Why the Rise of “Snowflakes” is a Silicon Valley Story
“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity, and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen.”
— Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, Death: The Final Stage of Growth
When I hear people complain about “snowflakes,” the three traits I hear most consistently described are as follows:
- They are open about avoiding threats to their sense of well-being, particularly when they have reason to believe it will be endangered.
- They are unafraid to engage in exuberant self-expression.
- They are willing to show sensitivity.
Why would someone take on these traits?
And why are these traits being vilified in the first place?
Older people bemoaning that the younger generations simply don’t get it is, of course, not new — it is thousands of years old, and those older people were in turn bemoaned by their elders. Nothing surprising there. But there is one aspect of this particular manifestation of the phenomenon that is novel: “the problem with kids today”…
