Generation WTF: From What the #$%&! to a Wise, Tenacious, and Fearless You: Advice on How to Get There from Experts and WTFers Just Like You

by Christine B. Whelan

We all know what “WTF” usually means: it’s an exclamation of frustration, anger, and an understandable reaction to the brutal new economic realities that have hit young adults harder than any other group. WTF happened to promises of a bright future? What happened to the jobs? And what do we do now that the rules have changed? Recent college grads were raised in a time of affluence and entitlement, lulled into thinking that a golden future would happen. Young adults with few role models to teach values like thrift, perseverance, and self-control are ill-equipped to cope with sacrifice and failure. Their dismal employment prospects are merely the most visible symptom of more significant challenges. Fortunately, it’s not too late to change course. This optimistic, reflective, and technologically savvy generation already possesses the tools to thrive—if only they learn to harness the necessary skills for success. In Generation WTF , Christine Whelan does just that. Dr. Whelan, one of the foremost authorities on the history of the self-help genre, worked with more than one hundred young people to test and tweak the best old-school advice and personalize it for the modern twenty-something. After a decade of researching the industry—and years advising “WTFers” as they struggle to make their way in the “real world”—Dr. Whelan knows firsthand what advice works and what Generation WTF has to offer. Rather than focusing on the frustration that “WTF” usually stands for, Dr. Whelan leads the charge to reclaim the acronym as a battle cry for a positive future: Generation WTF will be a wise, tenacious, and fearless generation, strengthened by purpose and hope. This practical new guide will show these WTFers the way to success and instill lasting habits that will serve them well in both good times and bad.

Genres: Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

Reviews

[Kristen Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think it has inspired me to read the other books referenced in this one. I hadn't read the other books mentioned in this one, but if I had, maybe I wouldn't find it as interesting. I think it gave good insight for people finishing up college and just starting out in the real world. The only thing I would say is the website they consistently mention is not an active domain anymore, so if you take some of the quizzes, you can't find your result anywhere.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this book a quick read to see if I should recommend it to my brother (single, 25-yrs-old, no higher education, working one retail job after another, and basically clueless about how to become a self-sufficient adult). I would highly recommend this book to anyone who fits in that same category.

Whelan's writing is fun, which makes it an easy read. She gives plenty of examples from all those other famous self-help books (The Road Less Traveled, How to Win Friends and Influence People, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,The Finish Rich Workbook, The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom, and 59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot), and combines them with real world examples of young adults who read these books and how the books changed their lives/attitudes/ways of thinking. All these experiences help teach what works, what didn't, and how small changes truly can generate big results.

I loved the approach and the guidelines. In a bookstore where it's easy to become overwhelmed with all the different self-help books available, this is a great starter book for anyone new to the discipline.

[Alexa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was full of stuff I'd already heard before. It was all advice like deciding what to do and which goals to attempt based on deciding a list of your values; using a time chart to prevent procrastination; Try to stay calm and think about how the other person feels before you get into a fight... etc. It's always nice to be reminded of some of these things, but this book didn't really present them in an interesting or new way. I feel like, if a person who hadn't already heard most of that advice picked up this book, it would be confusing or off-putting to them. I felt like the author was talking down to the reader a lot (a "translation" into modern language for something from 1880? Really? Not to mention all of the "I bet you spend a lot of time texting, don't you?" type assumptions...)
All in all, it sort of just condenses the advice from other books (like The Seven Habits of Higly Effective People, How to Make Friends and Influence People, etc.) and talks about you to apply them to 2010's college-student/new-grad life. If you really just want a spark-notes book of the self-help genre (or if you have trouble applying advice given to anyone living in a context other than your own), maybe check this out. I didn't feel like it did anything for me, though like I said, a reminded of that sort of advice is always nice.

[Kate Ditzler · Rating 4 out of 5]

63% complete, and grad school got in the way. I was tripped up by the chapter on thrift, and never actually read it. I may or may not come back to this book, but as I own it, I think the chances are high that I will. I still highly recommend it.

[Bonnie G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great "self-help" compilation of all these weird ass how to prepare for life guides. Yup. You just have to read it to believe it.

[Dani Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoy the format of this book. It's easy to navigate & find information that met my needs; however, the target population is young adults, college students, and post undergraduates.