Imagine this: you wake up early and anxious. Pick your best outfit, rehearse your self-introduction for the hundredth time and step into the interview room with a head full of hope.
Maybe, just maybe, this will be the one. A job. A chance. A step forward.
I have found myself in that exact position before, attending a mass recruitment interview alongside dozens of other young job seekers.
The energy in the room was tense but hopeful you could feel the quiet determination behind every “hi” and nervous smile.
When the panel asked what we would do to change the future generation, one lady’s response caught my attention.
She began by thanking everyone for showing up and acknowledging how brave it was for each of us to stand up and introduce ourselves.
Then she said something that stuck with me: “I wish young people were given more opportunities to show their talents.”
Her words felt like a mirror, not just of my experience that day, but of the reality so many youths face.
It made me wonder: Are young people today truly lazy and impatient, as they’re so often labeled? Or are they simply navigating a system that rarely gives them the space to prove themselves?
The Stereotype – Are Youth Just Lazy and Impatient?
The common narrative about Gen Z and Millennials paints them as impatient, entitled, and obsessed with instant success, as if they all want to “get rich quick” without putting in the work.
But is that really the full picture?
I recently came across a meme that captured the sentiment perfectly. A content creator, playing the role of a frustrated job applicant, asked,
“We’re adults. Why don’t you just tell me if I got the job or not instead of the cliché, ‘We’ll get back to you’?”
As humorous as it was, it struck a nerve because for many young job seekers, this is reality.
They spend time and effort applying, attending interviews, and following up, only to be met with vague promises, ghosting, or total silence.
In that context, what’s often perceived as impatience might actually be a reaction to broken systems and poor communication, not a lack of work ethic.
The desire for transparency, feedback, and clear next steps isn’t unreasonable, it’s professional.
Before we label young people as lazy or entitled, we must ask: Are they truly unmotivated or just tired of being left in the dark?
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World Bank Statistics on Youth Unemployment
According to the World Bank, Kenya’s youth unemployment rate stood at 11.93% in 2024, reflecting a gradual decline from previous years.
Globally, the International Labour Organization (ILO) reported that youth unemployment reached a 15-year low of 13% in 2023, equating to approximately 64.9 million young individuals without work.
While the numbers may suggest progress, the reality on the ground tells a more complicated story.
A common hurdle is the dilemma of entry-level positions requiring several years of experience, something recent graduates or those without tertiary education typically lack.
This creates a frustrating cycle. Without experience, they can’t get a job, and without a job, they can’t gain experience.
The Silent Barriers
Even with a degree in hand, many find themselves in a limbo, overqualified for internships, yet underqualified for jobs.
These structural barriers highlight that the issue isn’t merely about youth impatience or lack of effort; it’s about systemic obstacles that hinder their ability to contribute meaningfully to the workforce.
Skills vs. Opportunities – The Untapped Potential
From personal experience and countless conversations with peers, one thing is clear: young people are showing up.
They’re attending interviews, signing up for short courses, applying for online jobs, and even teaching themselves digital skills through platforms like YouTube and Google Skill shop among others.
But despite this effort, the opportunities are still limited.
Online jobs, while promising in theory, are often saturated with competition. Some platforms even ask users to pay before accessing tasks with no guarantee of work.
On the other hand, self-made online job trainers teach the skills which is great. However, the real challenge is the difficult to break into the market and connect with consistent, paying clients.
And yes, while it’s true that a few people may not be ready to put in the work, they are the exception, not the rule. The bigger truth is this: Many youths are ready to work, but hardly get the chance.
Turning Frustration into Innovation
When traditional doors to employment remain closed, young people don’t just wait, they innovate.
Rather than giving up, many have taken matters into their own hands. There’s a noticeable shift toward content creation, online businesses, digital freelancing, and self-education, not out of luxury, but out of necessity.
They’re not just waiting for opportunities, they’re creating them. Imagine what could happen if that drive was met with real opportunity.
The Mental Toll – Rejection, Ghosting, and Giving Up
Constant rejection can wear down even the most driven and ambitious person. At first, you tell yourself to keep going, that it’s just one “no,” that something better is around the corner.
But after the fifth unanswered application, the tenth “we’ll get back to you,” or the silence that follows a promising interview, it becomes hard to stay hopeful.
You go in with a positive mindset hoping this will be the one. Then comes the email or worse, nothing at all.
That dreaded line, “We’ll get back to you,” becomes a familiar dead end.
Over time, many young people begin to internalize the failure. They start questioning their worth, wondering if they’re simply not good enough when, in reality, they’re up against a system that’s overwhelmed, opaque, and often unresponsive.
This emotional toll is rarely talked about, yet it’s one of the biggest obstacles youth faces in the job market today.
The silence isn’t just frustrating, it’s demoralizing. And for some, it becomes the reason they give up entirely.
So, What Needs to Change?
While the challenges facing young job seekers are real, they’re not impossible to fix but it requires collective effort.
To start with, recruiters need to do better. The simple act of giving clear feedback even in rejection can help candidates grow and keep trying.
On a positive note, during the interview I attended, the recruiter took time to explain why some of us didn’t make it to the next stage. It was honest, respectful, and refreshing. More recruiters need to adopt this approach instead of defaulting to ghosting.
Secondly, both governments and the private sector must invest in youth-specific programs. This includes expanding paid internship opportunities, not just voluntary or unpaid roles that only benefit the privileged.
Existing Efforts and the Call for More
Programs like Ajira Digital, a public-private partnership involving the Government of Kenya, the Mastercard Foundation, KEPSA and eMobilis have made measurable progress in promoting digital employment among Kenyan youth.
The initiative, open to young people aged 18–35 across all counties, aims to equip over 1 million youth annually with the skills to access digital and digitally-enabled jobs.
Beyond digital work, there is a growing need to mainstream mentorship, career guidance, and access to entrepreneurship support across the country.
Pan-African organizations like the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) and the Tony Elumelu Foundation continue to champion youth entrepreneurship through training, mentorship, and seed funding.
Locally, groups such as TunapandaNET and the Mara Foundation are providing tech training and mentorship to help young people thrive in an evolving economy.
Still, more collaboration is needed. More companies, more schools, and more leaders must step up, not just to “empower” youth in theory, but to actively partner with them in practice.
Let’s Rewrite the Narrative
The issue has never really been about laziness, it’s about access. It’s about a lack of doors to walk through, and the frustration of constantly knocking without an answer.
Young people aren’t asking for shortcuts. They just want the chance to show what they can do.
I keep going back to what that young lady said during the interview: “I wish young people were given more opportunities to show their talents.”
Her words weren’t just heartfelt they were a reminder. A reminder that there is so much untapped potential waiting on the sidelines.
So, here’s the question we all need to reflect on: Are we doing enough to open those doors or are we just pointing fingers from the other side?
