There’s this idea that younger generations don’t want to work.
That we’re lazy.
That we don’t have the same work ethic our parents or grandparents had.
But maybe we’re asking the wrong question.
Maybe it isn’t “Why doesn’t this generation want to work?”
Maybe it’s:
“Why should someone have to work two or three jobs just to afford a normal life?”
We’re Not Afraid of Hard Work
Most of us aren’t saying we never want to work.
We want jobs. We want careers. We want to create things, build lives, travel, have families, own homes, and actually enjoy the years we’re given.
What we’re questioning is the idea that struggling should be a requirement.
Working 40 hours a week and still needing a second job to pay rent, groceries, utilities, transportation, and everything else isn’t something we should automatically accept as normal.
Neither is working all day, coming home exhausted, sleeping, and doing it all over again.
That’s not laziness. That’s questioning whether our relationship with work still makes sense.
Is Minimum Wage Still Enough?
Minimum wage is a huge part of this conversation.
We constantly hear that minimum-wage jobs were never supposed to become careers or that people working those jobs should simply “find something better.”
But someone still has to do those jobs.
Someone has to stock the shelves, run the register, prepare the food, clean the building, answer customers’ questions, and keep businesses operating.
If these jobs are important enough that society depends on people doing them every day, why do we sometimes talk about the people doing them as though their work isn’t valuable?
And here’s the bigger question:
Is minimum wage really enough if someone has to work multiple jobs just to survive?
If you work full-time and still need a second job, overtime, gig work, or a side hustle just to cover basic expenses, maybe the problem isn’t that you’re unwilling to work hard enough.
You’re already working.
The question is whether that work is providing enough to actually live.
“Just Get a Better Job”
Then comes another common answer:
“If you don’t make enough money, get a better job.”
Okay.
But what happens when the “better job” requires a degree?
Then you look at the degree requirements and realize the entry-level position wants a bachelor’s degree, experience, certifications, or additional schooling.
And sometimes that piece of paper feels more like a gatekeeper than proof that you can actually do the job.
I know this personally.
I have a two-year degree.
I put in the work. I went to college. I completed the assignments. I earned the credits. I graduated.
Yet there are career paths where that degree doesn’t get me very far unless I go back to school and earn another degree.
And that’s frustrating.
Because weren’t we told growing up:
Go to college so you can get a good job?
Now the conversation can feel more like:
Go to college.
Get the degree.
Realize the degree isn’t enough.
Go back to college.
Spend more money.
Get another degree.
Then hopefully find the job.
When Did a Piece of Paper Become More Important Than What You Can Actually Do?
Education absolutely matters for many careers.
There are professions where extensive education, licensing, and specialized training are necessary for very good reasons.
But does every job that requires a bachelor’s degree truly need one?
That’s where I think younger generations are starting to question things.
What about experience?
What about creativity?
What about a portfolio?
What about self-taught skills?
What about certificates?
What about someone who has spent years actually doing the work?
What about the person who learned through running their own website, creating content, managing social media, selling products, building projects, or starting a small business?
Sometimes real-world experience can teach you things a classroom never could.
Yet you can look at a job description and feel perfectly capable of doing the work—until you reach:
“Bachelor’s degree required.”
Suddenly you’re disqualified because you don’t have the right piece of paper.
Maybe That’s Why So Many of Us Have Side Hustles
Maybe this is part of the reason side hustles have become such a normal part of millennial and Gen Z life.
We blog.
We sell art.
We create digital products.
We freelance.
We make videos.
We sell print-on-demand products.
We photograph things.
We build apps.
We create online shops.
We deliver food.
We resell things.
We turn hobbies into tiny businesses.
Sometimes it’s because we’re ambitious.
Sometimes it’s because we genuinely love creating something of our own.
And sometimes?
We just need the extra money.
Even this blog is a side hustle for me.
It’s something I enjoy. It’s something I’ve built. It’s a place where I can share my thoughts, experiences, creativity, and the things I’m learning.
But it’s also part of this new working world where many of us are trying to create additional income outside of our regular jobs.
And there’s something strange about calling an entire generation lazy while so many people are working a regular job and then going home and working on something else.
That doesn’t sound lazy to me.
And Then There’s AI…
And then we have another massive change happening right in front of us:
Artificial intelligence.
This one is complicated for me because I actually love AI.
I use AI.
