As #relatable as the aimless millennial memes are, I have a bone to pick with the kind of attitude they encourage. Mainly, the idea that since we’re young and learning to adult we must all be dispassionate snowflakes merely drifting through life. The inverse conclusion is that anyone not in this group are “try hards,” and are lame for putting in effort, which is one of the most bizarre things to put down.

If you’re one of these “try hards”, being surrounded by a culture of apathy can be disheartening. But you know what? You’re doing great, and no one should take that away from you.

You Should Never Apologise For Being Passionate

If you’ve ever tried to be productive, you know how fleeting motivation can be. So if someone’s found a constant source to draw from, why do we feel the need to stamp that out by belittling it?

If you have found a passion that makes you want to get out of bed every morning and work your ass off, you should never feel guilty for it. Protect it at all costs.

Being Lax Isn’t Cool

I think we’re all over the idea that the kid who doesn’t try in class is the cool one. By the time we get to uni, they’re just the idiot who’s wasting time and money.

You hear people brag about how little they studied before the exam, and I get it: If you don’t study and succeed it’s a pleasant surprise, and if you don’t study and fail you have something to point to. It’s not like you cared anyway, right?

If you put in effort you set yourself up to make failure sting more, but you also stand to make your success even sweeter. So if you’re standing there with extensive notes by your side and hours of study behind you, pat yourself on the back for taking ownership of both your success and failure.

We’re All On Our Own Timelines

We often use this mantra to justify the tempestuousness of our 20s, but I feel that it applies in the inverse situation as well. We’re all going at our own pace, and not every uni student or millennial is coasting without direction. So we shouldn’t make them feel bad for finding their passion early, or finding passion in their current pursuits.

Who knows, maybe this just means I’ll burn out at 30 and it’ll all even out in the end.

Everyone Secretly (Or Not So Secretly) Wishes They Were As Together As You

Let’s be honest here, we use humor to make truths easier to swallow. These memes exist because they’re real concerns we don’t want to confront, and the relatability of them makes it okay because everyone else is in the same boat. Thus, the cycle continues.

So if you ever feel bad about trying hard, just remember that everyone is out there trying to find what you already have. You’re killing it.

Don’t get me wrong: there is absolutely nothing wrong with being lost in your 20s, or anytime in your life for that matter. But there’s equally nothing wrong with hitting the ground running. So to all my try hards, don’t let the memes get you down; go out there and grab life by the neck.

(Lead image: Harry Potter/Warner Bros)