Pew Research came out with a great report last week showing that Millennials views of technological advances are not that much different than other generations…that most agree, we have moved in a positive direction on this front.

You can read the full report here.

I will start this post by saying that I am totally in love with the new show Glee.  Just don’t ask me to do anything on Wednesday evening if it involves staying out past 9:00 Eastern, because at 8:59, I am sitting in front of my television, waiting on the edge of my seat, tuned into FOX,  to learn how the plot will thicken and what songs will be performed for the week.

When I saw the ads last spring, I thought “Oh brother…this is going to be so corny.”  Boy…was I both right and wrong.  The show is just downright quirky…with a cast of characters so interesting and complex,  a creator just simply cannot “make up”…they are characters from real life as we know it today.

If you have not yet watched the show, Glee is an offbeat look at the caste system that is more often than not carved out in high schools all over the world and the problems which come with being both high school students, teachers, coaches and of course…the principal.  The unique thing about the show is that it revolves around the high school glee club, so each week, viewers get to be delighted with some of THE best musical and dance talent I have seen on television or on broadway in a long time (American Idol...maybe you should be looking at some of these kids…eh…they’ve already made it!)  And…I have to say as a Baby Boomer, the selection of songs crosses all generations…there is literally something for everyone!  I love it when a song by Journey or Queen makes it onto the show.

Now then, I have not performed any formal research on this topic today, but I am hearing from college age kids and 20-somethings from all over the country that they are just in love with the show.  It is gathering a following of eager watchers (both young and old) and has landed in the top 10 television rankings in its first two months of the season on TV.com.  The show was pre-empted for a few weeks by the world series (which really upset me…I am not the biggest baseball fan, and they kicked my favorite show off for 3 weeks,)  so I will be eager to see how the show lands in the Nielsen ratings come May, 2010.

But…let me give you a bit of insight.  If you want to know how to reach a 20-something audience…if you want to know how to market to them, attract them as consumers and really get inside their minds, you have to watch this show, and here’s why:

1.  The diversity in the cast of characters. Look at this photo to the right.  I do believe we have a very nice diversity of backgrounds in this cast of characters.

You can get the full rundown on the cast of characters through the Glee Wiki, but let me just give you a few of the highlights of the cast:

Rachel Berry: Rachel was a surrogate baby, and she has two dads.  They picked a surrogate based on intelligence and beauty. They gave Rachel everything she needed to become the star she is destined to be in the near future.

Finn Hudson: Finn is captain of the football team and WAS a closeted singer until Glee Club coach Will Schuester recruited him to join the club.

Mercedes Jones:  Mercedes is an African American diva who loves her weave and can’t stand it when anyone else is in the spotlight.

Puck: Puck is the “bad boy” in the club…plays football, cleans pools and underneath that bad boy image is a pretty soft heart and a spirit to succeed (at any and all costs!)  Puck is also Jewish.

Tina Cohen-Chang: Tina is a shy Asian American Goth who is wrestling with a few self esteem issues.

Kurt Hummel: Kurt is a young gay man with a soprano voice.  He recently came out to his dad (who has had a big hunch that Kurt was gay as early as age 3…but Kurt just recently had the big conversation with Dad over the last few weeks.)

Artie Abrams: Artie is paralyzed from the waist down and is living in a wheelchair (the things the directors have done to work his wheelchair into dance routines is sheer brilliance!)  Artie’s handicap does not stop him from letting his electric guitar rip (will blow you away!)

Quinn Fabray: Quinn is a cheerleader, the president of the celibacy club and is against anything that goes against the morals and the Bible.  Finn is her boyfriend, but she is carrying the child of someone other than Finn (but he does not know that the baby was fathered by someone else.)

As we all know, Gen Ys are very open and accepting of a diversity of people (as a matter of fact, life is pretty boring when things are homogeneous.)  So, this cast of characters does indeed represent the millennial generation, makes them feel at home and spices things up.  We have a little bit of everything, and the show has not shied away from topics such as teen pregnancy, homosexuality or prejudices against race or the handicapped.

