Millennials are largely defined as anyone born between the early 1980s and early 2000s. Being born in 1995, that makes me a part of this generation, dealing with all the pros and cons that come with that. Living in Massachusetts, one of the most diverse states in the country, since I was less than a year old, has allowed me to see the best and the worst of what it means to be born into this world when we were.

Millennials have entered into a world of transition

Some of the positives are that we will be the last generation to appreciate things that those after us will take for granted, such as being able to watch our favorite movies, television shows and music videos on-the-go, an African-American in the White House, and social media.

Some of the negatives, however, are that we face challenges our parents couldn’t possibly prepare us for, such as bullying on social media, how to best present yourself on the internet, and proper text and/or instant messaging etiquette.

If you were to ask me what the most challenging thing about being a millennial right now is, though, it would be building a career. Having, just this month, graduated from Boston’s own Suffolk University cum laude with a B.A. in Theatre, I find simply getting started to be an obstacle. Realizing my media writing ambitions in the latter half of my college life, it was too late to change majors without investing time and money I didn’t have.

A millennial's place in the job market

They have many tools at their disposal, such as technology and the internet, to succeed as they wish in today’s world. But those same tools can also work against them since it has allowed so many potential employers to get stuck in a work bubble that can be hard to break through, constantly texting and emailing their current employees to ensure maximum productivity and always being on the move as a result.

However, just as Steve Jobs started Macintosh in his garage, and J.K. Rowling wrote the first "Harry Potter" book on napkins in a coffee shop, millennials are not only taking every opportunity available, whether it be something made possible through a friend of a friend, or spotting where to submit an op-ed to The Boston Globe, but they are also creating opportunities for themselves.

The internet, for all the toxicity and lies, has also allowed us, millennials, to have a better idea of the fields we wish to join and how we might get to where we want to be -- allowing us to see first hand what connections we might have to that industry, whether it be mutual friends on Facebook or the same followers on Twitter or Instagram. These platforms also allow us to exchange ideas without ever leaving our homes and create something out of just an idea.

From my own account, as an aspiring comedy writer for television, social media and the internet have allowed me to take an in-depth look at the shows I could work for, how the hosts and writers of those shows got their jobs, and allowed me to form my own path by not only watching clips on YouTube, but by following the writing teams on social media and finding articles or videos where they give career advice that I can listen to over and over again.

Millennials are, in many ways, rewriting the book on what it means to have a traditional job and making it much more doable for everyone by being entrepreneurial. We are in the age of telecommuting, which is commonplace today, but wasn’t a decade ago. Who knows what's around the corner for millennials? One thing is for sure, we are willing and able to adapt quickly, thrive, and grow beyond what we are today.
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