Are you a Xennial? How to tell if you're the microgeneration between Gen X and Millennial

Sometimes, you're just caught in the middle.

A microgeneration stuck between Generation X and Millennials has gained attention in recent years as some people don't feel a connection to either age group.

The "Xennials" are those born on the cusp of when Gen X-ers and Millennials meet, and therefore experienced world events, and especially technology, in unique ways particular to their age.

According to Pew Research, members of Generation X were born between 1965 and 1980 and Millennials were born between 1981 and 1996. Xennials, though, were born some time between 1977 and 1983.

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/nati ... 369230002/

Yeah, I have my own generation, I recognize many of these things. So how about you, who are the Xennials on this board?

I identified with everything they stated in the article yet fall a few years after their age range. I think its time we all shed our labels and live our lives without people telling us what we can and can't do, who we identify with and if people who aren't dad's want to wear new balance shoes we should let them do that.

So as the article states Pew marks Millennial as 1981 to 1996. And we wonder why that doesn't work. Someone born in 1981 had a very very different childhood than someone born in 1996, heck someone born in 1990 had a very different childhood than one born in 1996. Technology and the world changes so fast in that time span although it also was not uniform across the world either which can create its own issues in relating the life experiences of one born in the same year but one from a more urban vs rural setting. Its also very funny that when I see people talking about Millennials, they are often talking about people born after 1996.

Dutchy wrote:

Yeah, I have my own generation, I recognize many of these things. So how about you, who are the Xennials on this board?

I am (born in '82), though I don't quite identify totally with everything in the article. For example, the internet was a part of my later childhood, though of course that wouldn't go for everyone.

That said, I identify with certain aspects of life common to my generation, but don't see the use in identifying with a generation as such (meaning, I wouldn't call myself an Xennial, but would be happy to reminisce about original Nintendo). I find that once you're in the working world, you're among people from different generations anyway - I work with everyone from Millennials to Baby Boomers, and generally get along with all of them. Everyone has his or her unique and shared experiences.

vikkyvik wrote:

I find that once you're in the working world, you're among people from different generations anyway - I work with everyone from Millennials to Baby Boomers, and generally get along with all of them. Everyone has his or her unique and shared experiences.

Probably all have varying political and religious ideologies as well. Working does a wonderful thing for unifying people - to a degree. Its a shame we don't talk to our neighbors as much as we used to.

I identify most with the Xennial. but alas I am out of their arbitrary date cutoffs. If you consider that the internet didn't really take off till 95, you have to include 74 to 77 in the range gap of years.

vikkyvik wrote:

Dutchy wrote:

Yeah, I have my own generation, I recognize many of these things. So how about you, who are the Xennials on this board?

I am (born in '82), though I don't quite identify totally with everything in the article. For example, the internet was a part of my later childhood, though of course that wouldn't go for everyone.

That said, I identify with certain aspects of life common to my generation, but don't see the use in identifying with a generation as such (meaning, I wouldn't call myself an Xennial, but would be happy to reminisce about original Nintendo). I find that once you're in the working world, you're among people from different generations anyway - I work with everyone from Millennials to Baby Boomers, and generally get along with all of them. Everyone has his or her unique and shared experiences.

I was born in 1977 and I very much felt I had more in common with millennials then with my own generation. My own generation is mainly focused - in general of course - on money and millennials are - in general of course - more meaning. So yes, I felt I had some trades of both generations.

I got my first e-mail address in 1995 at 18. So yes, except for some games, it was pretty much computer free.

T18 wrote:

So as the article states Pew marks Millennial as 1981 to 1996. And we wonder why that doesn't work. Someone born in 1981 had a very very different childhood than someone born in 1996, heck someone born in 1990 had a very different childhood than one born in 1996. Technology and the world changes so fast in that time span although it also was not uniform across the world either which can create its own issues in relating the life experiences of one born in the same year but one from a more urban vs rural setting. Its also very funny that when I see people talking about Millennials, they are often talking about people born after 1996.

"Xennial" here and you are completely correct!

Being born in 1982, I would be an old fart Millennial. The thing is that many of the qualities attributed to millennial don't fit me or many of my peers.

Milennials schmennials, see - as T18, vikkyvik, and trpmb6 noted, these labels and silly date ranges really have no meaning. I've read article after article after article about how the milennials are bad at this, clueless about that, and so forth, and most of the ones I've met have not been bad or clueless at this or that. And I know a number of Baby Boomers who are total snowflake nitwits.

None of those problems here in Generation X though; we are actually quite perfect, as exemplified by moi.

trpmb6 wrote:

Its a shame we don't talk to our neighbors as much as we used to.

I blame central air-conditioning for that.

trpmb6 wrote:

Working does a wonderful thing for unifying people -

I was born in '68. I just took a look at our seniority list, I find that my newest guy was born in '93...3 years after I started working here. A mere 9 years older than my eldest.

He seems to have the same work ethic as the other guys...range of birth years from '55 - '76, and is easy to get along with.

