I promised I was going to write this, so here it is, and I really hope it is worth the wait. If you thought I would have lashed out at our parents and elderly folks without talking about the ills of ‘our’ own generation, you are so mistaken, and truth, I am glad I waited to get the energy right.
I will start by reiterating one of the quotes from the previous write-up on this- ‘those who criticize this generation have forgotten the people who raised them’. Quite a number of people agreed with this, I did too, but then again, it is from there I choose to help us see where we are going wrong and how we may end up raising a worse generation if we are not careful.
I was at a leadership summit today organized by Anabel Academy, and it was interesting and thought provoking as most of those programmes usually are, but Ben Bruce’s talk caught my interest the most as he focused more on the responsibilities of a youth and we as citizens of a nation. But let me focus on the responsibilities of the youth.
We can cry all we want about how the older generation have messed up our lives, country and world, but we need to step up to our own game and take the bulls by the horns if we really want to see any changes as we cry for. No one haven tasted power willingly relinquishes it to someone else, you want it, fight for it. If you doubt, ask Gadaffi, or Mubarak, and if they seem too far for your reach, ask some of our ex-military leaders.
Truth be told, most of us in this generation are looking for quick fixes, i often wonder if the fast paced technology has something to do with that. Ladies want to marry an Obama, and guys want to marry a Michelle, the wilder ones would go for Beyonce or Kim Kardashian. But no one is willing to do the kind of works that these people have done to get to where they are.
I sometimes hear some youths and I am ashamed for my fellow youths, and the older generation is not blind to the irresponsible lives some of these youths live. Yes, there are good eggs amongst us, but how many? We can keep complaining about the wrongs the older generation have caused, and how they refuse to hand over control and power to younger vibrant minds, but a man/woman that makes themselves stand out in a good way, will always be respected and sought after. I personally had to break away from family strings to find my own niche. Everyday I take steps, make mistakes and get better for it. I know some others who had to do same, and they are more respected for it today by their folks than most others who stayed back.
Have we given them something to respect us for? Enough to trust us with leadership responsibilities? They know they have made mistakes, and I perceive they feel they are far too gone to make it right, but perhaps they hold on because they see how lightly we make of values, the compromises we make, even with them, the hypocrisies we display, and in this generation perhaps they see one worse than theirs? It isn't always about money. Learn, work, set your priorities right and strive for excellence in all you do.
They may have made decisions that brought us to the point we find ourselves, they may have failed us, but are we going to disentangle ourselves from this web so as to offer excellence to our generation? Or are we going to keep complaining and grinding our teeth? Some of us may have to seem ‘rude’ because of the unorthodox way we go about the change process, but show me a nation that has turned its tide, and I will show you intelligent radicalism. We need to bridge the gap, so that someday, when someone is writing as I am, it would be a success story of our own generation.
Very succinct. Always a delightful and thought provoking read any time.
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