Every generation thinks the next one is out of touch, but todayโs gap feels wider than ever. Youโve got teens living half their lives online, while boomers are wondering why anyone needs to record themselves brushing their teeth. Technology moved fast, culture moved faster, and what was once rebellious is now just routine. If youโre a man who grew up before TikTok ruled attention spans, some of these habits will look straight-up absurd. Letโs be honest, though, part of you wishes you had their confidenceโฆ even if youโre shaking your head while watching it.
Filming Everything Before Living It
Teens canโt just drink a coffee; they need to film it from three angles and maybe narrate the experience. For boomers who grew up with Polaroids saved for birthdays, this looks self-absorbed and bizarre. The question isnโt whether the coffee tastes good; itโs whether itโs Instagram-worthy. For many older folks, this obsession with documenting life instead of living it feels hollow. Itโs a reminder of how different priorities have become.
Living Through Curated Online Personas
Boomers remember a time when who you were at work, at home, and with friends wasnโt broadcasted to the world. Teens now juggle multiple online versions of themselves, polished and filtered. To older eyes, it looks fake, maybe even dishonest. However, teens view it as a means of survival in a digital-first world. This clash between authenticity and performance is one reason older generations roll their eyes.
Chasing Every TikTok Trend
From dance challenges to bizarre food stunts, teens dive into trends that often last no longer than a week. Baby Boomers look at this constant cycle of hype and wonder why anyone would waste their time. It feels exhausting to even keep track. For older men who worked hard for consistency, this jumpy attention span looks like chaos. But to teens, keeping up is part of belonging.
Overusing Filters and Edits
That perfectly smooth face or glowing background isnโt real, and boomers know it. Teens, however, often normalize the use of heavy filters and apps that tweak every feature. To someone who grew up with film cameras, it looks dishonest and a little sad. Why not just be your true self? The disconnect comes from different definitions of confidence and self-presentation.
Doing Things โFor Contentโ
What was once a private joke between friends now becomes a staged video for strangers. Teens arenโt just living life; theyโre producing it. Boomers see this and immediately think, why canโt you just have fun without an audience? To older men, it feels like selling out authenticity. But for teens, documenting life isnโt just fun, itโs an opportunity.
Cancel Culture Callouts
Older generations were taught to let things slide or argue face-to-face. Teens today will fire up a callout post in seconds. To Baby Boomers, this appears dramatic and destructive, blowing small mistakes into full-scale public trials. For teens, itโs a way of holding people accountable. The eye-roll comes from the sense that itโs overdone, constant, and sometimes cruel.
Speaking in Endless Slang
Every generation has slang, but todayโs lingo can sound like another language. Teens say things like โbet,โ โrizz,โ or โcap,โ and expect everyone to keep up. Baby Boomers roll their eyes because communication feels unnecessarily complicated. For men used to straight talk, itโs frustrating. Yet itโs also a reminder that slang is less about clarity and more about a sense of belonging.
Choosing Text Over Talking
Phone calls used to be the standard, but teens now dodge them at all costs. Instead, itโs texts, DMs, and voice notes. Boomers interpret this as avoidance, or worse, disrespect. To teens, calls feel invasive and old-fashioned. Itโs a battle between convenience and connection, and it leaves plenty of older folks shaking their heads.
Ghosting Without Guilt
Disappearing mid-conversation is normal for teens. For boomers, itโs the height of rudeness. Not showing up or ignoring someoneโs message clashes with older values of reliability and courtesy. For men who built careers on follow-through, ghosting feels almost offensive. Itโs proof that standards of respect have shifted.
Living on Subscriptions
Music, TV, even dating appsโteens subscribe to everything. Boomers look at those monthly fees and think itโs financial madness. Why rent entertainment when you could just own it? Teens view access as preferable to ownership. The clash is financial philosophy: build equity versus keep options open.
Needing Mental Health Days
Talking about anxiety, burnout, or skipping school for โmental healthโ is normal for teens. Boomers, raised to โpush through,โ often see it as weakness. But for teens, itโs survival in a stressful, connected world. The eye-roll comes from different cultural definitions of toughness. Yet itโs a sign that priorities have shifted from endurance to well-being.
Delaying Adult Milestones
Driving at 16, moving out at 18, buying a house in your 20sโthat was once expected. Teens today often delay or skip these milestones, sometimes by choice. Boomers view this as a sign of laziness or immaturity. Teens argue itโs practicality in a world thatโs more expensive and less stable. The generational tension lies in different timelines for adulthood.
Obsession with โAuthenticityโ
Ironically, teens talk endlessly about being โreal,โ while curating every post. Boomers roll their eyes at the contradiction. To them, authenticity isnโt something you declare; itโs something you live. Teens, however, are navigating a constant performance where declaring โrealnessโ is part of the act. The gap here is less about truth and more about how truth gets packaged.
Meme-First Communication
Instead of actual replies, teens will send a meme. For boomers, this feels lazy and impersonal. Why dodge the conversation with a picture? Teens see it as humor and shorthand that builds connection. But for older men, itโs proof that conversations are losing depth.
Using AI Like Itโs Normal
Homework, art, even writingโteens casually use AI tools. Boomers shake their heads, remembering when effort was the point. It appears to be cheating or avoiding hard work. To teens, itโs just smart use of resources. The divide comes down to whether you see AI as a shortcut or simply the new normal.
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