I am terrible at naming things. I scoff at every suggestion, and end up with nothing. I lead a small group for young adults here that’s called the “Career Group.” I’d like to find another name that is more descriptive, but I can never land on something.
Think about how badly named the generations are:
– The Builder Generation – Despite what they would tell you, they did not create any of the following: America, democracy, freedom, hard work, or frugality. Admittedly, this is less vain then what they would prefer to be called: The Greatest Generation.
Some alternative suggestions:
1. The World War II generation
2. The Capitalism generation
3. The Hymns generation (Church only)
The Baby Boomers – Yes, there are a lot of them. But shouldn’t the baby boom generation monikor refer to their predecessors, the one who were creating the boom? Besides, the current generation being born is larger in numbers.
Some alternative names:
1. The Woodstock generation
2. The Vietnam generation
3. The Praise Chorus generation (Church only)
Gen X – Okay, this one really confuses me. First they were called “Busters,” because they ended the baby boom. Not really their fault though. Then they’re renamed Gen X. Why? It seems like the X is a placeholder that was never filled in. I understand it’s drawn from the name of a novel that I’ve never read. Whatever. We can do better.
Some alternative names:
1. The MTV generation (Remember when they showed music videos? Really, you do? You must be over 30)
2. The Cold War generation (Probably could apply to the artists formerly known as the Boomers, too, but I’m using it here)
3. The Short-Term Mission Trip generation (Admittedly a bit long. STeMP for short? No, no one likes that?)
Millennials – First off, I much prefer this to Gen Y, which was a lazy attempt to extend the unnecessarily named Gen X. At least Millennial is distinctive. But this should refer to those born in the new millennium, shouldn’t it? Premature nomenclature, I say!
Some alternative names
1. The Global generation – Between the internet, increased free trade, the end of the Cold War, the EU, and the industrialization of China and India, this generation is used to the idea of a global village.
2. The Digital generation
3. The Holistic generation (Church only) – The number of times I’ve heard millennials dismiss verbal evangelism with the preference for meeting “real needs” would stun a herd of Baptists in their tracks. Good and bad, certainly.
Any I missed?
Bob Wriedt 
Stop naming generations before they do anything. I am sorry I didn’t stop Hitler, he was kind of dead before I was born.
I rememeber a news “story” sometime in the mid 90s about how lazy and unimpactful Generation X was. My thought at the time was “We aren’t even out of college yet, of course we haven’t impacted the world (read work place/military) yet!” Roughly five years later there was another “story” about the positive impact of Gen X ont he workplace.
And yes I remember music videos on MTV (heck I remember when it was a new station), and have been on three short term mission trips (and am thinking about a fourth).