There are 60 million millennials in America, and half of them are women, according to census figures. Millennial women are truly a ‘force to be reckoned with.’ They are ambitious, educated, enthusiastic, and determined to succeed in a world that has predominantly been ran by their male counterparts. The women who compose Generation Y are strong and confident, believing adamantly in the direction of their dreams, and brave enough to pursue them. Millennial women are powerful players — bringing to the table vast knowledge, charisma, and an ability to overcome the many inevitable obstacles that head in their way. They have begun to master the once unconquerable: blending work and life. 

There Is Enough TIme

History shows that women have been able to thrive and prosper through the most challenging and adverse circumstances, and that hasn’t changed. Women often find themselves restricted by time, or lack thereof. Not enough time to earn a graduate degree, not enough time to exercise, not enough time to be wed or have a baby, not enough time to travel, not enough time to truly connect with and understand their inner selves.  

Generation Y has challenged that archaic way of thinking, determined to banish it from existence. Armed with the confidence, value system, and unshakable determination, millennial women are proving that they can and will have it all. So long are the days of living in the past, reflecting on what could have and should have been. They making strides to ensure that every misstep along the way is one step forward in the right direction. The only thing there isn’t sufficient time for is living in the past.  

In an article for LinkedIn’s professional series, which asks professionals to share what they’d do differently or keep the same, Arianna Huffington writes that she’d like to introduce her 22-year-old self to the following quotation by the writer Brian Andreas: “Everything changed the day she figured out there was exactly enough time for the important things in her life.” Generation Y recognizes that time is no issue; the only thing can can stand in one’s way is the self. “If only I had learned this lesson sooner,” Huffington writes. “But I hope that by sharing it here, I can make a difference in someone else’s life, and save them from the perpetually harried, stressed-out existence I experienced for so long.” Stress can feel inevitable, but learning to manage it is perhaps the fundamental force pushing millennial women forward. 

Multifaceted Multitaskers

“Forget what you may think you know about our newest generation of working women,” writes Laura Sessions Stepp for The Washington Post. No longer are they the “fretting, overstressed women we’ve been reading about for 20 or 30 years,” she continues. Supported by advanced technological innovation, Gen Y women are transforming and revolutionizes what it means to be a female in the workplace. Today, women are professional multitaskers — they know how to build from the ground up “professional and personal connections that last for years.” 

For women, professional success is often intertwined with personal success, however they choose to define it. Personal success might mean making the time to nurture close, personal relationships, becoming an activist for a worthy cause, or fitting in a weekly fitness routine. Marissa Meyer, president of Yahoo!, has been vocal about her commitment to both her work life and personal obligations, acknowledging that being personally satisfied will only serve to propel professional success forward. In her article “11 Things Daughters of Strong Women Know” for the Huffington Post, Jessica Samakow unknowingly describes the millennial mantra: “Women who define [their] own success, [their] own happiness, and never let anyone get in the way of either.” Millennial women realize the importance of being able to stand on their own two feet, being able to forgive without becoming doormats, lifting themselves up without knocking others down, and never having to apologize for their hard-earned success.

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