I get emails like this from time to time, so I thought I’d include the exchange. —— From: Richard To: Ben Casnocha 8/31/05 Hey Ben. I came across your blog while doing some research on Millenials, and thought you might be able to offer some helpful input. I’m involved in the development of a family health service in partnership with a major media company, and I’m working on developing a behavioral profile for Millenials as parents, particularly with respect to their likely future attitudes regarding the health of their families. Based on your membership in this demographic, could you offer any thoughts regarding what your generation’s attitudes (and consumer behavior) will be, in the aggregate, concerning family health/fitness/nutrition? Congrats on your many accomplishments to date. Liked the blog. —- From: Ben Casnocha To: Richard 8/31/05 Richard – happy to offer my quick thoughts. As you know from presumably reading Millennials there are a number of defining characteristics of my generation. Without rehashing those, I will say that I think health/fitness/nutrition are going to be BIG influences for us. As we learn more about how our bodies and minds work, we will look to improve both physical and mental health by paying close attention to nutrition. There is a big outrage in schools now to offer healthy snacks and low sugar drinks. It is increasingly the case that it is COOL to eat healthily; a Cliff Bar is much more “in” than a Snickers. Why? Why do we care more about tuning our bodies and minds than getting a quick sugar buzz? Because we’re under more pressure than ever to succeed and be super achievers. My generation is under smothering pressure to optimize every aspect of our daily lives to ensure that we can handle the plethora of activities we engage in. Therefore, I think products that promote a message that good health is the foundation for everything else, to help you succeed, will resonate. You don’t need to worry about it being un-cool – it’s cool already. You just need to worry about making sure the message is that physical health is the foundation for intellectual/mental success. When my generation goes astray, it’s when we think we can live up to our own grandiose ideals, which requires mental effort, while concurrently trashing our bodies. Is this helpful? —- From Richard To: Ben Casnocha 9/1/05 Thanks, Ben. Very helpful. I’ll likely be following up with a few more questions. Look forward to a continuing dialogue.