“Everyone is different” sounds harsher than “everyone is special”. But today parents use the term “special” almost as if to say to their children “because you are you, you may have anything your little heart desires.”
Children raised under that idyllic statement, or “snowflake children,” are taught they are all different. This mentality of entitlement instilled into the modern child will have unfortunate repercussions.
I have noticed increasing numbers of tweens and teens not holding doors for others or not offering a simple “thank you” when doors are held for them. I believe that a reason behind this occurrence is these tweens and teens have been told since childhood they are “special” snowflakes and need not be concerned with what others think of them — so they should not worry about holding doors — and that they already deserve everything they want — so they should not worry about being thankful for those who hold doors for them.
While these are small actions, that simplicity is what proves my claims. It takes very little effort to hold a door or say thank you. Many of these tweens and teens are not told enough to be thankful for the little things others do for them and are instead told they are “special” snowflakes and already are entitled to them.
Some teens entering the workforce expect raises in pay for little to no increase in actual work. In my job at a hot dog and ice cream stand, I witnessed coworkers take many free ice cream samples, eat hot dogs and leave with hot dogs they intended to share with friends.
Here again, we see this sense of entitlement. They are snowflakes and can have what they want even if it is not theirs. They can demand more pay than they deserve. It is wrong to expect this and eliminates the ethic to work to get pay.
It is one thing to feel special and work to improve and benefit yourself and others. It is admirable to use one’s specialized traits for the benefit of society and their fellow man.
However, today’s version of special is that of the snowflake children, where being special means to be entitled to anything one wants without putting in extra work.
Heaven forbid we make our snowflake children work for their extra pay. This is a flaw we have in our modern society. But I remain optimistic that the strong work ethic that we have relied on for decades past will prevail.
