Generation Z faces significant challenges, including financial struggles like student debt and high housing costs, concerns over mental health exacerbated by social media, and workplace issues like burnout and feeling disengaged.
They are also subject to generational criticism, similar to past generations, with some workplace observers labeling them entitled or lazy, a perspective that others attribute to factors like financial pressure and a lack of workplace support.
I have being coaching many Gen Z and it feels that we have fail them, we should be preparing proper foundations so they can build upon our achievements, but feels sometimes we are setting up them for failure.
Seems to me that the previous generation has been calling the next generation(s) lost for a long time. The world should have ended dozens of times over if the prognostications of the older generation were ever remotely correct. The younger generation then in turn believes the prior generation ruined the world and that they face the insurmountable task of correcting everything alone. Again if you were to believe the younger generation and their beliefs that the world is irreparably damaged then we should have ended eons ago, coincidentally exactly what the older generation predicts. This push and pull is typical I think and rarely as hyperbolized as either side’s drama would indicate.
Nice post, Diamantino. I appreciate the care you bring to describing what this generation is carrying. One thing I have seen in my own work is that resilience grows when people are given both recognition and agency. Naming the weight matters, and so does reminding people of their own ability to act inside it. This generation seems to have lost hope, but hope is not something the world hands you. It is something you learn to build. Thank you for the post.
Thank you Andrew. I sometimes feel this generation has grown in a time where for any problem a technological solution exist. That hope exist somewhere in the web or something. And like you mention, is up to us to point to a direction but it's also up to each own to determine what steps to take. And for this being independent is crucial.
Good insights on this generational difference. It's critical to interact across generations and learn from each other. Coaching is a great way to experience this interaction and to practice listening. We are failing ourselves and Gen Z but knowing what we failed at can guide how we can collaborate on a fix - a new direction. I'm encouraged to see more focus on these efforts globally. Thanks for highlighting this issue.
We have probably being failing from previous generations, but like you mention, there's still hope when we acknowledge that things need to improve. And I hope that this generation sees the benefit from previous ones and vice-versa. We are all in this together.
Generation Z faces significant challenges, including financial struggles like student debt and high housing costs, concerns over mental health exacerbated by social media, and workplace issues like burnout and feeling disengaged.
They are also subject to generational criticism, similar to past generations, with some workplace observers labeling them entitled or lazy, a perspective that others attribute to factors like financial pressure and a lack of workplace support.
https://www.theguardian.com/money/ng-interactive/2025/nov/17/gen-z-workplace-criticism
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryanrobinson/2025/07/16/the-gen-z-stare-what-it-means-and-whats-underneath-it-at-work/
I have being coaching many Gen Z and it feels that we have fail them, we should be preparing proper foundations so they can build upon our achievements, but feels sometimes we are setting up them for failure.
Does anyone share the same feeling?
Seems to me that the previous generation has been calling the next generation(s) lost for a long time. The world should have ended dozens of times over if the prognostications of the older generation were ever remotely correct. The younger generation then in turn believes the prior generation ruined the world and that they face the insurmountable task of correcting everything alone. Again if you were to believe the younger generation and their beliefs that the world is irreparably damaged then we should have ended eons ago, coincidentally exactly what the older generation predicts. This push and pull is typical I think and rarely as hyperbolized as either side’s drama would indicate.
Nice post, Diamantino. I appreciate the care you bring to describing what this generation is carrying. One thing I have seen in my own work is that resilience grows when people are given both recognition and agency. Naming the weight matters, and so does reminding people of their own ability to act inside it. This generation seems to have lost hope, but hope is not something the world hands you. It is something you learn to build. Thank you for the post.
Thank you Andrew. I sometimes feel this generation has grown in a time where for any problem a technological solution exist. That hope exist somewhere in the web or something. And like you mention, is up to us to point to a direction but it's also up to each own to determine what steps to take. And for this being independent is crucial.
Good insights on this generational difference. It's critical to interact across generations and learn from each other. Coaching is a great way to experience this interaction and to practice listening. We are failing ourselves and Gen Z but knowing what we failed at can guide how we can collaborate on a fix - a new direction. I'm encouraged to see more focus on these efforts globally. Thanks for highlighting this issue.
We have probably being failing from previous generations, but like you mention, there's still hope when we acknowledge that things need to improve. And I hope that this generation sees the benefit from previous ones and vice-versa. We are all in this together.