Are we that fragile?

There are many people who would argue that our generation has it all, and we are not as appreciative as we should. They would claim that we ‘Millennials’ are effectively pampered too much for our own good. Some would even go as far as calling us ‘Generation Snowflake’, i.e. we think that we are all special and unique individuals, but at the same time we are extremely fragile.

Firstly, though the world may still be far from perfect, I am truly grateful that we live in what possibly is the best time to be alive in the history of humanity. Not only have we reached a breath-taking pace of technological advancement, we have also progressed so much in terms of other aspects of human development, e.g. advancements in the provision of healthcare, accessibility and quality of education, improvements on human rights issues, and many other indicators of progress. I would also like to believe very much that everyone is unique and special, regardless of the generation one belongs to.

On the subject of being too pampered, part of me thinks that perhaps this is what every generation would say of the next generation, given that quality of life has been on an overall upward trend. On the other hand, part of me would agree that maybe some of us are a little too pampered for our own good.

There are times when I would use the “but I’m a student” card to excuse myself from carrying out my responsibilities. It is just so convenient to do so. And I do not think that I am alone in doing this *hint hint*.

But then I started watching a couple of documentaries about the Second World War. It hit me, that many of the soldiers who fought in the battles have barely even reached full adulthood. Some have barely even turned 18. And there they went, fighting hard to defend their countries, storming islands in the Pacific, doing their best to survive in seemingly impossible situations. I am in no way glorifying war. But this serves as a strong reminder that I should not hide from my problems behind the excuse “but I am just a student, you can’t possibly expect me to do that!”

Then the inner doubter in me would come out with more excuses like, “but the young men who were sent to war were at least given training. They were well prepared for the tasks at hand!”

Well, I guess that is true. Then I should work hard to prepare myself then, for whatever challenges that may come in the future, especially in such times of uncertainty.

So there you have it, this is my motivational tip. If you ever feel like you are too timid and you think it is because of your age, think of the young men and women of the Second World War who had little choice but to do the impossible.

Post script:

I once saw an advertisement for an opening for a graduate position.