GENERATION THANK U, NEXT

If your life is constantly in flux, you’re not alone. Because Ariana Grande didn’t just name a song, she highlighted an entire generational movement. Liv Siddall sings its praises

When Ariana released her cult song, she didn’t just top the charts – she highlighted a movement. Liv Siddall explores the new millennial mood

They say moving house is one of the most stressful things

you can do. Not for me! I’ve done it eight times in nine years. I’m so amazing at it I should probably put ‘packing my aesthetically beautiful (but largely useless) belongings in an enormous plastic tartan laundry bag’ on my CV as one of my many diverse, ‘kooky’ millennial skills.

There was the time I lived in someone’s front room for nine months, from which the nickname ‘Liv Who Lives in the Living Room’ was born. There was the flat where I had to wipe the mould off the walls before bedtime. And there was the extra-dreamy Peckham apartment I shared with my friend Kieran… only to be evicted one summer at a few weeks’ notice. The trail of houses I’ve lived in looks like an Uber Pool drop-off route on a big night out.

Work-wise, it’s no different. I’ve moved jobs at least every two or three years. I left a near-perfect position as a features editor with the belief that, after my threeand-a-half year stint, I’d become stale. I had another dream job as a magazine editor for two years, which seemed like a long time. In between jobs, I’ve stuck tiles to walls, lectured at universities, helped out at events and written about anything, for anyone, just to earn some cash.

I’ve had six long-term boyfriends, but never one that lasted longer than three years (which is nothing compared to my friend Chris, who has been on 8O dates in the past decade). At 1am, you can find me swiping through hundreds of Stories on Instagram with glazed eyes, not watching any of them in full. Sometimes it feels like the most permanent thing in my entire life is my reusable Keep Cup.

I’m not alone in this. According to the Resolution Foundation, 4O per cent of my generation are still renting at 3O* – so in all likelihood, you, like me, are also familiar with the sensation of lying in a new bedroom, nervously eavesdropping on the movements of new housemates. Meanwhile, employment app Jobs Today recently found that under 29s are expected to stay in a job for just four-and-a-half months. FOUR-AND-A-HALF MONTHS! That’s barely long enough to warrant getting a whip-round from your colleagues on your birthday.

As for our love lives, a survey by Pew Research revealed a typical woman in 1965 was married by the age of 21. In 2O17, that number had risen to 27. Those six years in between? It’s called browsing, Brenda; look it up! Even listening to an entire album seems a bit daunting – it was recently reported that the average song length has fallen by 2O seconds**.

Welcome to Generation Thank U, Next. Ariana Grande may have thought she’d just made an upbeat

“WHY DOES it FEEL LIKE MY PEERS and I ARE SWIPING THROUGH LIFE as IF IT WERE A TINDER SESH?”

“WHETHER CHOSEN or NOT, THIS CONSTANT STATE of FLUX GIVES US the SUPERPOWER of FLEXIBILITY”

hit when she released her phenomenally successful single in November last year (which set a new record when it was streamed 1OO million times in the first 11 days after its release, and, at the time of writing, has racked up 289 million views on YouTube). But, in fact, Ariana was representing an entire generational mood. My theory: those streaming figures aren’t just down to that earworm chorus or quite frankly amazing video, but because

Thank U, Next is basically the story of us and our ever-changing, never-permanent lives.

I’m 3O years old and, if I’m being totally frank, NONE of this was what I expected. My dad was in the same career in the army from age 18 to 52. He and my mum were engaged six weeks after they met, had their first house at 27 and have been married for 44 years. When their toaster breaks, they fix it rather than just buying another on Amazon (did I mention I am unable to keep household items for longer than a year at a time?). Growing up, I assumed I’d spend my twenties in one, maybe two flats – I’d definitely be there long enough to hang up framed pictures. I’d edge my way up a company career ladder, meet someone, ‘settle down’ and drift into adulthood with the same bunch of friends I’d known since uni.

So why does it feel like my peers and I are swiping through life as if it were a Tinder sesh? Some of it is because of forces beyond our control, of course. I didn’t want to move house eight times in nine years. Research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies revealed that two thirds of 25- to 34-year-olds can’t afford to get a mortgage big enough to buy a UK property, while the Resolution Foundation found a third of millennials could still be renting by the time they claim their pensions. Fun!

As my friend Phoebe, 29 (who has moved house 22 times and has worked 35 jobs in the past decade, in roles ranging from nightclub photographer to radio host), puts it: ‘I’ve done a lot of jobs that I love, and many because I just have to make rent.’