I use it as a tool with my side hustle. It can help me brainstorm, organize ideas, learn things, work through creative projects, and accomplish things that might have been much harder for one person to do alone.
So I’m definitely not going to sit here and say:
“AI is bad. Get rid of it.”
I don’t believe that.
But I do think we’re allowed to love the possibilities of AI and question what happens when companies start using it to replace people.
Because those aren’t imaginary people being replaced.
They’re humans who need paychecks.
What Happens When AI Takes the Jobs We Need?
This is where the conversation gets uncomfortable.
We’ve spent years telling people:
Get a job.
Then:
Get a better job.
Then:
Get a degree so you can get the better job.
Now imagine finally getting there only to discover that part of the work can be automated.
Customer service.
Writing.
Graphic design.
Administrative work.
Data entry.
Marketing.
Coding.
Creative work.
These are areas where AI tools can already assist people with parts of their jobs.
And assistance can be incredible.
But assisting a human and replacing a human are two very different things.
What happens if companies decide it’s cheaper to automate more work rather than hire another person?
Where does that person go?
And what happens when the answer is once again:
“Learn another skill.”
At some point, workers can’t be expected to spend their entire lives chasing whatever job hasn’t been automated yet.
AI Should Help Humans, Not Make Humans Disposable
This is where I think we need a much healthier conversation about technology.
AI can make someone’s job easier.
It can help a small creator compete with a larger business.
It can help someone learn.
It can automate boring repetitive tasks.
It can give independent creators access to tools they couldn’t otherwise afford.
That’s part of why I enjoy using it.
AI can be empowering.
But there’s a difference between:
“Here’s a tool that helps you do your job.”
and
“Here’s a tool we’re using so we don’t have to employ you anymore.”
Technology has always changed jobs, and AI will likely change the kind of work people do too.
But progress shouldn’t only be measured by how much money or time a company saves.
We should also be asking:
What happens to the human being whose paycheck disappeared?
The AI Irony of the Side Hustle
There’s an irony here that I can’t ignore.
Some of us are using AI to help build the very side hustles we started because our regular jobs don’t pay enough.
Think about that.
Your regular paycheck might not stretch far enough.
So you start a blog, shop, freelance business, creative project, or another side hustle.
Then you use AI to help you manage everything because you’re one person trying to do the work of an entire tiny business.
That’s where AI can be amazing.
For someone like me, it’s another tool in the toolbox.
But at the same time, we’re watching the same technology raise questions about whether some jobs will need as many human workers in the future.
That’s such a weird place for our generation to be.
We’re simultaneously thinking:
“AI is helping me create opportunities.”
and
“Could AI eventually take opportunities away from me?”
Both things can be worth talking about.
“I Worked Two Jobs When I Was Your Age”
We’ve heard it.
Maybe our parents worked overtime.
Maybe our grandparents worked multiple jobs.
Maybe previous generations sacrificed everything to build a better life.
And that deserves respect.
But shouldn’t the goal be for the next generation to have it better?
If our parents struggled so we wouldn’t have to, why are we expected to prove ourselves by struggling in exactly the same way?
We can appreciate their work ethic without believing burnout should be passed down like a family tradition.
We Want a Life Outside of Work
I don’t think wanting work-life balance makes someone entitled.
I think it makes them human.
We want time to see our families.
Time for hobbies.
Time to take care of ourselves.
Time to sit outside, walk the dog, create something, watch a movie, travel, fall in love, or literally do absolutely nothing for an afternoon.
Life shouldn’t begin after retirement.
We shouldn’t have to spend our healthiest decades constantly saying:
“Someday.”
Someday I’ll travel.
Someday I’ll slow down.
Someday I’ll take that trip.
Someday I’ll start that creative project.
Someday I’ll actually enjoy my life.
Why does “someday” have to mean retirement?
Are Micro-Retirements the New Retirement?
That’s probably part of why the idea of micro-retirements connects with younger generations.
Instead of working nonstop for 40 or 50 years and saving all of your freedom for retirement, the idea is to intentionally create longer periods away from traditional work throughout your life when your circumstances allow it.
Maybe it’s a few weeks.
Maybe it’s several months.
Maybe it’s time between jobs.
You might use that time to travel, create, learn something new, care for family, build a side hustle, work on a personal project, or simply experience life without your entire schedule revolving around your job.
Obviously, not everyone can afford to do this. In fact, that’s part of the problem.
But the idea itself says something important about how younger generations are beginning to view time.
