This is such a bizarre phenomenon. Not “micro-retirement,” but business news outlets learning about something that’s incredibly normal but might have a new name or angle, and then writing it up as if it’s this insane and reckless overreach (occasionally throwing the bone of “…though there might also be good reasons for this”).

How do the writers behind a “micro-retirement” not get halfway through the research for this and then go “oh wait, I guess this is just normal PTO”?

Same with all of the “millennials are destroying X industry” articles. Literally just “oh, this generation doesn’t like that product.” Or “people are house-hacking” articles (literally just having roommates). Or “Quiet quitting” (literally just doing your job).

Probably this has a lot to do with people who are old, or who were born rich (or both) not remembering what it’s like to be young and poor, I guess. Or having corporate pressure to write an article lambasting young people for not working hard enough. Or just feeling the pressure to write something every day.

I can’t believe it’s clickbait. That hasn’t worked in a decade or more, right?