A couple of weeks ago, one of my older guys was complaining that his back hurt from moving his daughter from a dorm to an apartment. I asked where were her friends? He said they were a bunch of millennials that were more interested in their devices than working. I told him that he should have put a crappy tasting craft IPA at the top of the stairs, and a triple shot, soy, no foam, latte at the bottom of the stairs as incentive. The new guy laughed and told me that I truly understand how to motivate "his" people.

Born in 1983. Most of the article doesn't really apply to me as it's very US centric, but I still agree. I got a computer very young but it was an offline affair, you had to type stuff to launch programs and games, and if there was an opportunity to go out and ride my BMX instead, I would do that. Then I had dial-up and then the ADSL revolution. Napster was for pirating music. Floppy discs to share said music with friends.

So like millenials I have no problems using technology, but unlike most of them I know life without it.

Something not mentioned that makes us closer to genX than millenials : we could go out all day as kids without anybody worrying about kidnappings or pedophiles roaming.

Aesma wrote:

Something not mentioned that makes us closer to genX than millenials : we could go out all day as kids without anybody worrying about kidnappings or pedophiles roaming.

This is so true.

Though I grew up in the same area as Shawn Hornbeck, nobody at that time really gave much thought to kids running around unsupervised. I don't really know what has changed - but I do know one thing, I keep a watchful eye on my kids.

trpmb6 wrote:

Aesma wrote:

Something not mentioned that makes us closer to genX than millenials : we could go out all day as kids without anybody worrying about kidnappings or pedophiles roaming.

This is so true.

Though I grew up in the same area as Shawn Hornbeck, nobody at that time really gave much thought to kids running around unsupervised. I don't really know what has changed - but I do know one thing, I keep a watchful eye on my kids.

I'm not sure much really has changed. I think as parents, we are more aware of it now.

And it seems I do qualify as a Xennial (78). Obviously, a generation doesn't define who you are, but there are shared experiences for those who grew up around the same time. Our first compute was a commodore 64, our first brush with the internet was on Prodigy, and I got my first email address when I started college.

luckyone wrote:

trpmb6 wrote:

Aesma wrote:

Something not mentioned that makes us closer to genX than millenials : we could go out all day as kids without anybody worrying about kidnappings or pedophiles roaming.

This is so true.

Though I grew up in the same area as Shawn Hornbeck, nobody at that time really gave much thought to kids running around unsupervised. I don't really know what has changed - but I do know one thing, I keep a watchful eye on my kids.

I've heard this from a lot of people my parents' age. But I'm not sure it's accurate to say that kids were theoretically safer. There were high profile kidnappings and murders of children well before my parents were born. News just didn't travel as quickly and we didn't have organized alert systems. That said...nothing wrong with keeping a watchful eye on your kids!!

Very valid points! And I guess it is worth noting that with added awareness comes added protection via deterrence. Social media can be a very useful tool in helping find missing children. We also have tools like Amber Alerts now as well.

Aesma wrote:

Born in 1983. Most of the article doesn't really apply to me as it's very US centric, but I still agree. I got a computer very young but it was an offline affair, you had to type stuff to launch programs and games, and if there was an opportunity to go out and ride my BMX instead, I would do that. Then I had dial-up and then the ADSL revolution. Napster was for pirating music. Floppy discs to share said music with friends.

So like millenials I have no problems using technology, but unlike most of them I know life without it.

Something not mentioned that makes us closer to genX than millenials : we could go out all day as kids without anybody worrying about kidnappings or pedophiles roaming.

trpmb6 wrote:

Very valid points! And I guess it is worth noting that with added awareness comes added protection via deterrence. Social media can be a very useful tool in helping find missing children. We also have tools like Amber Alerts now as well.

Perhaps this depends on where you grew up, but for those of us born in the early 80's and went to grade school late 80's through mid 90's in Florida, this topic was very much part of grade-school curriculum. Don't speak to strangers pulling up next to you in car, yadda yadda yadda....

Now what you didn't have as part of said curriculum at the time was dealing with strangers online, as our age group didn't get internet connection until middle/high school.

Im a Xennial, but I was online at the dawn of the popular internet, 91-92-93-94. Because we had some high powered equipment at home, to use for my dad's business, so my best friend and I watched it all come to life. BBS led to Gopher and Prodigy and AOL, which led to Mosaic, became Netscape, became Firebird, Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Edge, which is leading to the AI drone nightmare in which we now live. As a result, I grew up with the internet, age-wise. People of my generation realize this technology is built by imperfect people, some of them criminals, none of whom fully understand what they are doing - but we humans still hope for the best. People who grew up in my era saw the great economy of the 90s, and some of us may have glimpsed the way small towns and the middle class in general declined since say 1990. This would be called a "nationalist myth" perhaps by younger millennials. Most people I know have moved down in social class since 1990. I probably moved a half step down myself, versus my parents. Things we took for granted are impossible now, like easily saving for retirement.... buying new cars off the lot.. affording college without much trouble. Visiting the doctor. There is no avoiding the fact that your worldview is shaped by the times you have seen, or not seen.