The Joy of Being a Perennial
We human beings love to categorize things. And not just because we’re petty or tribalistic (although, admittedly, we often are), but because our brains are hard-wired to put things in buckets to make sense of the world.
This is one of the mind’s most important capabilities; it’s incredibly valuable to be able to tell at a glance whether something is a snake or a stick.
On top of that, we have a deep, psychologically driven need to belong. Seminal work by social psychologists Roy Baumeister and Mark Leary shows that the desire for interpersonal attachments is universal, and we are highly motivated to “resist the dissolution of existing bonds.”
So, you’ll probably not like what I have to say: it’s time to let go of our generational attachments. (There, there, I feel you, as I’m queen of the Gen X bandwagon, but we must admit: segmentation by rote categorization just doesn’t work.)
In the personal growth newsletter I write for weekly, Further, we speak to people of a certain age: those who want to live their best life at midlife. So in our readership, we currently have Millennials, Xennials, Generation Xers, Generation Jones, and Baby Boomers. (Plus, at least a couple from the Silent Generation, if you count my dad and my co-creator Brian Clark’s mom 😜)
The good news is there’s another way to harness the power of both categorization and belonging without pigeonholing ourselves: embrace being a Perennial.
The concept has been around for a while, since 2016 when Gina Pell, co-founder of The What and “Perennial #1,” coined the term. Here’s how she explains Perennials:
We are ever-blooming, curious people of ALL ages who know what’s happening in the world, stay current with technology, and have friends of all ages. The term Perennials is not a fluffy euphemism for relevant people over 40. Millennials can be Perennials. Octogenarians can be Perennials. Even children can be Perennials. I’m talking about a mindset. Not a flat, one-dimensional timeline that runs from birth punctuated by generational barriers designed to categorize and divide us.
Let this really sink in: this is an ageism-defying, inclusive, growth-focused manner of viewing the world. And it’s not merely a way to self-identify — sociologist, political economist, and author Mauro Guillén asserts this as a bona fide socio-economic trend. He sees a post-generational society of Perennials emerging thanks to longer lifespans, improved health spans, and evolving technology.
People defined by how they work, learn, and live, not by when they were born.
I experienced the joy of being a Perennial on a trip to India earlier this year. It was led by a father-daughter team who are both Ayurvedic practitioners, and they each brought their clients. The 20-person group of yoga/meditation students and teachers ranged in age from 28 to 82. By the end of two weeks, we were all fast friends, and several of us forged fruitful work connections. (For the record, the 82-year-old was the only one daring enough to brave the Arabian Sea’s rip tides.)
So, as we’ve been saying for a while, it’s time to reject another outdated categorization: the old learn-earn-retire model. As a Perennial, it’s not just hope that springs eternal; it’s opportunity. So keep reaping and sowing, and by all means, always keep going.
Further exploration:
Move over millennials, perennials are on the march (Financial Times)
Meet the Perennials (The What)
The Perennials: The Megatrends Creating a Postgenerational Society by Mauro Guillén (Amazon, available for preorder)