Millennials. Many of us know this word pretty well, seeing as the word itself defines our generation. As the largest generation in American history, we’ve had a front row seat to one of the most horrific and fast-paced times. Our generation has witnessed the viscous attacks of 9/11, the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina, and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression.
While we millennials are the most educated generation in history, our education has come at a price. The average debt has more than doubled for university students in the past twenty years, leaving each millennial with approximately $45,000. It’s honestly no wonder we’ve been coined the “unlucky ones.”
Regardless of the cards we’ve been dealt, millennials as a whole tend to have a tenacious attitude; more than half state that they plan to start their own business one day. In order to achieve success as an entrepreneur, one must be able to sell, since every step of building a business revolves around selling.
Author Daniel Pink put it best when he stated that “a world of entrepreneurs is a world of sales people.” Generally, when people think about entrepreneurs, they think of people who start and run their own companies. While this definition is accurate, I believe the essence behind being a successful entrepreneur is coming up an idea and convincing people that your idea is worth it.
Millennials may have been born during an extremely difficult time, but it’s my belief that these trying circumstances fostered spirits of determination that will prove to be valuable in the sales world.
BoweryJE22
The connection that you see between the circumstances that millennials have grown up in and their/our tenacity for entrepreneurial endeavors is quite interesting. One thing about the statistic that we’ve read and discussed in class that 50% of millennials want to own their own business at one day is that whether or not that happens remains to be seen. I wonder if this desire to own businesses will be fulfilled or not. Sales, however, will be useful whether one starts their own business or works in another, however.