Gen Z 1997 – 2009
The most connected, least grounded, and most misread cohort in the workforce.
Chris Ruden: Radical Curiosity, the Labels We Choose, and a One-Handed World Record
Chris Ruden on the label he believed for nearly two decades, radical curiosity, why certainty is not competency, and the 10-minute weekly meeting habit he says beats most consulting.
With Chris RudenCaroline Welles and Marc Lotter: Will Gen Z Show Up to Vote in the 2026 Midterms?
A Democratic organizer and a Republican communications strategist on whether Gen Z will vote in the 2026 midterms, why young people vote less, the gender gap, algorithms, and what they would tell Gen Alpha.
With Caroline Welles and Marc LotterDr. Brian Ralph: Will Gen Alpha Go to College? AI, Higher Ed, and Curiosity
A former university president on why Gen Z is not the last generation to go to college, what an AI-taught Gen Alpha could cost, and why curiosity about people matters more than curiosity about information.
With Dr. Brian RalphDr. Connie Ledoux Book: Elon University, Gen Z, and the Future of Higher Ed Consolidation
Elon's president on a nonpartisan collapse in confidence, why she still bets on the classroom in a hundred years, and the merger reshaping her university.
With Dr. Connie Ledoux BookDr. Laura Hambley Lovett: Toxic Bosses Don't Change, and Why Gen Z Actually Burns Out Less
Is your boss difficult, or is your boss toxic? She has a diagnostic, and an answer you won't like.
With Laura Hambley LovettMatt Weiss: Gen Z Did Not Quit Drinking, the Zero Proof Boom, and the Wine Pendulum
Less than half of Gen Z is old enough to drink. The decline headline starts there.
With Matt WeissOrphe Divounguy: The Affordability Squeeze, the Fed's Misread, and Housing Is the Heartbeat
1.2 of the 1.5 points of growth came from the AI build-out. He says the rest of the economy is barely moving.
With Orphe DivounguyDr. Jared Cooney Horvath: The Digital Delusion, AI in Schools, and Gen Z's Cognitive Decline
The first generation on record to score lower than its parents, and the neuroscientist who says the laptops did it.
With Jared Cooney HorvathIs America Going Black and White Again? - The Wizard of Oz, Gen Z's Grayscale Rebellion, and the Overstimulation Era
Dorothy opened a door and the world turned to color. Ryan Vet on why a generation is now running that film backward, one grayscale phone at a time.
Solo essay by Ryan VetIs the American Dream Dead or Just Different?
Ask if hard work still pays and 27 percent say yes. Ask if the Dream is possible and 53 percent say yes. Ryan Vet on why the same country gives two answers.
Solo essay by Ryan VetGen Z Is Ungrounded and Going Back to the Mall - The Generational Pendulum Swings Back to In-Person
Gen X disappeared into malls. Gen Z was location-shared into structured activities. Ryan Vet on why the most digital generation is walking back into physical space.
Solo essay by Ryan VetWhat the Class of 2026 Is Really Bringing to the Workforce: Loneliness, AI, and the Mentor Gap
The first class whose entire college experience was shaped by generative AI is walking off the stage. Ryan Vet on what is actually waiting for them.
Solo essay by Ryan VetWe've Never Been More Alone - Why the Most Connected Generation Is the Loneliest in History
The Surgeon General compared loneliness to smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Ryan Vet on why the most connected generation in history is also the loneliest.
Solo essay by Ryan VetIs Gen Z Really Going Back to Church? — The Composition Effect Explains What the Headlines Miss
The revival headlines return every Easter. Ryan Vet explains the composition effect, and why intensity rising among the remaining few is not the same as growth.
Solo essay by Ryan VetThe Velocity Gap - Gen Z's Contradiction with AI
Cigarettes and seatbelts hit their reckoning together in the mid-1960s. Ryan Vet argues AI is at the same moment, with one difference: this time we can already see the costs.
Solo essay by Ryan VetThe Retirement Home That isn't for Boomers, it's for Gen Z
A retirement home opened for burned-out 25-year-olds. Whether or not the place is real, Ryan Vet argues the virality is the story.
Solo essay by Ryan VetWhen Frequency Equals Trust: Why Gen Z Believes What It Hears Most Often
Gen Z did not learn to trust what is said once. They learned to trust what is said again and again, and that changes what transparency means at work.
Solo essay by Ryan VetWhat Gen Z's Relationship With Christmas Reveals About the Future of Faith
A 16-year-old told he could not say Merry Christmas. Ryan Vet uses the holiday to read where Gen Z's faith is actually heading, and it is not one direction.
Solo essay by Ryan VetWhen AI Becomes Santa: What Black Friday Just Told Us About the Next Generation
Record Black Friday spending was not the sound of cash registers. Ryan Vet reads it as algorithms whispering suggestions and a pendulum swinging from stuff to moments.
Solo essay by Ryan VetFrom Chandler Bing to Gen Z: The Thanksgiving Rebellion Reshaping the American Family
Chandler Bing hated Thanksgiving because of a divorce. Thirty-one years later, Ryan Vet finds the fracture has moved from the marriage to the whole family.
Solo essay by Ryan VetThe Death of the Penny: What It Reveals About Gen Z, Gen Alpha, and the Future of Money
The United States quietly minted its last penny. Ryan Vet traces six generations of money, from mattress cash to a fully fluid digital ecosystem.
Solo essay by Ryan VetRead the thinking behind every episode.
Join 24,000+ leaders reading Every Tuesday at 4pm ET.
Check your inbox to confirm. The next COLLIDE lands Every Tuesday at 4pm ET.