2. A bit quirky…AND a great deal of irreverence. To the right, we have the folks in charge.  Principal Figgins (who is a bit clueless at times but can bring down the hammer when needed,) Sue Sylvester (cheerleader coach) and Will  Schuester (Glee Club coach.)  If you think the whispers in the ear are romantic intimacies…think again…Sue and Will are constantly plotting on how to get the other one back,  threatening, fighting and being called into the principal’s office for bad behavior.   I sometimes wonder who is more mature…the faculty or the kids.  But isn’t that true in life as well?

The things that come out of Sue Sylvester’s mouth are just downright irreverent, but you find yourself laughing out loud every week (kudos to the writers on this one character!)  At the end of the day, most Gen Ys will tell you that they are attracted to the quirky, offbeat and sometimes irreverent approaches…remember, Gen ys have seen it all, so nothing shocks them!  So, the shock value penetrates the same old, same old that they hear every day.

3.  Pure talent and entertainment. Gen Ys have been exposed to SO much great talent in their lifetime.  They can watch just about anyone perform on You Tube, so they have an ingrained need for constant stimulation, love to be entertained and the entertainment needs to be really great.  The Glee cast is just about the most talented group I have seen in a very long time, and the Gen Ys I am talking with are impressed.  If you go to the Glee wikipedia site, you can read the professional backgrounds of the cast, and it is one impressive group of people.   Here is just one video from the premiere of the show this past spring…their performance of Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey.

So…as I have now stated…if you want to know how to strike a chord with Generation Y, sit down this Wednesday evening and watch Glee:  Fox at 9:00 Eastern/8:00 Central.

I had the honor of speaking to the East Tennessee AIA today on the topic of Coaching at the Speed of Y: How to Design a Successful Reverse Mentoring Program for Developing the Millennial Careerist.

The audience was fantastic, and Generation Y was WELL represented…several Gen Y leaders from the University of Tennessee (super sharp!) .  At the end of the presentation, one young man came up to show me he had already located the information I presented on his blackberry…no surprise there.

If you are an architect and live in the Knoxville, TN area, I encourage you to get involved in this group…quite progressive in their thinking and a group of truly consummate professionals.  For more information, go to East Tennessee AIA.

As a parent of two UNC students, and a resident of NC, I want to officially congratulate the Tarheels on their win last night.

If you have not heard about Franklin Street (a huge part of the campus), things go a bit crazy after a big win like this, as you can see from this video.

Franklin Street: The Celebration from The Daily Tar Heel on Vimeo.

Leave it to President Elect Obama to launch an essay contest for tickets to witness history being made on January 20.
To qualify, entrants must submit an essay at www.pic2009.org/tickettohistory that answers the question: “What does this inaugural mean to you?”

Great approach for Gen Ys who certainly know the essay process to the nth degree.

“While four five-minute clips do not a movie make, it’s safe to say that Abrams’ Trek will be younger, brighter, busier and more frenetically paced than any previous incarnation.”

For all you Star Trek fans, read the full article here. 

We are pleased to announce that EDGE! A Leadership Story has been named a finalist for the National Best Books 2008 Awards in the category of Business/Motivational.

We want to extend our thanks to each and every one of you who have supported this effort and who continue to spread the word about this work.

If you have not yet read the book, we invite you to pick up a copy today at Amazon.com. And…of course, if you have not read Millennial Leaders, the two make a great duo

I recently caught up with Vanessa Van Petten , author of the book You’re Grounded: How to Stop Fighting and Make the Teenage Years Easier for a special interview for the Creating Gen-Y Magic project

Vanessa is such an inspiration, so make sure to read the interview here.

Many thanks to Greg Rollett for inviting me to interview Vanessa…it was a pleasure indeed!

I have watched a bit of AGT over the last few weeks, and I will be shocked if Nuttin But Stringz does not walk away with the title next week.

Amazing!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZDuLDEMRFk[/youtube]

The Princeton Review has added a green rating to its annual ranking of the best colleges. This score measures how “environmentally friendly, responsible, and committed the institutions are.”The schools that scored 99 (out of 100) are:

• Arizona State University, Tempe
• Bates College
• Binghamton University
• College of the Atlantic
• Emory University
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Harvard University
• University of New Hampshire
• University of Oregon
• University of Washington
• Yale University

Get the full article here on YAHOO!