The Biggest Challenges Facing My Generation

There are 7.125 billion people in this world and more than 3 billion of these people live in poverty (“11 Facts About Global Poverty”). Poverty leads to hunger, disease, and death, and because of poverty, many people are forced to live in poor living conditions and sometimes on the street. Poverty is the result of economic issues and affects many lives. The biggest problem that my generation is going to face in the future is the economy. The weakening economy will be my generations largest challenge because many people will struggle to obtain employment, pay off debt, and must face the current lack of wage growth.
My generation will struggle with obtaining proper employment because of our currently weak economy. In the United States, approximately …show more content…
Debt hurts the borrower and their future. Alex Gomez, a 42-year old who holds a master’s degree in entrepreneurship, has racked up $150,000 in debt, this has caused foreclosure on his house, and dependence on his mother for financial support (White). Student loans slow down the process of getting a house, getting a car, and providing for a potential family. My generation will have to face the fact that as more and more loans are taken out, they postpone their lives. Since the economy is lacking with sufficient jobs and pay, people will be forced to take out loans to maintain their standard of living which will only dig them into a deeper hole. Not only do people rack up personal debt but as a nation we have also racked up debt, and this causes a strain on the economy. According to the article, "Rising National Debt May Be the next Economic Crisis," by Tom Raum, the national debt increases by $1 trillion a year, this debt leads to higher taxes and reduced federal benefits (Raum). Because national debt is constantly increasing, our nation’s economy will become even more dependent on other nations. National debt has a rippling effect and will touch every aspect of the economy and may lead us into another recession. Many people within our nation depend on some sort of financial help in order to survive, but because national debt is increasing many of these individuals will begin to lose funds and may either end up …show more content…
The standard of living has increased yet pay remains in the same range forcing many hardworking Americans to live paycheck to paycheck. My dad works for the city, he has been with this job three years and has not received an increase in wages, yet has received higher “titles.” It’s hard for families to live in the economy we are currently stuck in, and I believe it’s only going to get worse when my generation goes out and tries to have families of their own. Without a rise in pay, many people feel stuck in a hole, and have to pick up a second or even a third job just to pay common bills. The lack of money flow hurts the economy too because people are spending less, thus decreasing demand for certain goods. Many people argue that raising pay will do no good for the economy, claiming that a rise in minimum wage, or wages in general, will create less jobs. In 2014 Seattle raised their minimum wage to $15, this has had no impact on jobs, but has increased money flow in households that were once struggling to pay bills (Bernstein). The current wages are making it difficult for many people to survive, and raising minimum wage -even one dollar or two- wouldn’t destroy the economy any more than it already is, an increase in wages will help consumers purchase goods and live a life. An increase in wages will help the economy move along because demand for products will increase, which in turn would lead to a demand