It’s no secret that Generation Y has the stereotype of feeling entitled, and many people blame our parents for spoiling us all of these years. But I have a counter-argument: what if all of that love and generosity is really just their way of motivating us to want more out of life and for ourselves?
As an admitted daddy’s girl, I can proudly say that my parents have been spoiling me since birth. Every holiday and birthday brought me tons of gifts, like many other children, but I was also given gifts on random days throughout the year. I never stopped appreciating all that my parents gave to me. I have a great family and live a truly privileged life, what more could I ask for?
The answer is this: a great life that I earned for myself.
Your parents’ generosity can only get you so far; they can help get you to college, but you have to put in the work to graduate and find a good job that will turn into a fantastic career.
Every luxury that was ever granted to you in your childhood should be motivation for you to work hard so that you can continue to have those luxuries, because let’s face it, our parents will not be around forever. Once you’ve tasted the good life, why would you want to let it go? The life of extravagance comes with a price: work.
You can’t expect everyone to give you anything you want once you’re an adult. You have to be responsible for yourself and pay the bills on your own. This means you won’t be able to spend as much on luxury if you didn’t work hard to get a good job.
Your parents’ munificence should be inspiration for you to want to give that same life your parents gave you to your future children. Of course, that is way down the road, but it doesn’t hurt to think about and plan for it.
I admire my parents for their work ethic, and thanks to them I have a grand appreciation for every privilege and indulgence to which I have ever been treated. I know I live a blessed life, and if you have parents that love you and give you everything, you should be able to say that as well.
So why not prove to your parents that all of their kindness did not go to waste? Their kindness should not have transformed you into a spoiled monster, but instead a person who wants to make his or her parents proud of what he or she has accomplished.
Stop sitting around on your ass waiting for success to come to you, and start putting in some effort. And don’t let anyone convince you that you’re a brat for having been privileged, instead prove them wrong. I once encountered a woman who judged me for being lucky or advantaged, and she assumed that I never had to do anything for myself in my entire life.
This enraged me, because I knew that I was laboring every day in school in order to accomplish something greater for myself. But I let it go, and I smiled at her, because I also felt sorry for her. She was older, and she probably didn’t have the same hard working, magnanimous parents that I have, and so she didn’t have the motivation to work for a better life.
Stop letting society tell you that you don’t work hard enough, and start exerting yourself. And if you do feel entitled, then get some new fucking perspective and appreciate what your parents have given you. There’s more to life than living off of your parents’ labor.
Samantha | Elite.
