6 Things Gen Z Does That Completely Confuse Older Brits
Every generation confuses the one before it — but Gen Z might be the most bewildering yet. They’ve grown up online, challenge old norms without hesitation, and see the world through a completely different lens from their parents and grandparents.
While older Brits try to keep up, there are some things Gen Z does that truly leave them scratching their heads.
Here are six behaviours that older generations just can’t wrap their minds around.
1. Speaking in Slang That Sounds Like Another Language
Gen Z’s vocabulary evolves faster than most older Brits can Google it. Terms like “delulu,” “rizz,” “bet,” “ate,” and “it’s giving” may make perfect sense to younger people — but to anyone over 40, they sound like code.
Ask a Gen Z’er to explain it, and the explanation somehow raises more questions than it answers.
2. Filming Everything — Even the Ordinary Moments
Boomers and Gen X often find it strange that Gen Z films meals, daily routines, shopping trips, and even emotional moments. To older Brits, this feels intrusive or unnecessary.
To Gen Z, it’s normal.
Everything is content.
And if it isn’t recorded, did it even happen?
3. Rejecting Traditional Work Culture Completely
Older Brits were raised on “work hard, don’t complain, be grateful.”
Gen Z?
They value flexibility, mental health, remote work, shorter hours and saying “no” without guilt.
They refuse to tolerate toxic workplaces or unpaid overtime — a stance older generations sometimes misinterpret as “entitlement.”
Gen Z calls it “not being miserable for no reason.”
4. Eating Habits That Feel… Unusual
Avocado everything.
Oat milk.
Cold coffee in winter.
Breakfast bowls that look like art projects.
Gen Z diets puzzle older Brits who grew up on toast, cereal and tea. Many can’t understand paying £7 for a smoothie when a full English costs the same.
5. Oversharing Their Feelings — Everywhere
Older Brits were taught to bottle everything up and push on.
Gen Z shares anxieties, depressive episodes, burnout and relationship struggles openly — online, in group chats, or even in the workplace.
Some older adults admire the honesty.
Others think it’s too much.
But for Gen Z, emotional transparency is healthy, not dramatic.
6. Treating the Internet Like the Real World
Gen Z doesn’t separate “online life” from “real life.”
Their friendships, careers, dating, hobbies and communities often exist mostly — or entirely — online.
Older Brits find this confusing or worrying.
For Gen Z, it’s just where life happens now.
They don’t log on.
They live online.
Final Thought
Gen Z isn’t trying to confuse anyone — they’re simply growing up in a different world, shaped by technology, new values and shifting priorities. The generational gap may feel wide, but it reflects how much Britain has changed in just a few decades.
And while older Brits may shake their heads at Gen Z’s strange habits, one thing is certain: the next generation will confuse them just as much.
