The CQ | Teens Have Trend Bloat — and Are Forgoing a Classic Rite of Passage
The Forerunner Team's Must-Reads of the Week
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What We’re Talking About This Week:
The New York Times set out to determine which of the countless current trends are actually relevant to Gen Z, and discovered that what this cohort really felt is: too many trends! “Today’s young adults can comfortably discuss the way that social media and fast fashion keep many members of their generation buying, sharing, and discarding items. They are aware, sometimes painfully, that their insecurities are being harnessed for someone else’s bottom line. But awareness does not equal liberation. Understanding the mechanisms at play does not always mean they can escape them—although many are trying.”
Consumers keep bailing out the economy. Now they might be maxed out, says The Wall Street Journal. As of Q4 2024, the average U.S. household's credit card debt surpassed $10,000, adjusted for inflation, for the first time since 2009. Major lenders, like American Express and Capital One, have seen stock declines averaging 12% in 2025, outpacing the S&P 500's drop. Says one economist: “We’re seeing heightened credit stress among high-income consumers.” The rate of late payments among high-income consumers (earning $150,000 or more) has more than doubled from January 2023 to January 2025. A February survey by the Federal Reserve found consumers felt they had a 14.6% chance (the highest since April 2020) of being unable to make minimum debt payments in the next three months.
U.S. airlines and retailers provide a bleak outlook for consumer demand. Amid growing concerns about a potential recession, bad weather, and flight safety issues, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines significantly reduced their financial forecasts, with American Airlines expecting its first-quarter loss to be double its previous estimate and Delta halving its profit outlook.
Small business uncertainty about the economy spikes to the second-highest level since 1973, according to The National Federation of Independent Business’ Uncertainty Index, which saw a sharp decline in the number of small business owners who think it's a good time to expand. Many small businesses are concerned about higher costs from tariffs, rising labor costs, and a looming recession. “The uncertainty we face in the economy has no set timeline. Business owners are reevaluating vendor contracts, labor force, and borrowing strategies.”
In light of the barrage of government layoffs and general fears about the economy, layoff anxiety has pushed employee confidence to the worst rock bottom in nearly a decade. Although unemployment numbers are low, only about 44% of workers have a positive outlook for their business in the next six months, according to the Glassdoor Employee Confidence Index. Beyond fears of layoffs, many workers who survived are dealing with burnout and high expectations without enough resources, and 2 in 3 workers say they feel “stuck.” “Experiencing that shift in power toward employers makes the current situation feel even worse because people know what is possible and now they feel like they’ve lost that.”
How the AI talent race is reshaping the tech job market: Nearly 1 in 4 tech job postings this year are AI-related, with the information sector seeing 36% of IT roles focused on AI. The demand for AI expertise extends beyond tech firms, with industries like finance, retail, and healthcare also incorporating AI into their job requirements. Generally, companies are looking for candidates who can integrate AI into existing roles, not fill new positions solely based on AI. From late 2022 (when ChatGPT was released) through the end of 2024, AI-related job postings rose by 68%, while tech job postings declined 27%.
The future of the internet is likely smaller communities, with a focus on curated experiences, says a new survey from The Verge and Vox Media with the goal of understanding how American consumers are handling the shift to a post-social media era of emerging AI. A few insights include 42% believing search engines like Google are becoming less useful, while social platforms face growing mistrust, with 60% viewing social media negatively due to its divisiveness and overwhelming product placements. AI also faces resistance, as nearly half of consumers prefer communities that don't allow AI-generated content. “The appetite for genuine, meaningful connections is growing—and platforms that can facilitate this ‘connection shift’ will redefine the next phase of the digital community.”
From The Atlantic: Teens are forgoing a classic rite of passage. Research shows that only 56% of Gen Z reported being in a romantic relationship during their teen years, in comparison to 76% of Gen Xers and 78% of boomers. And a 2021 poll found 54% of participants ages 18 to 34 said they didn’t have a “steady” partner, meanwhile in 2004, that percentage was just 33%. Part of the issue is that many young people have expanded the “grey area — casual “situationships” in which dating status hasn’t really been defined. But there’s something else going on, too: A 2023 Hinge survey found 56% of Gen Z daters cited fear of rejection and 57% avoided confessing their feelings about someone because they worried it would “be a turn-off.” “The young-love recession, in other words, might reflect a real shift in how comfortable Americans are, on the whole, with emotional intimacy. Generational researchers have described Gen Z as a cohort particularly concerned with security, averse to risk, and slow to trust—so it makes sense that a lot of teens today might be hesitant to throw themselves into a relationship, or even just to admit they care whether their dalliance will continue next week.”
The longevity gap between men and women is getting bigger. New research reveals that the gender gap in life expectancy has been widening for over a decade, with women living 5.8 years longer than men as of 2021. This gap is largely driven by men’s higher rates of cardiovascular disease, melanoma, opioid use, suicide, and the impact of COVID-19, which disproportionately affected men due to factors like homelessness and high-risk occupations. The thing is, many of these deaths can be prevented through lifestyle changes. For instance, the risk for cardiovascular disease is 80% higher for men than for women, and 80% of heart attacks and strokes are avoidable through diet and lifestyle habits — and men are more likely to be obese and smoke, both of which contribute to heart disease. Women tend to be more proactive than men about going to the doctor, taking medication, and focusing on their mental health, which sets them up to fare better when it comes to health screenings, depression, and addiction.
Do we age steadily, or in bursts? Recent studies suggest that aging may not be a linear process but could occur in rapid jumps or distinct phases. Research tracking molecular changes in blood samples has shown accelerated aging around ages 44 and 60, linked to metabolism and immune function. While some scientists propose aging happens in these spurts, others argue it may follow longer phases. Pinpointing exactly how people age “could mean that people could be more targeted in managing their health, focusing on specific changes and conditions that correlate with their particular age.”
Portfolio Highlights:
Congratulations to Isha Patel, co-founder of Kale, and Sandra Oh Lin, founder and CEO of KiwiCo, who are recognized as part of Inc.’s Female Founders 500.
CNBC, Fortune, and Forbes profile Ritual CEO Katerina Markov Schneider.
Wonder’s acquisition of Tastemade is covered by Wall Street Journal, Adweek, TechCrunch, and Variety.
Kara Egan, founder of Teal Health, spoke on an Inc. panel at South by Southwest about women’s healthcare startups alongside Chelsea Clinton, vice chair of the Clinton Foundation, and Naomi Watts, founder of Stripes.
Entrepreneur profiles Daydream Co-founder Julie Bornstein, along with three other women who started businesses after 40. The Hindu also has a feature about Daydream with quotes from Bornstein.
Andy Dunn, founder and CEO of Pie, speaks about building communities IRL on a Fast Company panel along with the founders of Ghia and Mozi.
Job of the Week:
Director of Strategic Partnerships at Prenuvo, the award-winning full body scan company pioneering new standards in proactive healthcare.
There are ~695 other jobs open at portfolio companies, check ‘em out.