Many define Gen Xers as self-reliant and responsible for that reason. It's also why we consider Generation X to be incredibly independent. Many latchkey kids would have to microwave their own dinners, so, as grown-ups, they're used to doing things themselves. It's also why they're excellent DIYers. Because they would spend much time alone at home without parents, they had to learn a lot of things themselves by trial and error, like plunging a toilet.
In the never-ending battle of who's more entitled between baby boomers and millennials, Gen Xers somehow always get forgotten. It's no surprise that one of their other names is 'The Forgotten Generation' then. But in this war between the workaholics and the 'lazy youngsters,' Gen X are the winners – they're the "work hard, play hard" generation. They saw how their parents valued company loyalty over anything else and set healthy boundaries. Thanks to only burgeoning technologies, they also weren't available to their bosses 24/7.
However, Gen Xers are also said to be cynical and quite pessimistic. That's mostly because of how the political, economic, and social situation was at the time. There was the AIDS epidemic, the end of the Cold War, the first flight of the space shuttle in 1981, and the U.S. Government's war on drugs. That's why sociologists often describe Gen X as cynical.
But it wasn't all bad for Gen X in the '80s. It's the decade when gaming was born: the ultimate gaming experience that is the arcade. Pac-Man, Space Invaders, Street Fighter, and Donkey Kong were all the rage then. And we still know the games to this day. We can also thank the '80s for portable gaming consoles like Nintendo and Sega. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to save the princess in Super Mario Bros, even though I'm way too young to be an '80s kid.
