Generation Nomad: Why Young People are Less Tied Down than Ever Before
Today’s young people are more nomadic than the generations that have come before them. Gone are the days when people would choose a single neighbourhood to spend out the rest of their days. No longer do people work for a single company throughout their entire life. Obviously, this move towards a more nomadic way of life is having a big impact on communities and the way in which people are living.
Here are just a few of the reasons that the Millennials are more nomadic than any generation in history.
Travel is Cheap
In days gone by, travel was only an option for the very richest in society. People would rarely leave their own country to see far-flung corners of the globe. With the rise of budget airlines, more and more people are finding that travelling is an option for them. As well as this, we live in a globalised world meaning that people are searching for job opportunities wherever they can find them. The allure of living in a totally different culture is drawing many people in and encouraging them to broaden their horizons.
Renting is Common
With house prices continually rising, many Millennials are finding it next to impossible to get on the housing ladder. People tend to rent places, signing short term contracts and moving on from place to place. While this may be a positive thing for moving companies, it does mean that people are less fixed to a certain area. It is much more complicated to sell a house and move on than it is to sign a new rental agreement elsewhere.
Work is Flexible
There is a growing army of freelancers who are choosing to work from all over the world. The internet has meant that no longer are people tied to a single location. Many people just need a laptop and a decent WiFi connection to do their work. This increased flexibility means that more people are choosing to become ‘digital nomads’, moving around from place to place while still earning a living.
Life is Delayed
Many people are choosing to put off the traditional big events in life like getting married and having children for longer and longer. This means that young people have fewer responsibilities and are able to move around without having to go through numerous complicated processes. How this will affect society in the future still remains to be seen.
Communication is Easy
Again, we have the internet to thank for changing the way we communicate with each other. Now it’s possible to stay in contact with people much more easily. Sometimes we take for granted that we can quickly pop off a message to someone living on the other side of the world, or even have a face to face conversation using a service like Skype – all for free. This means that you can live elsewhere without feeling like you have completely severed your connections with your normal life.