Riding Backwards

Whenever I get on a train, whether it be the Metro-North, LIRR, Subway, Chicago El, Metra, DC's Metro, etc., I ALWAYS have this tendency of picking a seat that faces the wrong way. Seriously. It doesn't matter if I'm the first person on the train, either. Recently, when I boarded the Metro-North at Grand Central, I was literally the 10th person in line. I got on, thought about it for a while, and sat down in a seat which I thought would be facing forward, in the direction the train was going. No dice. I was riding backwards for an hour and a half.

This little anecdote is actually a very well-intentioned segue into discussing the careers (or lack thereof) of us typical 20-somethings. Throughout the years, it seems as if "finding a career" has become a lot more open-ended. This can be a good thing or a bad thing.

Case in point: Our grandparents' generation (affectionately coined "The Greatest Generation" by Tom Brokaw). These were strong-willed, self-sufficient folks who had no problem sacrificing their lives for their country and their livelihoods for their families. But I guess that's what happens when you encounter 2 World Wars, mass genocide and a catastrophic economic depression.

So when faced with the challenge of returning back to "normalcy" after World War II, many of them settled in Levittowns all over the US, and the men dutifully went to work. What did they do? Anything, really. White-collar jobs were a dime a dozen back then (even though blue-collar jobs were on the rise as well. Hey, the economy was booming people!).

There was also this underlying feeling of conformity. The Interstate Highway Act got rid of leisurely Sunday morning drives, McCarthy, resolute in catching the "big bad Communists," starting looking at anyone crooked if they had a "v" somewhere in their last name, and the average American was sucked into a world of consumerism, white picket fences and Leave it to Beaver.

But there were three things that offered a glimpse into some sort of counterculture (which would later be beaten into the mainstream by their children, the dreaded Baby Boomers): The first was the book (and later the movie) "Peyton Place." It was a story about the lives of people in a seemingly picturesque town in Maine. But, as with many stories about "seemingly picturesque" towns and lifestyles, there was an underbelly of intolerance, sexual violence, and murder. The second came in the form of the book - "The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit," about a man who adopted that white-collar lifestyle. Trouble was, he was suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome thanks to his service in World War II. He later turns down a lucrative position so that he can spend more time with his family. And then, there was this:

Fast-forward about 20 years later, when the "Greatest Generation" was outnumbered by their rebellious, self-promoting children, the Baby Boomers. The Boomers, fresh off the high they got from hearing about the triumphs of their parents, were hell bent on changing the world. Just look in any history book; between 1968 and 1980, it seems as if everyone was protesting something: Vietnam, race relations, women's rights, the Environment, inflation, Nixon - the list goes on. Did they actually accomplish anything, or did they just whine about it? Yes and no.

Thanks to the Boomers (ie, our parents), traditional social mores were altered, and the best part about all of that included the changes in the workplace, especially for women. Women began to take charge of their careers, and stepped into executive and creative roles. One example? Cathie Black, the president of Hearst magazines, and author of Basic Black. In an industry perpetuated by grit, smoke and testosterone, she climbed the corporate ladder as an ad sales representative. She is known as the woman who made USA Today the extremely successful paper that it is today (not the most high-brow paper, but it's the one publication that everyone gets at hotels). I guess you could say that the Boomers "paved the way" for us. Which is a good thing.

The bad thing? Our generation is, unfortunately, left with the consequences. Since our parents were open-minded themselves, they taught us to be the same way. "You can do anything you want!" they used to tell us (or, if you didn't hear that, you instinctively knew that, save for financial implications, you could, feasibly, do anything you wanted). Now, how is that a bad thing? We expect not only freedom, but perfection.

Much like our parents, we tend to whine a lot. Why can't I get that great job? Why can't I get more responsibility? Why can't I figure out what I want to do with my life, and why is it hindering me from being happy in the meantime? What is the "path" I should take? Basically, we have a lot of unanswered questions, anxieties, and doubts. Personally, I feel as if these doubts are hindering me from doing well at my current job; and, because I'm a perfectionist (that goes without saying), I find it difficult to gain any perspective. Yeah, my ideas have a general theme (writing and moving pictures), but that can fall into a lot of categories (TV news, TV entertainment, on-air promotions, film school, screenwriting, advertising, etc).

So here's the question: why do we all feel like we're taking 2 steps back, when we're supposed to be taking 2 steps forward? When will we stop "riding backwards" and start making progress? Does anyone really make any kind of progress in their 20's, or is it all supposed to lead to something extraordinary?

I guess we're going to have to adopt something else that our parents never fully adopted: patience. Or, at least the knowledge that we don't always have to make the "right" move. Being right all the time is overrated anyway; I'd much rather take risks, make mistakes and learn from them.

Now if only I can learn how to ride forwards on a train. I'm starting to get seasick.