My New Friend In Shanghai

Last week, as part of the conference about young people in China, I personally met a number of Chinese Millennials. One of my new friends is Lawrence, who is 23 and a graduate student in Design. Along with three other students, three young professionals, and a German (Boomer) designer, we spent the greater part of an afternoon working on our assignment of “designing a new product.” I was the “mature” professional of the group, but these young people never treated me as like “old person.” They were very bright and really made me feel like tech dinosaur.

Lawrence studied engineering as an undergraduate and was the only guy in our group. We had a lot of fun together and he may be contributing to our blog in the future. I was especially intrigued by Lawrence because I have a 23 year old Millennial son myself. Here are a few of Lawrence’s insights:

• He said he does not relate as a peer to his own parents like he was able to relate to me. Their relationship is always parent/child, never friend. He hopes, however, that he will have more in common with his own kids someday and a “friend” relationship with them.

• Lawrence is from a smaller city in China but he moved to Shanghai for university. He does not plan to move back and rarely goes back to visit.

• He was extremely impressed by the one young woman in our group, an automotive designer, who was able to manually draw our design concept. Like many young people, his design skills are technological and implemented entirely on the computer.

• Lawrence does NOT see young Americans as “competition” in the future. He believes that Chinese young people will ultimately be very successful, but it’s not a competition or a battle. We can all be successful together, but he thinks the Chinese will probably be more successful than Americans.

-Robin
12/8/10

Yes, a Big Idea, Please...

Today's NY Times online had an interesting blog by Timothy Egan in the Opinionator. Egan thinks that President Obama needs to come up with a simple, (not grandiose) "Big Idea" to show that he "is on the side of average Americans, who, in turn, must believe the country is moving in the right direction despite a painful economy." What’s needed, is “to do what Americans have always been known for: building, innovating, making things.”

The U. S., as a country, had better come up with a Big Idea...and soon! I just returned from Shanghai this week - my first trip to China in 10 years. Chinese progress in infrastructure and technology is impressive, especially in light of our own crumbling roads and bridges and our inconsistent electrical grid and telecommunications. The Chinese young people I met with were intelligent, SUPER tech savvy and hungry for success. They were NOT, however, creative and innovative thinkers. They had genuine difficulty thinking outside the box. And as a generation of only children, Chinese young people have limited interpersonal skills and lack empathy. All of this bodes well for the next generation of Americans if someone can capture their spirit of optimism and provide them with a blueprint for the future. In AIM's experience, American young people are inventive, multi-dimensional thinkers. And after the jolt of reality provided by the Recession, they are ready to work hard. But they are waiting - waiting for inspiration and that Big Idea...We can't wait much longer.

-Robin Albing
12/07/10

Woody Ping Pong

I read an interview with Woody Allen in the NY Times this morning and it made me feel pretty old. (Just for the record I am nearly twenty years younger than Woody, but, nevertheless, he was an important part of my youth.) I went through high school, college and my Twenties religiously devoted to his movies. I knew many of the lines by heart. They were the philosophy of my life. (“I love the rain…it washes memories off the sidewalk of life.” “Sun is bad for you. Everything our parents said was good is bad. Sun, milk, red meat... college.”) In college, I was so known for my love of Woody that someone hung his poster on my door with an invitation to run away with him. Woody was my muse, my friend and could always make me laugh (at myself, at him, at life). As I entered my Thirties, Woody became less funny and less interesting. His movies became darker and the revelation of his “grossly inappropriate” relationship with his companion’s daughter in 1992 really sealed the deal. We had gone our separate ways.

Reading about Woody today also made me feel kind of young… Last year, my 22-year-old son discovered Woody Allen. He is a real film buff and he loves to pass on his “discoveries” to his friends and to his family. He watched every Woody Allen movie ever made and he loved most of them. He liked some of the darker ones more than the early slapstick (which are still my favorites), but we watched quite a few of them together. I didn’t like “Vicky Christina Barcelona” and he didn’t love “Play It Again Sam.” We didn’t always laugh (or cry) at the same things, but we enjoyed them together.

-Robin Albing
Founder, Albing International Marketing

At AIM, we call this kind of shared experience between Boomer parents and Millennial offspring “PING PONG-ing.” One generation’s cast offs, re-discovered by the younger generation and re-introduced back to original discoverer. Do you have any “ping pong” experiences you’d like to share with us?

