Millennials are known to do things differently than most other generations, and the way they work is one of them. For instances, millennials are more likely to change careers in their lifetime than almost any other generation.
It used to be that the “norm” for a career looked like the following: You got a job shortly after high school or college, and then you worked your way up the ladder and stayed with that company for the rest of your career. But the days of the loyal “company man” are long gone. In fact, the average person will change jobs 10 to 15 times during his or her career.
Millennials are a large part of this trend. According to recent research from global staffing firm Robert Half, 75% of people ages 18-34 think that “job hopping” could possibly be good for their careers.
Independent research firms surveyed “more than 2,200 CFOs from a stratified random sample of companies in more than 20 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas” as well as more than 1,000 American adults who work in offices for these Robert Half survey results. The researchers defined “Job Hopping” as when a person has changed positions five times in a matter of 10 years.
So why are young people so eager to change jobs?
It seems that one of the biggest reasons millennials change jobs is for more money. According to a survey conducted on more than 3,000 Vietnamese millennials (born between 1980 and 1996), more than two-thirds of respondents said they were considering switching jobs, and 70% said that they would not stay with any given company for more than four years on average. The reasons for this all come back to pay raises.
Another thing that millennials are more likely to do for work than other generations is travel. According to Inc., more than 514 million business trips were taken last year, and more and more of the trips are being taken by younger people.
Right now, the most frequent travels are likely to be under 45 years old. By 2020, millennials are expected to spend $1.4 trillion on travel every year. By that same year (2020), more than 50% of business travelers will be classified as millennials.
Millennials are also more likely to turn their business trips into a vacation. Roughly 50% of them will extend their trips to add in leisure activities. They want to have some fun while their away for business and have no problem mixing business with pleasure.
While these career decisions may be different for millennials than other generations, it cannot yet be said whether they are beneficial or harmful. What can be said, however, is that their decisions have a major influence on society as we know it.