The sheer number of options available to us, in comparison with previous generations, is just staggering – whether that’s jobs (just look at how the internet has created hundreds of careers that never existed before) or partners (hello, Tinder, with over 57 million monthly active users worldwide).

With more choice comes more possibility for change. In May 2O18, a survey by LinkedIn found that 8O per cent of workers under the age of 24 would consider a complete change in function or industry, and 68 per cent of those currently in employment admitted to fearing that there may be better options out there. Robert Colvile, whose book The Great

Acceleration investigates the ever-increasing pace of the world we live in, believes that convenience and our quest for it is the driving impulse of modern life: ‘The evidence shows that whenever we’re given the choice between going faster and slowing down, we invariably go for the former.’

This can impact every aspect of our lives, including how we shop: Britons buy more new clothes than any other country in Europe***, and in 2O17, research by the environmental charity Hubbub found that one in six 18- to 25-year-olds were unwilling to wear an outfit again if it had been posted on social media.

It doesn’t stop there. It also affects our love lives. ‘The pace at which we connect and communicate impacts the speed we move on – or give up – on someone if they haven’t impressed,’ argues Nichi Hodgson, a broadcaster, journalist and author of The Curious History of Dating.

So if modern life is turning us into Generation Thank U, Next, what effect does that have on us? ‘Change, whether good or bad, can increase stress and anxiety,’ says clinical psychologist Dr Nihara Krause. Given that statistics indicate we’re one of the most anxious generations in history, it’s not rocket science to point out that this MIGHT have something to do with our unstable lives.

Interestingly, though, it isn’t all bad news. ‘Acceleration is frightening and destabilising when it is something that we feel is being done to us, but it’s exhilarating and rewarding when it is something we feel we have control over,’ says Colvile. ‘For millennials, who have embedded technology in their lives to a greater extent than the generations before them, the result is higher highs, but sometimes lower lows.’

And Colvile is not alone in making this point. Emma Gannon – the writer, podcast host, entrepreneur and author of the best-selling book The Multi-Hyphen Method – also argues that the constant change our generation has experienced actually gives us an edge; at least when it comes to work. She didn’t stay in one job for more than 1O months in her early twenties – deliberately. ‘Hopping around was the most positive, brilliant thing,’ she says. ‘I worked with so many teams, learned how companies do things differently, made more industry contacts, got bigger pay rises, more experience,’ she says. ‘If you feel ready to move on, why wait it out? Life’s too short.’

Without having hopped from job to job or from one bizarre freelance commission to the next, I’d have nowhere near the number of skills (or contacts) I have now. With all my vaguely connected and relatively useful experience, I’m sure I could blag my way into all sorts of interesting roles. Social media? No problem. Strategy? Sure. Design and build an entire website? Erm, I’ll do my best!

Could it be that my generation’s constant state of flux – whether chosen or unchosen – actually gives us the superpower of flexibility not possessed by previous generations? That it’s turning us all into situational gymnasts, able to duck and dive and cartwheel into any position whenever we need? ‘Individuals who are open to change and new experiences are often able to change their behaviour and opinions more easily,’ says occupational psychologist Kirsten Godfrey. ‘In a world that is forever evolving, it is likely to be an advantage.’ Dr Krause also points out that change ‘can help you develop new skills, contribute to curiosity and [build] confidence’.

So perhaps I shouldn’t beat myself up about being young and restless. Yes, I have been known to lust after one-word job titles such as ‘plumber’ or ‘vet’, but I’m increasingly unsure if I’m even programmed to enjoy doing the same thing day in, day out. And yeah, moving house every five minutes kind of sucks, but I am good at it – and maybe it means that if one day I have to move elsewhere because I’ve been offered a dream job or, you know, all the icebergs have melted and London looks

like a scene from The Day

After Tomorrow, I’ll be ready to hop, skip and jump away somewhere new. In a survey by the World Economic Forum, 81 per cent of this generation said they’d move abroad to further their career. If anything, our mobility is just another string to our millennial-pink bows.

It’s time for us to push back against those flaky clichés and point out the positives of our ever-changing lifestyles. Arguably, our generation is better travelled, more experienced, adventurous and dexterous than its predecessors – precisely because of our restlessness. Not to mention our ability to walk into jobs that require the skillset of ten people and smash them single-handedly. In fact, we’re pretty amazing. Thank U, Next!