Today, February 6, is my daughter’s 18^th birthday. Holly’s most formative years coincide with my tenure at Meatingplace.

There was the time she came into the office with me on one of the many school holidays that are not recognized by the working world, and spent the whole day under the empty desk next to me with a not-yet-diagnosed ear infection. Other days she spent in the cubicle next to me pecking away at her laptop, supposedly doing homework (but really spending the day on Instagram). She’s been to a couple of meetings with me, too; she isn’t interested in touring the booths but she does love the food.

Holly is my most accessible window on to Gen Z, the next gigantic demographic cohort to bend American culture and the U.S. economy to its will. In her and in most of her friends I see none of the interest in going vegetarian, let alone vegan, that the research companies describe. She’s mad for a good steak, wings, ribs or a burger (or shrimp or grilled calamari), balanced with a Greek salad and rice. Grapes are good for a snack – but so are Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.

She is a knowledgeable critic of the media. She’s seen “Food Inc.” and “Super Size Me” and can point out their inconsistencies and the ways that the filmmakers edited the story line to fit a point of view. She has not sworn off McNuggets or the Popeye’s three-wing meal with Cajun fries.

Neither is Holly swayed by most advertising, at least not the conventional kind. She follows various “influencers” on social media, loves watching how-to videos made by ordinary people, and is always looking for an entertaining app. Come to think of it, I don’t think she even sees conventional advertising on any kind of a regular basis, not on television or radio, or in print.

Nothing makes me feel older, faster, than trying to understand how my daughter —and by extension, all teenagers — takes in and filters information, whom she chooses to pay attention to, and why.

It’s a clear and present issue in my professional as well as my personal life: Meatingplace is a media property and must seek its audiences where they are, via their own preferred channels. While you’re most likely reading this on a computer screen, your kids or grandkids in the business are more likely on a phone or tablet. They may be reading Meatingplace in-between viewings of relevant YouTube videos.

At 18, Holly is at that end-of-high-school, beginning-of-the-rest-of-your-life stage. She has no interest in moving from A to B to C in linear fashion — as I did at her age. Looking back now, I think I would have benefitted from venturing off the path more often. I struggle with getting my linear brain around a non-linear lifestyle, but I’ll keep trying, as a mom and as an editor.

You can help: Send me your thoughts, advice and anecdotes on how you, and perhaps your company, have adjusted to the different priorities of these young adults, how you’ve reached them. Our futures depend on it.

Happy birthday!

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