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#Goals: happy just being me
What young people want, put simply, is to be happy. At least 97% do, according to the findings of our 2018 Youth Culture Uncovered research. Sixteen- to 30-yearolds claim that "being happy and content" is important to them.

Rising R&B artist Soulé, 23, said: "I feel like I’m doing what makes me happy. I’m doing what makes my heart full. My goal is to be able to continue to do that. To never stop."

How are young people pursuing happiness, though? Most (92%) said that being happy and content is about "being true to myself". Of course, this can mean different things depending on the individual.

For years now, travel has been considered the most reliable source of happiness and satisfaction. In fact, today’s young ‘wanderlusters’ have travelled further than any previous generation. Two years ago, travel was the number-one passion point for young people. While it remains important (79% of respondents ranked it as "important to me"), "helping others" is now more important (at 85%) than anything else.

This is incredibly motivating and moving. Young people’s impact in forming social and cultural ‘Youthquakes’ is being witnessed far and wide – and it is goosebump-inducing stuff. Scenes of passionate and energetic young people driving positive change, helping others and having a real impact are stealing the limelight, and deservedly so.

Take the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students in Florida excoriating the NRA (National Rifle Association), like no one has ever done before. This is a youthquake in action and, in the words of student Matt Post on the steps of the US Capitol: "The adults have failed us. This is in our hands now." The young people joining soup runs for the homeless in bustling cities around Europe and young women and men marching for women’s rights all over the world are all designed to help others – selfless acts for the greater good.

#MeToo #YesSheCan #BanMachineGuns and #repealthe8th are more than hashtags: these are movements, predominantly led by young people, redefining the new moral codes to live by, forging a society that values truth, transparency, openness and acceptance over everything.

This is the year when youth is standing up for its future. Every opportunity to help someone else, and affect some positive change in their world, is seized.

So, how can we help them help?
Young people want to have a positive impact on their society. As agencies and brands – let’s commit to helping them to do just that. In our effort to engage with young people, let’s ask ourselves, how can we – together with them – bring about real positive change?

Let’s be inspired by the youth and let’s all pursue happiness by helping.

In our effort to engage young people, let’s ask ourselves: how can we – together with them – bring about positive change?

After all, shouldn’t everyone be happiest when helping?