We’ve been researching Millennials literally since they have been old enough to fill out surveys. Over time, we have found that clients cling to common misperceptions of this generation and that the nature of these misperceptions haven’t evolved as Millennials have come of age.

Millennials are the most studied generation in history, likely because they are such a large group (there are now more Millennials in the US than Boomers) and because they are poised to soon become a dominant force in the economy, in politics, and in our culture.

There are enduring misconceptions about Millennials. Many stem from our inability to grasp that Millennials are distinctly different from their Gen X predecessors. Perhaps the worst mistake we can make is to assume that Millennials will behave in an “X” fashion rather than view them as a separate group.

Below are some common misconceptions we see that relate to Millennials.

• Today’s kids and teens are Millennials. This is false as Millennials have now largely grown up. If you use the Howe/Strauss Millennial birth years Millennials currently range from about 16 to 38 years old. If you prefer Pew’s breaks Millennials are currently aged 23 to 38. Either way, Millennials are better thought of as being in a young adult/early career life stage than as teenagers.
• Millennials are “digital natives” who know more about technology than other generations. This is, at best, partially true. The first half of the generation, born in 1982, hardly grew up with today’s interactive technology. The iPhone came out in 2007 when the first Millennial was 25 years old. Millennials discovered these technologies along with the rest of us. A recent Pew study on technological ownership showed that Millennials do own more technology than Boomers and Xers, but that the gap isn’t all that large. For years we have counseled clients that parents and teachers are more technologically advanced than commonly thought. Don’t forget that the entrepreneurial creators of this technology are mainly Boomers and Xers, and not Millennials.
• Millennials are all saddled with college debt. We want to tread lightly here, as we would not want to minimize the issue of college debt which affects many young people and constrains their lives in many ways. But we do want to put college debt in the proper perspective. The average Millennial has significant debt, but the reality is the bulk of the debt they hold is credit card debt and not college debt. College debt is just 16% of the total debt held by Millennials. According to the College Board 29% of bachelor’s degree graduates have no college debt at all, 24% have under $20,000 in debt, 30% have between $20,000 and $30,000 in debt, and 31% have over $30,000 in college debt. The College Board also reports that a 4-year college graduate can expect to make about $25,000 per year more than a non-graduate. It is natural for people of all generations to have debt in their young adult/early professional life stage and this isn’t unique to Millennials. What is unique is their debt levels are high and multi-faceted. Our view is that college debt per se is not the core issue for Millennials, as most have manageable levels of college debt and college is a financially worthwhile investment for most of them. But college debt levels continue to grow and have a cascading effect and lead to other types of debts. College debt is a problem, but mostly because it is a catalyst for other problems facing Millennials. So, this statement is true, but is more nuanced than is commonly perceived.

• Millennials are fickle and not loyal to brands. This myth has held sway since before the generation was named. I cannot tell you how many market research projects I have conducted that have shown that Millennials are more brand loyal than other generations. They express positive views of products online at a rate many times greater than the level of complaints they express. Of course, they have typical young person behaviors of variety-seeking and exploration, but they live in a crazy world of information, misinformation, and choice. Brand loyalty is a defense mechanism for them.
• Millennials are fickle and not loyal to employers. On the employer side, surveys show that Millennials seek stability in employment. They want to be continuously challenged and stay on a learning curve. We feel that issues with employer loyalty for Millennials go both ways and employers have become less paternalistic and value young employees less than in past times. That is the primary driver of Millennials switching employers. There are studies that suggest that Millennials are staying with employers longer than Gen X employees did.
• Millennials are entrepreneurial. In reality, we expect Millennials to be perhaps the least entrepreneurial of all the modern generations. (We wrote an entire blog post on this issue.)
• Millennials seek constant praise. This is the generation that grew up with participation trophies and gold stars on everything (provided by their Boomer parents). However, praise is not really what Millennials seek. Feedback is. They come from a world of online reviews, constant educational testing, and close supervision. The result is Millennials have a constant need to know where they stand. This is not the same as praise.
• Millennials were poorly parented. The generation that was poorly parented was Gen X. These were the latch-key kids who were lightly supervised. Millennials have been close with their parents from birth. At college, the “typical” Millennial has contact with their parent more than 10 times per week. Upon graduation, many of them choose to live with, or nearby their parents even when there is no financial need to do so. Their family ties are strong.
• Millennials are all the same. Whenever we look at segments, we run a risk of typecasting people and assuming all segment members are alike.  The “art” of segmentation in a market research study is to balance the variability between segments with the variability within them in a way that informs marketers. Millennials are diverse. They are the most racially diverse generation in American history, they span a wide age range, they cover a range of economic backgrounds, and are represented across the political spectrum. The result is while there is value in understanding Millennials as a segment, there is no typical Millennial.

When composing this post, I typed “Millennials are …” into a Google search box. The first thing that came up to complete my query was “Millennials are lazy entitled narcissists.” When I typed “Boomers are …” the first result was “Boomers are thriving.”  When I typed “Gen X is …” the first result was “Gen X is tired.” This alone should convince you that there are serious misconceptions of all generations.

Millennials are the most educated, most connected generation ever. I believe that history will show that Millennials effectively corrected for the excesses of Boomers and set the country and the world on a better course.