Gen Y is definitely thinking about saving its pennies. Check out Mint.com or QuickenOnline.com to see some of the websites it is using to track their funds.

Mintel research recently came out with a research study stating that Generation Y–defined as people born between 1977 and 1994–make up only about 5% of financial advisors’ client base.

This might lead you to think that there is a big opportunity for Investment Banks to have their financial advisers target Gen Y.

Not so fast on that one… 

I believe that Gen Y would rather do it themselves. Or would rather learn from their peers vs. some old financial advisor.

There are so many sites like the ones mentioned above that provide lots of free information. There are also some good personal finance blogs, such as www.IWillTeachYouToBeRich.com

Why pay when you don’t have to?

Yes, there is such thing as a free lunch…

Ah.. more than 42 Million Gen Y members can vote in the upcoming election. And why is that only one candidate is really using the web And why is it that only candidate thought to go to an expert or at least someone who lives and breathes online stuff. Why is it that only one candidate hired the founder of Facebook to help him with his campaign. Why is that even though only 48% of the Gen Yers claimto be a Democrat, they will still vote for Obama.

46% of Gen Yers expect the next President to interact with them online. Isn’t amazing that other candidates–in any election–still haven’t integrated online into their communications with these constituents

Interesting post by Rusty Weston on Fast Company on the retention woes for Gen Y. This really caught my eye:

“Taleo teamed with Harris Interactive to conduct a survey of 2,045 adults ages 18 and older, a series of questions about their first jobs and first employers.

Three out of five respondents said that their first employer did not provide a clear path for advancement. Of course, the reality is that few employers provide a clear path to anything, much less to the corner office.

Other key findings:

• Describing how their first job made them feel, 13% said they couldn’t wait for Friday to arrive, 10% wanted to quit every day and 8% felt it was a waste of their time
• 19% of 18-34 year olds wanted to quit their first job every day, compared to 3% of those 55 years old and over”

My response:

In the work I do with Gen Yers and their bosses/leaders, the common complaint I hear is that Gen Y is bored. Because they have been so exposed to so much stimulation, the Millennials I have met say that they most want variety and meaningful work. Companies like Intuit are addressing this through top notch rotational development programs, which gives young workers tons of opportunities to do something different every day. Maybe it’s time to shift the way we all work…spice things up a bit, and keep it interesting.

The folks over at Brazen Careerist invited us to share a few ideas with them.  Check out our blog post Secrets From Ten Top Generation Y Business Leaders.  And…while you are there, spend some time on their site.   In my opinion, it is the top career site on the internet.

Jacci Schiff solicited some great feedback from a few Gen Y bloggers about the recent New York Times article: In Web World of 24/7 Stress, Writers Blog Till They Drop,

Get the post here on The Schiff Report.

My take: Using the words “digital-era sweatshop” is a bit over the top to me. Bloggers choose to blog…they are not forced into labor. I read about the 3 incidents of coronary problems related to deaths. There could be a dozen other factors involved (would like to know about their genetic predisposition to heart disease). Having said this, medical research shows that sitting for long periods of time without activity increases a person’s risk for developing blood clots. We can all use breaks from our work that get the blood flowing.

At any rate, great article with lots of food for thought.