I’m an older millennial.
Born into a world that told me: go to college, get a job, climb the ladder, and retire happy.
I followed the rules… for the most part.
Graduated. Landed a job making $34,000 a year.
I worked my way up to a $175,000 salary, plus $240,000 from a side hustle I turned into my full-time business, Fastmarkit.
By every traditional metric, I made it.
Oh and on top of that, I barely took vacations, missed out on family gatherings, and made sure I barely got sleep and would be fighting a cold every other month.
But here’s the truth: That path nearly crushed me.
The Millennial Promise Was a Lie
We were the generation that played by the book.
We got degrees. Took unpaid internships. Hustled harder. Said yes to more. Put our heads down and grinded through layoffs, recessions, and toxic managers.
And yet, here we are:
- 45% of millennials say they feel burned out most of the time (Gallup).
- 63% say their job doesn’t align with their purpose (McKinsey).
- Nearly 70% of millennials live paycheck to paycheck even those earning over $100K (LendingClub).
- The average millennial has less than $25K in savings at age 40 (Bank of America).
We sacrificed our 20s on the altar of ambition. We traded freedom for a steady paycheck. We stayed silent under bad bosses because we thought loyalty would pay off.
But that system?
It doesn’t serve us anymore.
Older Millennials vs. Younger Millennials: A Generational Schism
Let’s get specific.
Older millennials (like me) came of age during the dot-com crash and were slammed by the Great Recession right as we entered the workforce. We were told, “Just work harder. Be grateful to even have a job.”
Younger millennials inherited that same instability, but with a side of student debt and Instagram filters telling them everyone else had it figured out.
Both sides of the millennial coin were fed the same lie:
Work hard, stay loyal, and you’ll be rewarded with stability, freedom, and success.
But instead, we got:
- Skyrocketing housing prices (home affordability has decreased by over 40% since 2000).
- Stagnant wages (millennials earn 20% less than boomers did at the same age, adjusted for inflation).
- Emotional exhaustion from pretending that burnout is a badge of honor.
We Live in a Culture Addicted to Complaining, but Paralyzed by Change
Let me be blunt: Starting a business is seen as risky.
But staying in a job that drains your soul, reporting to a boss who doesn’t respect you, climbing a ladder that ends in a ceiling you’ll never break through…
That’s considered responsible.
That’s considered safe.
That’s the script we’re still being handed and too many of us keep reading from it.
We’ve normalized:
- Dreading Monday mornings like it’s just part of being an adult
- Saying “I’m fine” when we’re mentally unraveling
- Clocking in and zoning out for 40+ years, hoping retirement brings peace
- Getting drunk on weekends just to forget how much the weekdays suck
- Complaining in group chats and venting on lunch breaks instead of actually changing something
And the data backs it up:
- Only 31% of U.S. employees are engaged at work. That’s the lowest in over a decade (The HR Digest).
- 67% of workers reported experiencing at least one symptom of burnout in the past month, including lack of motivation, energy, or connection (APA).
- 73% of Gen Z and 70% of millennials are actively considering switching jobs, with burnout as the #1 reason (New York Post).
We use complaining as a release valve because action feels too scary and it’s unfamiliar. So we stick with what is familiar, which means unhappiness, depression, and the perspective that we’ve lost control of our lives.
But here’s the truth no one says out loud:
“Complaining feels safer than doing the work to change.
It’s easier to stay miserable than to take ownership.“
We’ve been conditioned to survive, not thrive. To stay in line, not question the rules. To settle for “secure” misery instead of building uncertain freedom.
But let me ask you something real: When did “surviving” become the goal?
When did the bar get so low that feeling numb five days a week and alive for two became normal?
You weren’t built for that. You weren’t born to be another cog, collecting a paycheck while your dreams collect dust. And no, building something of your own isn’t easy.
But it’s yours.
And that changes everything.
The Real Dream: Freedom, Purpose, and Peace
What millennials really want isn’t flashy. It’s not Lambos, private jets, or flexing on Instagram. Most of us don’t care about impressing strangers.
We want real wealth. The kind that doesn’t come with a price tag. The kind that actually makes life feel good.
1. Freedom + Security
We’ve been taught that freedom and security are opposites. That you can either have flexibility or a steady paycheck. That if you want control over your time, you have to live with constant financial stress.
That’s a false choice.
The truth is, you can have both. But not by following the old script.
Owning a business doesn’t mean gambling your future or risking it all. When built with intention, systems, and a clear strategy, it becomes the only path I’ve found that offers both freedom of time and financial stability.
It’s not about never working again. It’s about working on your terms. Taking your kid to school at 11am and not asking for permission. Turning down clients that drain you. Choosing your pace, your projects, and your priorities.
That’s real security. Not just a paycheck, but control.
2. Purposeful Work
We weren’t put here to send emails all day and sit in meetings we secretly resent.
Millennials crave work that means something. Not just to others, but to us.
