People across social media have long been pointing out the many differences between millennials and GenZ, and now the younger generation have revealed which millennial habits they think make them ‘officially old.’
Between generations, there will always be differences. Whether it’s changing approaches to parenting, with millennials being determined not to make the same mistakes their parents’ generation did, or it’s older generations disliking the new children’s toys on the market and wanting to introduce their own kids to the classic toys they grew up with.
But no generational divide is quite as combative as that between millennials and GenZ. The two generations seem to disagree on everything, taking to social media to argue over which style of jean is the ‘most flattering’ to which way is the ‘correct’ way to part your hair. The differences in opinion are mostly trivial but, for GenZ, they have highlighted the millennial habits that now make them believe millennials are ‘officially old.’ So strap in and try not to feel offended;
1. How you part your hair. According to TikTokers, side hair partings are ‘uncool’ and are a sign of ‘old’ age. The popular 2000’s style has fallen out of favour among the younger generation as many believe the middle part is a more professional and styled look.
2. Your nail shape. Pointed out by New-York based TikToker Chloe Baffert, the shape of nail you opt for when getting a manicure can be a sign of your age, with GenZ prefering a ‘squoval’ or squared-off oval shape over the millennial favourite of plain ol’ oval.
“My fellow millennials, I’m here with a groundbreaking update,” she announced in a video. “Long, oval nails and clearly fake diamond earrings are dead,” she added before saying that the ‘squoval’ shape is an “awakening for all of us” to get down with GenZ’s go-to nails.
One millennial commented, “Not me immediately looking at my long oval nails in absolute horror,” while another stood up for the nail shape, saying, “But long oval nails make my hands look 1000x more feminine!”
3. How you wear your socks. Apparently, ankle socks are a thing of the past, with GenZ exclusively wearing their socks pulled up to at least mid-calf no matter what outfit they’re wearing. If you can’t see a sock peaking out over the lip of your shoe, it’s a dead give away that you’re ‘old’ according to the generation.
“If they’d been as aggressively bullied over the smallest hint of sock as we were, [Gen Z] would never dare,” one millennial fired back, while another joked, “My face tells everyone I’m a 40-year-old millennial…no one is gonna be fooled by my sock choice.”
4. What style of jeans you wear. It’s official, skinny jeans are out. Scrolling though TikTok for just five minutes will show the preference GenZ have for straight-leg and baggier jean styles, with the generation believing them to be more flattering than the skinnier styles favoured by millennials.
5. If you wear eyeshadow. According to TikTok, heavy makeup and ‘glamorous’ eyeshadow looks are a sign of millennial-dom, with the younger generation preferring no make-up make-up looks that focus mainly on glowing skin and bushy eyebrows. The new GenZ look has been dubbed the Clean Girl aesthetic and with a whopping four billion TikTok views, the smooth and plump skin look with defined lashes and fluffy brows is clearly taking off more so than any other style.
6. The slang you use. Slang is perhaps the biggest generational difference between not only millennials and GenZ, but between all generations. A millennial mum recently shared Gen Alpha’s favourite trends from the school pickup, and their slang is barely understandable to either millennials or GenZ. And, even worse, today’s tweens have a list of what they say are ‘old people names’ and we think both GenZ and millennials can agree that the list if hurtful at best!
But between GenZ and millennials, the millennial slang ‘game’, ‘on point’ and ‘vibe’ have all been replaced with new, more modern choices. TikToker Allegra Miles, explained some of the new choices, saying “This one might seem a little abstract but it makes sense in my brain and that’s [changing] ‘vibe’ to ‘type beat.’ You could say, ‘The restaurant has a really intimate vibe’ or you could say ‘It’s a chill Italian-type beat’.”
She also added that ‘on point’ has been replaced with ‘locked in.’ while ‘game,’ referring to someone’s good way of flirting, is now called ‘rizz,’ which is short for charisma.
In other family news, are you struggling to get through to your teen? Dr Becky shares simple trick to encourage teenagers to take your advice. And, are you confused by teenage slang? We share the meanings behind 123 terms your teen might use (and #38 explains a lot). Plus, this is why your teenager thinks you don’t understand them – and how to respond when they yell ‘You don’t understand me!’ in an argument.
