An American Flag. A projection screen. Bizarre, tacky lighting. The sounds of a convention. Almost a carnival. This is a meeting for the Future Leaders of America.
GRACE Hello future leaders! It is my great honor to welcome you to the 36th Semi-Annual Future Leaders of America Conference. I am Grace Byrnes, your elected President, and I am going to say a couple of words before we begin our retreat. First of all, you’ll have to excuse my hand. In an effort to be well-rounded, I misstepped and am now dealing with the consequences. I won’t fully believe in equal rights until I see a man in a business skirt and heels. That said, I want to congratulate everybody here tonight and tomorrow for participating in these events. The people in this room represent a new generation. Growing up we were told, “Don’t worry about what others think of you.” And boy do they regret teaching us that one because now we are facing a generational vice. Research shows that amongst our peers the central concern for each individual is on the me. The I. The I. The me. Me. I. iPhone. MEphone. My turn. Me first. A line? I don’t have to wait. A price? I don’t have to pay. A test? I don’t have to study. A generation of self-awareness and self concern—where they make what we want and what we want is more me. Facebook. Twitter. All social media. We are the members of a generation that has been dubbed Generation Me.
But as I stand here, in front of my peers, in front of the best and brightest and the most promising minds, I am forced to find the good in us. The good in me. The good in you. And at the end of my search, I have found our redeeming quality. The gem of this generation, and the upside to our selfishness, is the invincibility we espouse. Sure, we may consider that the rules do not apply to us, but for those of us still hungry to succeed in this world, our redeeming quality is that we look at obstacles in the same way. How do we do this? The successful members of Generation Me, the iGeneration, have a secret weapon. This weapon is composed of defiance and denial and greed, and yet is more precious than gold. The weapon, our weapon, is the desire and tendency to answer a simple question: What can I do to make this work? In any situation, what can I do to get what I want? Some people, after college, will move back home and sit in their parents’ basements, blaming the unpredictable economy and the truly bizarre job market. That’s how they will make this world work for them. But not us. The ones who refuse to take no for an answer. We will make our way in spite of the fact that the America this generation has been given is not the America that this generation was told we would get. Is this the land of opportunity? No. Now we’re dealing with the land of strategy. Obstacles? We must see none. Dilemmas? They must be all the more fun. We will succeed. We just have to find a way. And if you don’t want to be a victim of this mess, my advice is to find any way. So after the festivities of tomorrow end, and after we adjourn for another half of a year, I will be proud to be a representative of not only the Future Leaders of America, but more importantly of Generation Me. Like us or not, this is what we’ve got. Who knew hell and high water could be exciting! Thank you. And let’s have fun tonight!