According to Katherine Senseman, for Gallup News, “Many Gen Zers Missing Sense of Meaning or Purpose in Life.”

And I think I can explain this.

“Most Gen Zers say it is ‘very true’ or ‘pretty true’ that their life has meaning (66%) or that they have a sense of purpose (62%), according to a new survey from the Walton Family Foundation, Making Caring Common and Gallup Voices of Gen Z study.”

Well, that’s a positive thing!

“However, that leaves more than one in three who say it is only ‘a little true’ or ‘not at all true’ that their life has meaning or purpose (34% and 39%, respectively). Taken together, 45% of Gen Zers report lacking meaning, purpose or both in their lives.”

But, who exactly is Gen Z?

“Gen Z is typically defined as those born between 1997 and 2012, making them roughly 14 to 29 years old in 2026.”

Ok, first of all, I wouldn’t expect most, and I did say most, 14 to 18 year olds to have established a true purpose in life, maybe even up to 22 year olds. So, that paints a little brighter picture here.

“These results are from a Dec. 15-22, 2025, survey of more than 2,400 Gen Zers conducted by Gallup in partnership with the Walton Family Foundation and the Making Caring Common project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.”

“Roughly eight in 10 Gen Zers (79%) say they want a job that is mainly focused on helping others or making a positive difference in people’s lives.”

Well, that’s nice, but…

“However, just over half of employed adult Gen Zers (56%) who want such a job say they currently work in one.”

Well, lucky them. That is actually pretty good, I would say.

But again, most people do not have the luxury of having a job that is both fulfilling and financially sufficient.    

I said I believed I could explain this…, so here we go.

The bottom line is, this worry about a “meaningful” job and a “meaningful” life is really a luxury they are allowed to have, because the preceding generations (most of us reading this) have provided an environment that removes most concern about just surviving, affording them the time make a purposeful life the priority, not just being able to support one’s self.

Google AI suggests, “The traditional ‘American Dream’ feels unattainable for many, leading to instability as young people navigate a world without a single guiding narrative.”

I would argue that the ‘traditional American Dream’ is not the ‘traditional American Dream’ anymore.

“Crippling debt, a tough job market, and worries about the future leave many feeling hopeless, occasionally resulting in nihilism (Nihilism is the philosophical belief that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value.).”

Who of us has not faced excessive debt, a tough job market, and worries about the future?

Again, welcome to the club, Gen Zers.

I’m going to go out on a limb here, and describe the Gen Zers we’re really talking about here have been provided for by their families pretty nicely, and have had the opportunity of “higher” learning. I also feel pretty comfortable saying that 99.9999% of these Gen Zers consider themselves democrats.

And like I also inferred, these are self-inflicted wounds our society has asked for, and gotten.

In a way, this was probably pretty much unavoidable. Our own good intentions just didn’t have a chance in the end. And there are always those who are more than willing to take advantage of a situation like this when it presents itself.  

Remember, no good deed goes unpunished.  

However, let’s not overlook the fact that this group is a relatively small group, although it is a shame to lose any of these kids to the dark side.

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