Millennial Week Kicks Off and Kicks @ss – #HashTagThat

Millennial Week kicked off last night. Hold on… takes selfie while typing – posts selfie – waits for likes – feels good about self – gets back to writing. #Millennial … What was I saying? Oh yea… so, Millennial Week kicked off last night in DC at the Pepco Edison Place Gallery with an awards reception honoring millennials who are kicking @ss and taking names in the areas of entrepreneurship, culture and community.

Winners were:

• Millennial of the Year: Steven Olikara
• Entrepreneurship: Jonas Singer and Cullen Gifchrist
• Arts & Culture: Ariana Austin
• Social Good: Darla Bunting

You can check out all of the finalists’ profiles here. Enjoy the pics above!

Check out the other pictures from the kick-off HERE.

Thoughts: For a while now, I’ve had a love/hate relationship with millennials (yes, I’m considered one by most standards – but I need you to focus). I think the unpleasant name calling that is associated with the group (millennials are… self-conceited, narcissistic, easily distracted, scared of hard work, fueled by passion and never strategy) are true. Well, true for many. What’s also true is that there are MANY who just don’t fit in those categories or who have used those same traits to create massive change.

Think about it for a second…

• Self-conceited –> Is this another way to say that someone is putting their own interests first for a change? Isn’t that what mama taught us?
• Narcissistic –>  Ever heard of instagram? Who can resist the selfie? Really.
• Easily distracted & scared of hard work –> Seriously, I think that many of the jobs (for example) that have been heralded for ages as  being synonymous with hard work, just aren’t appealing to millennials. They want something different!
• Fueled by passion and never strategy –> Who doesn’t this apply to? Looking a bit deeper, many millennials just want purpose in their lives. You think the founders of Google strategized every goal and accomplishment on day one? #NotAChance They took what they had and let passion take over. The perfect mix of passion and strategy is unbeatable.

Mission: Millennial Week founder, Dr. Natalie Moss, states on the website “Our mission is to cultivate, promote and present the most meaningful ideas and trends that reflect the impact of Millennials on culture, enterprise and society.” Last night, she said that although many celebrations end with the awards program, Millennial Week wants to begin with giving honor to those leaving their mark in the world. How can you be mad at that?

Natalie has a few other things to say as well. We’ll share those things later… after I take this last selfie.

 Today, we’re thankful that labels are only as strong as their interpretations. God bless!