, I had a psychology textbook that said last birth year for Millennials was 1995. I barely made the cut-off and I was thrilled. But now I'm Gen Z?

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After vigorous research to determine who I really am, I found that people don't really know when one generation ends and one starts. And if they do, it's constantly changing. In 2015, a New York Times article said 1995 was the cutoff for Millennials, while a 2017 Forbes article said Gen Z started in 1995. Recently, Pew Research Center announced they were using 1996 as an endpoint for Millennials and 1997 as the start birth year for Gen Z, meaning I'm safe by two years. This just shows that everyone has a different idea of when one ends and the other starts, and it's constantly changing. But why is it constantly changing? More on that another day.

Maybe I'm both? I mean I can relate to both. The New York Times article compared Hannah from "Girls" and Alex from "Modern Family" by saying Hannah is your typical Millennial while Alex is your typical Gen Z'er.

Alex Williams / Via nytimes.com

Going by this mini chart comparing the two characters, I can see myself as a Millennial and part of Gen Z. One of my favorite social media apps is Snapchat, even though I do check Facebook daily, but I also got an iPod before I ever had an iPhone. (Shout out to the old iPod videos!) I mean I would say I'm half and half, partly because I can relate to both Millennials and Gen Z'ers in many different ways. I mean, while my social media preferences go more with Gen Z, I also remember the days before smartphones came out with their GPS and we had to print off directions from MapQuest to get somewhere. There were also the days when I couldn't text on my first phone, a Nokia flip phone, because texting cost extra.

I guess until someone gives me a definitive answer, I'll answer to both. I'm a Millennial and Gen Z. I'm a Genennial. And in the words of Queen Britney Spears, I'm not a girl (Gen Z) but not yet a woman (Millennial).

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