Back in 2014, Bentley University released a study that suggested millennials are the most independent, nimble and overall entrepreneurial generation ever to have existed. Plus, while their predecessors aimed for that prestigious corner office millennials have entirely different career aims in mind.
Of those surveyed, just 13% of millennials wanted to climb the corporate ladder and claim the title of CEO or president. Conversely, a whopping 67% stated that their ultimate career goal was starting their own business. Director of Bentley’s Entrepreneurial Studies programme Fred Tuffile put this down to the idea that millennials see no future in more traditional pathways and instead wish to create their own.
Throughout their lives, many millennials have witnessed their powerless relatives being made redundant, their peers slaving away in dead end jobs and have been told that perhaps higher-ups aren’t the most trustworthy or capable bunch. Instead of entering the never-ending cycle of work, they aim to find a better way.
Fortunately, this is easier than ever thanks to tools such as the internet and experience that has been passed down by our forefathers. Now, millennials can set up a business with ease and even if it fails, there’s a good chance they’ll learn more about the world in that short period of time than they would working for someone else their entire life. For those that don’t fail, there’s the chance of them becoming the next Mark Zuckerberg, Gerard Adams of David Karp. Really, millennial entrepreneurs have very little to lose.
Perhaps this is why so many of them are embracing creative endeavours, though this is probably also due to the fact that there are many more creative options than ever before. After all, our ancestors couldn’t very well become social media coaches or YouTube gamers. Many of them couldn’t even make a living as photographers or artists, as there were just so many other more pressing jobs and matters at hand.
Nowadays, millennials with an innate entrepreneurial spirit can begin with a hobby and turn it into a worldwide business as fashionista and #GIRLBOSS Sophia Amoruso did with eBay and Nasty Gal. Whether your interest is photography, baking, art, writing, makeup or gaming we guarantee there are some ways to make money from your interests. Then, what begins are a simple side-hustle may turn into your full-time career and perhaps even your own business.
There’s an incredible amount of freedom bestowed upon millennials that no other generation has been able to embrace, and it is absolutely fantastic that the youth of today are continuing to pick up the baton and move forward. For some, the idea of entering a creative profession and going as far as to found a start-up may conjure feelings of doubt, fear and uncertainty but millennials are brave.
The days of having to work in an unsatisfying career our entire lives are slowly but surely being replaced with a future where each and every one of us can choose and even make our own careers. What will you choose?