Baby boomers sparked outrage by describing Generation Z as “lazy, weaklings” – but three successful young Australians hit back with the ultimate answer: “Look at us now”.
A female miner, a former surf instructor and a real estate co-founder focused solely on helping young people break into the property market are among a host of entrepreneurs under 30 to reveal their extraordinary success to Daily Mail Australia. .
There was a furore on social media recently after a business guru claimed that “old-fashioned boomer managers” were forcing younger employees to quit in the wake of the post-Covid job crisis phenomenon known as “the Great Resignation”. It was formed between generations.
That anger has led boomers to respond to Gen Z “lazy” — a sociological term to describe the generation born between 1997 and 2012 — who complain about their working conditions.
Some ‘boomers’, those born between 1946 and 1964 during the economic and demographic ‘boom’ years, have claimed that younger workers are ‘weak’, clueless about the real world and often produce ‘substandard’ work. .
But GoDaddy/Antenna research revealed an entrepreneurial spirit when it surveyed young Australians aged 18 to 24.
The survey found that Gen Z is ready to work for themselves and take a pay cut if it means more freedom to pursue what they love.
“They are technologically equipped, formally educated, globally connected and the most socially aware generation in history,” said demographer and social researcher Mark McCrindle.
Daily Mail Australia talks to three entrepreneurs who sacrificed their hard work to prove the so-called ‘boomers’ wrong.
Young entrepreneur Abby Wilson (pictured) continues to work full-time in the mines after founding her own clothing and accessories company.
Bruno Pedrocco Novo (right) and Joan Speckelman (centre) introduce The Apprentice Australia winner Andrew Morello (left) as their mentor.
Founded by millennials to open the doors to home ownership for Gen Z
Bruno Pedrocco Novo, 28, got into real estate straight out of college and quickly rose through the ranks as a senior investment advisor.
He saw a gap that wasn’t meeting the future needs of the real estate market, and in early 2019, he co-founded One Central Property with fellow millennials Joanne Speckleton and Jordan Zapata.
Millennials are those born between 1981 and 1996.
The Sydney-based property investment firm has grown to a six-figure business in two years and is on track to hit $1 million in revenue for the first time in 2023.
He told Daily Mail Australia: “We realized that the property industry was not responding well enough to the needs of Gen Z and millennial customers, as many first-time buyers were feeling discouraged and on the journey. They did not have access to the support team themselves.”
Younger generations will be the primary buyers and owners of property as they downsize and sell their assets for retirement.
“We wanted to bridge the gap that agents/consultants faced when entering the real estate market.”
His clients have seen $70,000 in capital growth in the first 12 months.
Bruno Pedrocco Nuovo and Joanne Speckleton, founders of One Central Property, hope to hit seven figures this year.
The trio faced many challenges while growing the company with limited capital during the Covid-19 pandemic, but working remotely eliminated office space costs.
As Mr. Novo focused solely on building and reinvesting in the business, his co-founders took on second jobs.
“During the first year of our business, we worked every weekday and weekend and missed social events with friends and family, attending them only for very special occasions,” she said.
“In order to save money, we rarely went out, shopped, or ate, so whatever money we made we put back into the business to grow each month. “
Covid-19 The pandemic and quarantine also brought a significant challenge, but it turned out to be a blessing.
We were really able to be faster during this period, we had less overhead, plus we had more leads than ever before, so we really started to have commercial success during this period because people embraced the idea of buying property this way and we were able to trust With Mr. Novo added, our customers, even without meeting in person, or even visiting the property site or seeing inside.
Mr. Nove focused solely on building and reinvesting in the business, while his co-founders took on second jobs.
Mr. Nove believes that the misconception about young people is partly because the younger generation prefers to communicate digitally rather than face-to-face.
He urged everyone, young and old, not to base their entire thinking about certain generations on previous encounters.
“I think a lot of older generations think that young people only work when they love it and therefore they haven’t made the same sacrifices as older generations, they’re not successful,” Mr Nove said.
There is also a perception that young people do not take feedback well from older people and tend to ignore their advice.
Regardless of their generation, everyone has their own unique experiences and challenges that shape their life path towards their attitudes and behaviors. Ultimately, we are all striving for happiness and success in life, but the path to get there is different.
He is also grateful for advice from business coaching firm The Entourage.
Founded by Jack DeLusa, Australia’s largest provider of business coaching and training that has transformed over 3,500 businesses in over 150 industries.
Andrew Morello, the inaugural winner of The Apprentice Australia, coached the trio.
A break from work injury revives the miner’s plans
A passion for fashion and design inspired Dust & Bullets Western.
Miner Abbey Wilson, 24, from Dungog in NSW’s Hunter region, founded the clothing and accessories company for hard-working Australians like herself while on extended leave due to injury two years ago.
The business generated $70,000 in revenue in the first 12 months and expects to double that figure in the second year.
“It’s always been a dream to be my own boss and when I was out injured I was so bored that I used the time to design and do what I love,” says Ms Wilson.
I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that the social media business would grow to the extent it has.
Ms. Wilson still runs the business by working full-time in the mines.
“Besides spending all my savings on the business, the other major sacrifice is deciding how to spend my free time outside of work, whether I go out and party with friends or spend that time on the business,” he said.
This is an easy choice.
Miner Abby Wilson’s dream has always been to be her own boss – and she’s making a lot of sacrifices for it.
Dust & Bullets Western grossed $70,000 in its first 12 months and is expected to double that figure in its second year.
He added that he wouldn’t be as far as he is without his mentor on The Entourage.
“There’s a lot to running a business and my mentor gave me the confidence and support I needed,” she said.
Ms. Wilson believes that older generations are entitled to their opinion, and says that the work ethic of those her age depends on how they were raised.
“My parents instilled in me the hard work ethic, I always wanted to be busy,” he said.
“I have done it alone.”
Ms. Wilson hopes to quit mining this year and focus solely on Dust & Bullets Western. It starts as plans to expand the range of products.
Abby Wilson (pictured) believes older generations are entitled to their opinion
Watching TikTok and YouTube videos in locked mode becomes a powerful idea
Duke Kelleher, 23, admits some of his mates think he’s crazy for spending his days mopping driveways and houses while they study at university and go to the beach.
“They think I’m an idiot,” he laughed.
He is also not worried about what the older generations think.
“It makes my life easier and not having to worry about them,” he said.
Former surf coach and friend Jaime Vives founded pressure washing company Mighty Mates after losing their jobs during the Covid-19 pandemic last year.
The couple from Sydney’s Northern Beaches spent their quarantine watching YouTube and TikTok videos to learn soft power washing skills.
Mates Duke Kelleher and Jaime Vives learned powerful soft-washing skills using TikTok videos and co-founded Mighty Mates.
Jimmy Vives (left) and Duke Kelleher (right) found the Mighty Mates during Quarantine 2021.
They found a market of homeowners looking for an alternative solution to the impact of pressure washing on their homes, roofs, driveways and tennis courts.
Then they bought second-hand items and collected furniture from the street.
A year later, they are making over $15,000 a month and are booked weeks in advance.
Work is different every week. Mr. Kelleher said we might make $3,000 doing a few driveways or $10,000 doing five houses.
Every customer is new. Because if there are no repeat customers for the next three years
Mr. Kelleher’s co-founder, Mr. Vives, recently left the business to start his own digital marketing business, turning it into a one-man group.
“The goal next year is to get another truck and three more employees,” he said.
Mr. Kelleher had this advice for shipping entrepreneurs.
“Get up, start knocking and be simple.”
Young entrepreneur Duke Kelleher earns more than $15,000 a month
