YOU, too, might know of Generation Y, echo boomers, millennial generation or generation next.

YOU, too, might know of Generation Y, echo boomers, millennial generation or generation next.

This is the generation that was born from the 1970s to 2000. The oldest echo boomer is 40 years old and the youngest is 10. These people are impatient. They say: "We want it and we want it now!"

I am one ; a generation whom statistics say cannot keep a job. This is sadly true because most of us have already been through two careers and have already started a business or two and more than anything else, we are very impatient and want success - as early as yesterday.

Truth is, this is an interesting time for the highly ambitious, impatient types.

If you wish to run a successful business, you don't need office space, only a laptop, cellphone and a good corner cosy eatery in a mall to meet clients and do good, honest business.

Otherwise, this is a time to make a million. All you need is to just win one tender and you're well on your way to being listed as a millionaire.

The ease with which some of us make it big these days has cost this generation one of the most important moral values: patience!

We are in such a hurry to make it big, it is as if we are afraid that time is running out. Which could be true. Financial experts say that if you stop working at age 40, you would have to have a minimum of R33million on which to live for the next 40 years. So, we are truly pressed for time, aren't we?

Competition has moved from black and white, men and women to chiefly between generations. We are not in competition for tangible successes, but seemingly in contention with the methods used to attain the successes.

Could it be all because some methods take too long to attain the desired results? Or could it be because our quests for success are actually races against time.

So there you are. An echo boomer ready to take on the world. With all that you have, and you want to make it big today. Well, if you are going to make it big in the short space of time allocated to yourself, here is what you should know.

You shouldn't do what you do to attain success, because you are not in competition, but you you should do it because you are good at it. While you are at it, help up those around you who show potential.

Also, it should not be because you want to make a quick buck. You should do it because, if you work at it and work at it, you will reap better benefits.

If you are successfully going to say: "I want it, and I want it now!" Understand that success is not entirely about hard work, but about working smart . And being honest and shunning short-cuts.

This week, take every effort and opportunity to use the 24 hours allocated to you every day and make it big ... Or, go home and risk being labelled a lost generation!

l The writer is a university student and a Sowetan nation-building projects ally who spends his free time empowering fellow youths through motivational talks and literature