LISTEN. When you don't understand a reference used by a person of a younger generation, respectfully, curiously, ask for an explanation. (Which is a good idea when engaging with someone of any generation, actually.) Graciously accept that people of different generations have different habits and different ways of engaging with the world, and being different is not a blot on their character. Things that are important to my generation are not to another, and vice-versa; that's just how society has evolved ever since we were primitive hominids. My generation's experiences are not necessarily germane to the lives of younger people, who have grown up in a different world.
Figure out what ought to be the smallest possible set of cross-generational values, and judge people accordingly. For example, I was recently reminded of a negative post comment I made about a bride treating a wedding guest badly because the bride thought the guest outshone her in beauty, and thus ruined the bride's "special day". Now, I have many negative opinions about modern weddings (shakes cane). But those opinions don't matter, and I rarely share them. I never share them with people planning their weddings. I do care that people treat others with basic respect, rein in their egos, and be polite or at least civil whenever possible. (That includes brides.) The younger people I regularly engage with tend to do that. Boomers like me and older often don't, insisting that they know better on every topic; they might be polite, but their approach ultimately disrespects the experiences of younger people. And yet, those older people THINK, because they're polite, that's adequate respect. It is most certainly not.
LISTEN. When you don't understand a reference used by a person of a younger generation, respectfully, curiously, ask for an explanation. (Which is a good idea when engaging with someone of any generation, actually.) Graciously accept that people of different generations have different habits and different ways of engaging with the world, and being different is not a blot on their character. Things that are important to my generation are not to another, and vice-versa; that's just how society has evolved ever since we were primitive hominids. My generation's experiences are not necessarily germane to the lives of younger people, who have grown up in a different world.
Figure out what ought to be the smallest possible set of cross-generational values, and judge people accordingly. For example, I was recently reminded of a negative post comment I made about a bride treating a wedding guest badly because the bride thought the guest outshone her in beauty, and thus ruined the bride's "special day". Now, I have many negative opinions about modern weddings (shakes cane). But those opinions don't matter, and I rarely share them. I never share them with people planning their weddings. I do care that people treat others with basic respect, rein in their egos, and be polite or at least civil whenever possible. (That includes brides.) The younger people I regularly engage with tend to do that. Boomers like me and older often don't, insisting that they know better on every topic; they might be polite, but their approach ultimately disrespects the experiences of younger people. And yet, those older people THINK, because they're polite, that's adequate respect. It is most certainly not.