Youth in INDIA and the US: Similarities and Difference
“I care about our young people and I wish them great success because they are our hope for future”.
Dave Berry
As said above Young generation is any country’s greatest asset because they determine in which direction the country will be heading in future. Sooner or later they will be the policy makers. So for a bright future you need to model your young generation right. I belong to a developing country India and being a youth I want to do something for my homeland. Although like any other Youth I am confused. Young age is the time when a person wants to do so many things but he/she usually lacks a plan. Same is the case with the youth of America. Not all but most of them are confused. They want to do something for their nation, their parents, in short for everyone whom they care and respect.
When I landed in this country I was with the perception that Youth in America is spoiled. We watch in movies and read in magazines that American young generation is busy in going to pubs, hanging out with friends in late night parties and possibly all kind of crap which you can think about. But believe me that it is a myth. They do work and they do understand their responsibilities.
The youth here respect and cares their parents. Although they live independent life but usually you will find each and every person of a family in a social gathering. But contrary to the Indian youth they are lot more private persons. Except in a party or without a special occasion you will not find someone hanging out at friend’s place.
I found American youth more focused towards their career/work than Youth of any other country. They know exactly what they want to achieve and they work accordingly. In India we used to complain about the work load but here you will never hear American complaining about the work load. It’s not the case that the work here is less. In short they believe in smart work not in hard work. Believe me we are not as smart as they are. Like a student of engineering in India never cares about the economy of the country but here youth do care because they know their job scenario is directly related with the condition of the market.
American youth is very much concerned and aware about their rights. They cannot adjust anything on that part. Usually we donot argue for our rights. Sometimes we donot know the law and sometimes we donot want to mess, but here every individual knows and argues about the rights provided by the federal government. They also believe in complete law enforcement.
As compared to Youth of India American’s are little bit laid back. I mean sometimes they don’t want to push themselves hard into work. If the machine is broken they will not bother to fix it up even if they can do it. They will wait for the authorized personal to fix it up. While if that thing happens in India people at least show some efforts to fix it up.
Also if you take educational scenario they are spoon feeded. Passing high school certificate exams and Undergraduate exams in United states is just a piece of cake. Even they also know that this spoon feeding is not for their good. They do appreciate the Indian education system. They believe that it makes an individual much more smarter .
But one thing we should really learn from this country is punctuality. Each and every Youth in states is very punctual of time. They will apologize even if they are 10 minutes late. It is considered to be a serious blunder to promise someone and not to be there at the right time. They have not developed these habits overnight. They are taught to be punctual since their childhood.
Another noticeable thing about America is independent life of Youths. It brings in them a sense of responsibility. Usually in India you will not find parents and children living in separate house in the same city .Here in America children move to a separate house in their teenage. Right from that age they take care of their finances. I was pretty surprised students saying that they need to pay their loans after they graduate. They usually take care of their expenses by working somewhere doing some job. Here is the thing no work is menial in America. I never saw someone being hackled because of their work or status. They give everyone their due respect. I never saw Indians saying thank you to a sweeper or a bus driver. But here they do say to them as well for their service.
Now donot think that Americans are made only for work .They party like a rock star. The Friday night and Saturday night concept came from this country only. They believe in relaxing after a strenuous week.
The only weird thing you will notice about American youth is the habit of overreacting. It is strange for me at least, to cry for your favorite team losing a game for whole week. Like when Patriots defeated Giants in the super bowl, the Patriots fans did not showed up for whole week. They went into depression as if they lost a big battle of their life. May be its because they are always protected and pampered. They have not faced as many hardships as we faced while in a developing country. They always found someone to entertain their tantrums.
I am not saying they are better than us. Also whole generation of American youth is not like this. Exceptions are everywhere. We have our own qualities and they have their own. But punctuality, smart Work and awareness are some of the attributes we should learn from Youths of America. It will not only make us a better human being but also help us in reaching our goals easily.