More About Entitlement and Millennials

I recently read an insightful article about Millennials and the job market in the August 2010 issue of Cosmopolitan magazine. (No, I don't generally buy Cosmo, but my Millennial daughter left an issue hanging around the house and I hope she read the article because it was good...) The article explains the perception of "entitlement" from a Millennial's point of view and offers some solid advice. Be sure to check out the article (which is not posted online yet), "How Not to Hate Your First Job" adapted from SAVE THE ASSISTANTS, by Lilit Marcus. - Robin Albing (a Boomer mom)

Do Millennials Really Feel Entitled?

A few weeks ago, we read an article in the NY Times about a young man who was having difficulty finding a job in the recessionary workplace. We considered writing a letter in response to the article because we found the young man’s situation contrary to almost all of AIM’s research for MILLENNIALS At HOME, but there were already a flood of responses from incensed Times readers. The young man had graduated from an elite liberal arts college in 2004, was still living with (and fully supported by) his parents, and, having been turned down for a management training position, was unwilling to accept a $40,000 entry level job at a prestigious insurance company because he deemed it “dead end.” Most comments responding to the article referred to him as “spoiled,” “a whiner,” and that he should have taken the job offer and “worked” his way to a better position.

In AIM’s research on the Millennial generation, we found that most young people do not share this young man’s sense of entitlement. In fact, in over 100 one-on-one interviews, a serious of online focus groups and a survey to over 1,000, we found that, while remaining optimistic about their futures overall, most Millennials are willing to work hard to achieve their goals and that attitude is reflected in how they live as well as in the types of jobs they have accepted. Perhaps the Recession has brought a dose of reality to the expectations of this highly sophisticated and well-educated generation, but, in any case, we found that many of them are learning to make “lemonade” out of their economic “lemons.” Bartenders with BA’s in Philosophy are learning how to run restaurants, economist/lifeguards are learning about coastal real estate, and biologist/housepainters are evolving into “green” home renovators. These young people are creative, innovative, and definitely not lazy.

Link to NY Times Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/07/business/economy/07generation.html?scp=2&sq=colgate%20grad&st=cse

The Key to the Millennial Home

“Character” is the key that opens the door to the Millennial home. Millennials, the generation who are now 10 to 29 years old, are sophisticated and do not skimp on the details. They look for quality and architectural details when buying or renting a home. A home that tells a story is ideal to Millennials. Whether that is an older home, a home that is environmentally friendly, or one that is technologically advanced, “character” is key.

Albing International Marketing (AIM) announces the first comprehensive study on the Millennial generation and their homes, MILLENIALS At HOME. With over $350 Billion in spending power, 80 million Millennials are rapidly becoming the next generation of home furnishing consumers.

With their desire for “character” Millennials are attracted to vintage home styles – bungalows, row homes, pre-War buildings. They believe that older homes and buildings represent better quality features such as plaster walls, solid wood doors and porcelain bath fixtures. Even when buying newer homes Millennials make it a priority to add value in classic, quality enhancements such as handcrafted woodwork, granite countertops, and hardwood floors. According to AIM President Robing Albing, “Millennials are more traditional than you might think. We found that they reinterpret traditional values in their own way, for their own times and that is reflected in their homes.”

The surveys, focus groups, and in-depth interviews that AIM conducted for the study revealed:
- 56% of Millennials prefer traditional design style for the home. Their idea of traditional is more casual than formal.

- 60% of Millennials believe that they will live in “new” suburbia. Not the cookie cutter homes that they grew up in, but a more idealized version of suburbia.

- Millennials consistently mention unique architectural details and customized landscaping when describing their dream homes. They appreciate handcrafted items, believing that they add more character and value to a home.

To understand how the Millennials live and what they will need or want to furnish their homes you must first understand the Millennial generation and what motivates them. MILLENNIALS At HOME discovered that as a generation Millennials are technophiles, sophisticates, team players, community servers, soloists, ordered, close with parents, and traditionalists. These characteristics of the generation relate closely to their preferences in home furnishings. For further information about the study contact Albing International Marketing (www.albing.com).