Your teenage daughter is sitting at home on the couch, FaceTiming one of her friends. Slang like “GOAT” and “delulu is the solulu” are hitting you over the head. At this moment, you may feel older than you are. You refrain from asking your daughter what all those things mean, as it would be embarrassing and ‘boomer’. We’ve interviewed a group of young Gen Z-ers to ask the questions you don’t get to ask at the dinner table.
Allow us to introduce Gen Z, also known as the “iGeneration,” born between 1997 and 2010. There are currently around three million Gen Z-ers in the Netherlands who are studying or just starting their careers. Here are some characteristics of Generation Z:
🛜 Known as ‘digital natives’ because they grew up with the internet.
🏳️🌈 Embraces and is accustomed to more diversity.
🌩️ Known as a melancholic generation, partly due to concerns about climate and a well-informed understanding of mental health issues.
☯️ Grew up in uncertain times and therefore has a greater need for stability, both socially and financially.
✊Represents strong social and political views and considers these views in day-to-day decision-making.
Six Fingers engaged in a conversation with some Gen Z-ers to find out if they identify with the stereotypes and assumptions about their generation.
How do young Gen Z-ers perceive money and status?
The first topic we addressed was money. Our panel of teenagers indicated that they are actively involved in financial matters, not only in the form of pocket money but also through various side hustles (extra activities to earn money alongside school or work). They mentioned that most girls in their class have their own jewelry business, either handmade or through drop shipping. The boys seem more interested in trading games and American candy.
They mentioned enjoying activities such as shopping, having lunch and dinner, or going to the movies. Besides the money they earn themselves, most parents also provide some extra allowance. One of the session participants even told us that she convinced her parents to apply an inflation adjustment to her pocket money.
Older generations often perceive younger generations like Millennials and Gen Z-ers as living above their means. We were curious about this and asked them if they openly discuss financial matters. “Yes, we are very transparent about it. It’s also useful to know who has what to spend. This way, we can always consider those who have less to spend because they have been called off from work a lot.”
How do young Gen Z-ers communicate with each other?
Behavior that other generations question is Gen Z’s screen time. To our surprise, our panel mainly mentioned watching older series like Friends and Gilmore Girls. When we asked about average screen time, it became clear that session participants distinguished their active and passive screen time. Series and movies are played during all daily activities. Not to watch closely but as background noise. Those hours don’t count.
Photo with statement: “Without my phone I go crazy”
On social media, Gen Z-ers often encounter ‘couple videos’ from influencers setting up their camera to film and post that perfect sunset picnic. While we expected them to be susceptible to this, they quickly stated, “We see through that, it’s not all perfect.” ‘Dupes’ (cheap but good counterfeit products) are also common in the algorithm.
The most used communication tool for young Gen Z-ers is Snapchat. Whatsapp is mostly used for group chats. Contrary to our expectations, half of our participants stated that they don’t use TikTok. “I just don’t want too many big companies collecting my data, so I don’t create an account.” The @nosstories Instagram account of NOS keeps them well informed about TikTok’s violations of European privacy regulations.
Abbreviations and other slang are used regularly. ‘Cap’ means something is nonsense, and something that’s ‘sus’ is suspicious. If you send a vacation photo to your teen and receive ‘HF’ back, it means ‘Have Fun’. ‘GOAT’ stands for Greatest Of All Time and is applicable in almost any context.
When discussing a crush or another classmate in secret, they often use fruit bowl code language. “Every group assigns vegetables and fruits codenames to other classmates. For example, someone who is tall and thin, we call cucumber. Bell pepper, pineapple, and peach are all positive and are often used.”
Photo with statement: “I can handle stress well”
How is stress experienced and how often does it occur?
The answers to the statement “I can deal with stress well” vary. Initially, they stated that they are not excessively stressed, except for occasional mental breakdowns. When we zoomed in on the causes of stress factors, they mentioned that the aftermath of the pandemic plays a significant role. “Many students feel like they are falling behind and that there is a lot of pressure on them to have their future planned out.” They also mentioned that due to the constant presence of smartphones, they find it harder to relax. Therefore, they have little problem with the recent ban on smartphones in classrooms.
How do Gen Z-ers view the future and how achievable do they think it is?
