A few entries ago I wrote about a movie called Waiting For Superman. Today I learned that Jeff Skoll is the man behind it. He funds movies with an angle beyond entertainment; his movies inform, potentially leading to social activism. His films include: Good Night, and Good Luck, North Country, Syriana, An Inconvient Truth, Murderball, Fast Food Nation, The Kite Runner, and Charlie Wilson’s War.
He can fund all these movies because he was the first President of eBay. In 2002, he cashed out for a take of $2 Billion. He was 31 years old when he became the lead of the internet auction house. In his 20s he took some entrepreneurial risks, those successes earned him the eBay opportunity and he is credited with forming the business model the company uses.
Fortune.com is running a theme about leaders under the age of 40. They have a 40 Under 40 piece and a 20 Highest Paid Under 40 section going currently. These people are featured because they are leaders. They are changing the world. And they are young.
As much as the 6.2 million long term unemployed are a long term economic problem for the US, the slowing of the ascension of next generation leaders is as well. There are Pew Research Studies showing a delay in independence in 20 somethings in the US. Here are some stats:
- In 2010, 85% of college seniors planned to move back home with their parents after graduation.
- In 2006, 67% of college seniors planned to move back home.
- In 1970, the age of someone who is not college educated to get married was 22 years old. For the college educated, it was 23 years old.
- In 2008, the age of someone who is not college educated to get married was 28 years old. Same for college educated.
This is important for a variety of reasons, but the two main ones are: it delays leadership chances and it stunts income potential. A study was performed by Columbia University called Elites Research Network. The point of the work was to understand how, or what, made someone elite financially. The seminal finding was most of the people were put in early career opportunities, the type that makes the person a generalist and not a specialist. This advantage, more than privilege or inheritance, is the key to lasting success.
So what does it mean for the US that 85% of college grads are living at home post graduation? Or that marriage on average is 6 years later than it was in 1970? Is 40 the new 30? And if so, without the compounding interest of 401k or pensions does that mean 75 is the new 65?
Working Thoughts 