We don’t necessarily want to save every good part of life for the very end.
Why Are We Waiting Until Retirement?
The traditional plan sounds something like this:
Go to school.
Get a job.
Work.
Work some more.
Work for decades.
Retire.
Then enjoy yourself.
But why are we saving the biggest chunk of our freedom for a stage of life when we may have less energy or different health and family circumstances?
None of us knows exactly what life will look like decades from now.
So maybe the question isn’t:
“Why don’t young people want to work until retirement?”
Maybe it’s:
“Why shouldn’t we be allowed to enjoy some of our lives before retirement?”
Micro-retirements don’t have to mean abandoning responsibility or ignoring the future.
They can simply represent a different philosophy:
Save for tomorrow without forgetting to live today.
Are Short Breaks During Work Really the Answer?
Then there are our everyday workdays.
Work several hours.
Take a short break.
Work again.
Take lunch.
Work again.
Maybe take another short break.
Go home.
Repeat tomorrow.
Breaks are important.
But are tiny pieces of rest enough to solve a much bigger problem?
A 15-minute break doesn’t replace having time for yourself.
A lunch break doesn’t replace having a life.
A week of vacation doesn’t automatically undo months of exhaustion.
Maybe we don’t just need better breaks from work. Maybe we need lives that aren’t completely built around work in the first place.
Rest shouldn’t only exist so we’re refreshed enough to become productive again.
Sometimes rest should simply be part of being alive.
The Cost of Living Changed the Conversation
For a lot of younger adults, the traditional formula doesn’t feel like it works anymore:
Get a job → work hard → save money → buy a house → build a comfortable life.
You can do everything you’re “supposed” to do and still feel like you’re barely keeping your head above water.
And that’s where the frustration comes from.
We’re told to work more if we can’t afford things.
Then we’re told we’re working too much and need better work-life balance.
We’re told to get a better job.
Then we’re told we need more schooling to qualify for it.
We’re told to get a degree.
Then we’re told our degree isn’t enough.
We’re told to start a side hustle.
Then we’re called lazy because apparently we don’t want to work.
And now we’re entering a world where some of the jobs we’re supposed to be working toward could themselves be changed by AI.
Which one is it?
Maybe Success Looks Different Now
Maybe success isn’t having the biggest house.
Maybe it isn’t climbing the corporate ladder.
Maybe it isn’t bragging about working 70 hours this week.
Maybe it isn’t having the fanciest degree hanging on your wall.
Maybe success is having enough.
Enough money to live.
Enough savings to feel secure.
Enough time to breathe.
Enough energy left after work to actually enjoy your evening.
Enough freedom to experience your life while you’re still living it.
And enough opportunity to prove what you’re capable of without constantly being told you need another credential first.
A job can be an important part of your life without becoming your entire identity.
We’re Not Lazy. We’re Rethinking the Deal.
We watched generations before us work themselves exhausted.
We watched people postpone vacations, dreams, hobbies, relationships, and happiness because someday they’d finally have time.
And a lot of us looked at that and thought:
I don’t want to wait for someday.
We’re not rejecting work.
We’re questioning the deal we’ve been given.
We’re questioning whether minimum wage is enough when full-time workers still need additional income.
We’re questioning why needing two jobs is sometimes celebrated instead of asking why one wasn’t enough.
We’re questioning why capable people can be locked out of opportunities because they don’t have the exact degree listed on a job posting.
We’re questioning why so many of us need side hustles on top of our regular jobs.
We’re questioning what happens when AI makes companies more productive but potentially reduces the need for people in certain roles.
We’re questioning why our longest stretch of freedom is supposed to come after decades of giving most of our waking hours to work.
And we’re questioning whether retirement has to be the first time we’re truly allowed to slow down.
Maybe micro-retirements, flexible careers, better wages, skills-based hiring, meaningful time off, shorter workweeks, healthier boundaries, side hustles, and AI that works alongside humans instead of simply replacing them are all pieces of a different future of work.
Maybe younger generations haven’t lost their work ethic.
Maybe we’re simply asking a question that deserves an answer:
If technology keeps getting better and workers keep becoming more productive, shouldn’t life eventually get a little better for the people doing the work too?
We still want to work.
We just don’t want working to become the only thing we ever have time to do—or spend our lives wondering whether a machine will eventually replace us.
Because what’s the point of spending your whole life making a living if you never actually get the chance to live it?