Regardless of generation, we all sometimes feel misunderstood by others. However, there are certain topics where there is often a difference in perspective. According to our respondents, one of those topics includes views on diversity and inclusivity. Here are some answers from our respondents:
“I believe that Gen Z is a generation where ‘everything is accepted and everything is possible’. In conversations about gender and sexuality, for example, I notice that older generations think very differently about what is possible and even what ‘exists’. Gen Z is a generation of open-minded people who believe in possibilities.”
“At my job, we wanted ergonomic chairs, our ‘Boomer’ director thought it was nonsense. When I talk about things that I find important, such as queerness, social equality, and adapting to others, I often hear from my parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles, that it’s nonsense and that people should behave normally.”
Do we all need to have the same view on a subject like diversity and inclusivity?
No, that’s not a requirement. However, having an open mind and adjusting your prejudice is recommended. According to a Forbes survey, 83% of Gen Z-ers consider it important that an employer commits to D&I (diversity & inclusivity) goals. FastCompany and the World Economic Forum also write about the need to onboard a ‘multi-generational workforce’. Not because it significantly improves the atmosphere in the office, but because of increased productivity, employee retention, and internal upskilling. Our tip for a D&I-proof work environment: less judging, more asking questions.
What about the misunderstanding regarding Gen Z’s phone usage and work ethic?
The smartphone is much more than a dumb content factory for TikTok dances and influencer product reviews. Gen Z has simply grown up with tech, and that strongly characterizes this generation. Here’s what our respondents had to say about it:
“If older people don’t understand that almost everything for us happens online (especially phones). Then they say ‘put that thing away’ when it’s inconvenient or when you’re dealing with something fairly important.”
“For example, when there’s a situation where something is unclear, and I want to look up the answer, a comment is made about my ‘search generation’.”
The often-mentioned phone addiction, however, is not unique to Gen Z. Although Gen Z uses their phone for more hours per day on average, other generations almost equally admit to struggling with reducing their screen time. 41% of Gen Z-ers actively take steps to reduce screen time compared to 31% of Boomers.
Now onto the next topic, work ethic. The 9-to-5 office job doesn’t seem as appealing to Gen Z-ers anymore. The quest for meaning, initiated during the pandemic, is a significant catalyst for this. Additionally, working doesn’t pay off in certain respects as it used to. It is said that Gen Z is ‘the unlucky generation’ who has accumulated student debt and thus experiences financial worries.
Moreover, a significant gap has emerged in the average salary compared to the average house price in the housing market. As a result, many Gen Z-ers see their prospects in the housing market as bleak, and work gets a different purpose and connotation. More meaning and more self-actualization.
How does Gen Z view the often-mentioned prejudice that Gen Z is ‘a melancholic generation’?
“There’s often a comparison with the past, where Gen Z is negatively portrayed and claimed to be exaggerating and complaining too much. I also often hear from my parents that they had it tougher back then and that we shouldn’t complain.”
“Just because we talk about things now that were previously kept silent doesn’t mean that this wasn’t a problem before, it just wasn’t talked about. The fact that our generation now addresses what their issues are is something that other generations are not used to and see as ‘complaining’.”
At the same time, there are also critical voices from peers.
“I understand it, but in my opinion, I’m not a Gen Z-er but more of a Millennial. Nothing can be said against the generation anymore. Children are often sheltered by parents, so the harshness of the world is seen as something that is not acceptable. We can’t accommodate everyone.”
“I think the Gen Z generation is lazy. They behave like weak links because everything is too intense or they can’t handle it anymore. I don’t know what happened to make people behave like this, but it irritates me.”
Perhaps the most important question is, how can the world best deal with Gen Z?
According to our respondents, the answer isn’t that difficult. Showing understanding for each other’s situation, acknowledging that times are changing, and taking each other seriously. Our favorite response:
“I would prefer to see a positive approach to these differences, that we can all learn something from each other and that every generation has its own (generalized) characteristics and skills that are useful and valuable in a group of multiple generations.”
Lastly, how do our young respondents view the future?
In the answers, we see a clear division. Gen Z is optimistic about their future but less hopeful about the future of the world. Their future still feels manageable enough, and they have confidence that uncertain matters will fall into place. However, the future remains a big and sometimes scary question mark. How we will tackle the cluster crisis (housing, climate, refugee reception) remains to be seen. Especially the lack of trust in politics among our respondents, but that applies not only to Gen Z-ers.
So far, these are our insights into the colorful, dynamic, and future-defining Generation Z. We will continue to follow developments about Gen Z closely in our (trend) research to keep ourselves and our clients informed.
Author: Luuk Huismans