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Chicago — A recent study suggested how old skills like reading maps and balancing checkbooks could benefit young people today. Some Gen Z aren’t buying it.
In a survey commissioned by British company Ordnance Survey, 60% of millenial respondents said they relied on digital maps when going somewhere new and a quarter are “very reliant” on them in their day-to-day lives.
For Craig Cummings, 26 and a Calumet City native, this isn’t a problem. While Siri and Google maps aren’t always reliable, they are most of the time, he said. And even when they aren’t, today’s young people have other options to get where they need to go.
“Things are just different today,” he said. “Even in the case of an emergency, you can always ask someone else for their phone. Also most cars today have GPS built in and people can charge their phones in there too.”
Also old financial management skills like balancing a checkbook isn’t the only way an individual can keep track of their money, he noted.
“I have the Chase app on my phone that shows me how I’m spending money,” said Cummings.
Kevin Garrett, 23 and a Chicago native, agrees even though he likes to write out his expenses by hand.
“There’s so many apps people can use today to save money,” he said. “I think it’s more important to have the skill than the tool you use.”
Other things brought to light were writing in cursive and meeting dates in person as being lost skills that today’s young people shouldn’t let go off.
For Terrell Stanley, 24, the latter skill is vital to jump starting meaningful relationships.
“You hear people meeting the love of their life from Tinder and you go ‘really’” he said. “I think it’s possible for some people but nothing can replace that interaction in person. It’s just nice to have real memories. I just feel like when it’s all virtual, something is lost.”
Destin Harris met his girlfriend on Tinder. He thinks the platform gave them an opportunity they would’ve never had.
“I’m from Chicago and she’s from California,” he said. “Of course, it’s ideal to meet someone in person. That’s what you spend your life dreaming about. But if you meet a person online and the vibe is right, why not give it a shot?”