By Flavia Vianna*
New illustration created by my intern. I signal over to him with my hand. Removing the phone, which is usually glued to my ear, making extra effort for a “personal approach,” and “personal interaction” with him.
He goes, “Ah….(popping chewing gum sounds)…check it out to see if this is cool.”
So, I walk over to his screen to “check it out.” Immediately distracted by the blinking AIM conversation and the 16 windows open at the same time (Yes, I counted). You can tell Gen X and Gen Y apart, just from the number of windows they have open at the same time. Two minutes ago, I had minimized my MSN because 4 windows is too stressful for me to handle. Not to mention blinking…
“Yeah…so is it cool or not?”
His voice brings me back to reality. The illustration. Yes of course. Here’s another characteristic of this generation. They see the world through digital windows, and believe the entire universe actually works like this. Try explaining that those of us over 30, look at MSN chats first, and then look at all that blinking, and only then are finally able to “check out” what we were supposed to be doing in the first place.
“The illustration looks great.” “Just add some color…” I’m interrupted. He answers his cell phone. I didn’t even hear the ring. Puzzled by this, I wondered, is there a ring tone that only those under 25 can hear?
And the other Gen Y employee sitting in front of him starts to laugh. Hauihaiuaihaiu. Yes, because “haha” “hehe” or “lol” is SO Gen X. My favorite illustrator finally hangs up, and explains the mysterious ring to me. I was right. The sound is so low, that as we grow old, we simply don’t hear the ring anymore. Perfect for class he explains, his professors never catch on. Oh yes, technology can be so cruel.
OK. So I know my hearing isn’t what it used to be. But I’d like to make clear that my soul is totally Gen Y. I’m completely enchanted by all post-1980 inventions. The other day, I caught myself at home, with my TV on, MSN chats open, two other windows open, SKYPE, texting through my cell, and to make it a total geek scenario, I was also tweeting. When my phone rang, I almost started crying. Emotional. This gen y thing was growing on me.
The truth is, I learn so much in my daily “laboratory” coexisting with these Gen Y creatures. They are really special, and they bring their worlds of everything.at.the.same.time.right.now. It’s as if they’ve come to me equipped with a chip that understands everything going on around me. It’s even better than Neo’s chip from the Matrix.
On top of all this, lies their extreme capacity for professionalism, ethics, compromise, and creativity. And of course my desire to know more and more about them just keeps growing.
Flavia Vianna is from Rio, works in advertising as a co-owner of the agency Trafor Comunicação. About 2/3 of her day is spent trying to understand human behavior. During the rest of the time she sleeps. Or tries to sleep. Recently initiated in the 2.0 world, she’s discovered that she’s embarked on a path of no return. She’s Gen X, but she was born at the wrong time. She’s actually SO Gen Y. Her philosophy in life: it’s an eternal process of re-learning.
