You know you’re a boomer if these 10 things annoy you about younger generations

This isn’t a roast.

It’s a translation guide.

I’m a forty-something who grew up with dial-up and now lives on Wi-Fi, so I hear both sides daily.

If these ten things make your eye twitch, you’re probably a boomer—or at least boomer-adjacent.

Let’s unpack what’s really going on and how to bridge the gap without losing your mind.

1. Constant phone use in every setting

If someone pulls out a phone at dinner, in a meeting, or while you’re midway through a story, it can feel like a snub.

To many younger folks, the phone isn’t “distraction”; it’s a Swiss Army knife—calendar, map, camera, notebook, wallet, social hub.

They aren’t checking out; they’re context switching.

Try this move: agree on “phone on the table, face down” for meals or “ten minutes fully present, then a quick check.”

Setting a small boundary beats stewing about “kids these days.”

2. “Quiet quitting” and strict boundaries

Clocking out on time and refusing after-hours email can read like low effort.

For Gen Z and younger millennials, it’s not laziness—it’s a reaction to watching stressed-out parents burn out.

They treat boundaries as basic hygiene, not rebellion.

If you lead a team, trade clarity for flexibility.

Clear goals, clear deadlines, and then room for life.

You’ll get the output you want without the resentment you don’t.

A boomer manager I know griped that his Gen Z hire “leaves at five on the dot.” I asked what was due and when. He said, “Sometime next week.” We added a simple line to the brief: “Draft by Wednesday 3 p.m., edits by Friday noon.” The hire started checking out at five—and still hit every mark.

The manager got the throughput he wanted. The vibes improved because “five o’clock” stopped being a referendum on work ethic and started being a non-issue inside a clear plan.

3. “You never call—why do you only text?”

Calling feels respectful if you grew up with landlines.

To younger people, an unscheduled call can feel like someone knocking and walking in.

Texting first is their version of asking, “Is now a good time?”

Try a compromise script: “Got a quick question—free for a 5-minute call now or after 7?”

You’ll get the conversation you want without sounding like a telemarketer.

4. Casual dress creeping everywhere

Hoodies in offices. Sneakers at weddings. Athleisure on planes.

If formality equals respect in your head, this looks like decline.

But the modern read is “function first, then polish.”

Sneakers can be clean, minimal, and more expensive than brogues.

Set codes that match stakes: “Client meeting = smart casual. Friday = anything tidy.”

Elegance still counts—just don’t confuse comfort with contempt.

5. QR menus, kiosks, and tip screens

Boomers often hate the friction—“Just give me a menu and a human.”

Younger folks accept the kiosk as faster, cleaner, and mistake-proof.

Both truths can live in the same café.

I took my dad (boomer) to a new spot that only had QR menus. The table rocked, the Wi-Fi lagged, and the tip prompt hit us before water. Dad grumbled, “I came out to avoid screens.” I waved a server over and said, “Could we order with you?”

She smiled and walked us through like it was 1995. Food arrived sooner than the surrounding tables, and dad left a generous cash tip. On the way out, he said, “I don’t hate new; I hate feeling dumb.” That’s the crux. Where you can, give people a dignified analog ramp.

6. Slang, fillers, and the ever-present “like”

“Low-key.” “It’s giving.” “I’m obsessed.”

If language drift grates on you, congratulations: you care about words.

But slang is a feature, not a bug.

It marks in-groups and compresses meaning, the way your generation used “cool,” “right on,” or “far out.”

If you want clarity, ask for one level up.

“What does ‘low-key’ mean here—important or optional?”

You’ll get translation without sounding like the word police.

7. Short attention spans and second-screening

Switching between TikTok, a podcast, and three chats looks like distraction theater.

Younger brains were trained in feeds; they snack on inputs and expect highlights fast.

Is that always great? No.

But it’s adaptive to the environment they live in.

On mixed-age teams, set rhythm rules: 25-minute sprints, 5-minute breaks, phones parked.

Make deep work a culture, not a scold.

I’ve mentioned this before, but attention is a currency; budget it together or the market budgets it for you.

8. Job-hopping and “I’m only staying a year”

Loyalty to a company made sense in an era of pensions and predictable ladders.

Today the ladder is a rock wall.

Younger workers climb by moving sideways every 12–24 months.

It’s not disloyal; it’s market-logic.

If churn annoys you, build projects with 3–6-month arcs and rituals for handoff.

People will still leave, but the knowledge won’t.

9. “We can’t say anything anymore”

Language norms shifted.

Newer generations emphasize harm reduction and identity accuracy in public speech.

If you grew up roasting friends and reading thicker skin as virtue, this can feel like walking on eggshells.

Two moves to keep your sanity:

1. Ask for examples. “Which terms are dated here? I’d rather learn than guess.”

2. Keep your humor. Observational, self-aware jokes still land.
   Punching down doesn’t.

10. Filming everything instead of “being present”

Phones up at concerts. Videoing a first dance. Recording a sunset.

It looks like they’re missing life in order to capture life.

But the camera is also a social token: proof you were there, something to share, memory insurance.

If you want a different vibe, set a pocket rule for your event: “First minute, take your shot. Then pockets for the rest.”

You’ll get both souvenirs and eye contact.

What’s really underneath the annoyance

Annoyance is usually a proxy for three fears:

• Loss of control. You once knew the rules; now they keep changing.

• Loss of status. Your way of doing things used to be “right.” Now it’s “dated.”

• Loss of intimacy. Phones, slang, and new norms make familiar spaces feel foreign.

Name the fear, and the heat drops.
From there, you can decide what’s preference, what’s principle, and what’s just new paint on an old wall.

Bridge phrases you can steal

• “Help me understand the why here.”

• “I can flex on the method if we’re crisp on the outcome.”

• “Let’s agree on timeboxes—present for X, phones for Y.”

• “Teach me the term; I’ll use it right.”

• “I need a voice call for this one. When’s good?”

Two quick experiments for mixed-age households or teams

1) The meeting menu.
Offer three formats before a discussion:

• 15 minutes on voice with cameras off (focus).

• 20 minutes on Zoom with live doc (collab).

• Async doc comments by EOD (flex).
  Let the owner pick.
  You’ll get buy-in and fewer “why are we even here?” moments.

2) The event phone rule.
At dinners, concerts, or family days, try “one minute to capture, then pockets.”

Post later.

Notice how the energy in the room sharpens when everyone agrees to be present at the same time.

A note on respect going both ways

Younger readers, if you’re here: respect isn’t an antique.

Showing up on time, looking people in the eye, answering a call when someone is clearly distressed—these aren’t boomer artifacts.

They’re human basics that make collaboration smoother and relationships sturdier.

Boomers, if you’re still reading: some of the stuff that bugs you is here to stay.

Phones.

Flex schedules.

Casual uniforms.

You can waste energy policing them, or you can define the outcomes you care about and let the method modernize.

The bottom line

You know you’re a boomer if the phone, the hoodie, the text message, the boundary, the slang, the job hop, the tip screen, the second screen, the pronoun correction, and the selfie stick raise your blood pressure.

But you also know you’re wise if you can sort what’s a true standard from what’s just unfamiliar.

Pick one annoyance this week and upgrade your response.

Ask for the “why.”

Offer a clear outcome instead of a rigid method.

Set a small, humane boundary and honor theirs, too.

Elegance in cross-generational life isn’t agreeing on everything.

It’s agreeing on how you’ll disagree—and still move forward together.