We want to build something that matters. Create. Contribute. Solve problems that align with our values. Whether that means launching a product, offering a service, coaching, or consulting, we want to wake up and actually care about what we do.
Because 40-plus hours a week is a lot of life to waste.
And when you own your work, when it’s truly yours, even the hard days carry meaning. Even the stress feels like growth instead of erosion.
Purpose isn’t a luxury. It’s oxygen.
3. Peace of Mind
You know what’s underrated? Waking up without dread.
Not checking your email with a pit in your stomach. Not calculating how many PTO days you have left. Not constantly proving your worth to a boss who doesn’t see you.
We want peace. Not surface-level wellness perks, but real mental calm.
To know we’re enough even if we’re not “crushing it” every moment. To feel like our life is ours instead of being stuck in a loop of burnout and survival.
For me, peace didn’t come from quitting my job. It came from building something that felt aligned. Something that fit me instead of forcing me to shrink.
Yes, there are still hard days.
But now, the struggle feeds me instead of draining me. I’m solving my own problems, not someone else’s. And that changes everything.
Freedom. Purpose. Peace.
That’s the real dream. Not because it sounds good, but because we’ve tried everything else. And we’re done settling.
My Story: From $34K to Seven Figures and Clarity
I started my career like most people around me. Fresh degree in hand, grateful just to land a job, even if it only paid $34,000 a year. I followed the rules. I did what I was told. But deep down, I knew I was built for something different.
So I job-hopped. Not because I was flaky, but because I refused to settle. Every move I made was intentional. I wasn’t chasing titles. I was chasing alignment.
Eventually, I stopped looking for the perfect fit and started building it myself.
I built a business from scratch. No investors. No roadmap. Just a relentless desire to create something that gave me what every millennial I speak to is craving: freedom, purpose, and peace.
Let me be real with you. Running a business is not easy. It is one of the most demanding paths you can take. Today, I lead a seven-figure company. That number might sound impressive from the outside, but what it doesn’t show you is the pressure that comes with it.
- There’s no boss to lean on when decisions feel impossible.
- No roadmap to follow when you’re in uncharted territory.
- No guaranteed paycheck when a deal falls through.
- You carry the weight of every decision.
- You feel the highs and the lows more intensely than ever before.
But here’s the difference that makes it all worth it. These challenges are mine. I am not waking up to fix problems for someone else. I am building something that reflects my values, my vision, and my potential.
And that shift? It changes everything.
I get to create. I get to decide. I get to live with intention instead of defaulting to survival. I am not just earning income. I am generating impact. I am not hustling for someone else’s dream. I am shaping my own.
I am not here to romanticize entrepreneurship. I will not sell you a fantasy where everything is smooth and simple. That would be a lie.
But I will tell you the truth. Working for yourself is hard. But staying stuck in something that drains your spirit is harder.
You do not have to keep playing by rules that were never written with you in mind. You do not have to keep shrinking yourself to fit into a mold that was never meant for you.
You can build something of your own. Something that matches who you are and what you want.
- You can stop trading your energy for a false sense of security.
- You can stop waiting for someone else to give you a shot.
- You can stop asking for permission to live life on your terms.
You get to write your own rules. And once you do, you’ll never want to go back.
Final Thought: Playing It Safe Is the Riskiest Move of All
Millennials were taught to be dependable, hard-working, and obedient employees. We were told that if we followed the rules, stayed loyal, and worked hard enough, we’d eventually be rewarded with stability and success.
But the reality we’ve lived doesn’t match the promise we were given.
The economy has changed. The corporate ladder is broken. And the path we were pushed onto? It no longer leads where we thought it would.
If you feel burned out, if you’re working harder than ever but still feel stuck, if you’ve done everything “right” but your life still feels misaligned—that’s not your fault. It’s a sign that the system wasn’t built for you to thrive in.
So maybe it’s time to stop forcing yourself to keep walking in the same direction. Maybe it’s time to step off the path entirely and choose a different route.
Not because it’s easy, but because continuing down a road that leaves you unfulfilled is far more dangerous in the long run.
We often think of freedom as something we’ll earn later. Something we’ll reach after years of proving ourselves. But the truth is, no one is going to hand it to us. There’s no permission slip coming.
Freedom has to be built. And the first brick is the decision to do things differently.
- That might mean questioning what success really looks like for you.
- That might mean unlearning what you were taught to value.
- That might mean leaving behind what’s familiar in order to find something real.
It takes courage to make a change. But it also takes courage to stay in a life that doesn’t fit you, pretending it does.
And one of those choices will quietly drain you over time, while the other will challenge you to grow into the person you were always meant to be.
If you’re waiting for the perfect moment to begin, you’ll be waiting forever.
Start now. Choose something different. Not because you’re reckless, but because you’re finally being honest about what matters.
Choosing a different path isn’t irresponsible. It’s the most responsible thing you can do: for your health, your purpose, and your future. You don’t have to wait to start living a life you’re proud of and that lessens the load of doing it all for someone else’s dream.
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