A German entrepreneur had an idea to give people an extra $1,100 a month. It's going well.
Could a small benefit really improve people's lives? I don't know ... but it worked for me.
If you were given $1,100 a month, with no strings attached, how would your life change?
Would you take more vacation days? Maybe you would stress less about your bills or expenses. Would you even go to work anymore? Would you finally start that business or write that novel?
Basically, would your life be better than it is now?
Those are the questions that German entrepreneur Michael Boymeyer wanted to answer with his new My Basic Income project.
Michael Bohmeyer, creator of the My Basic Income project. Image via Mein Grundeinkommen.
The crowdsourced program, called Mein Grundeinkommen in German, is a bold economic experiment that aims to improve the lives of average Germans with a relatively small investment.
$1,100 (a little over 1,000 euro) per month is less than half the average German monthly wage but more than twice the welfare there, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The money for the project comes from donations made to the program, and recipients are chosen at random from a pool of applicants.
So far, 26 people (chosen from over 66,000 applicants) are receiving the monthly benefit payments. Additional recipients are chosen whenever enough money is raised to support someone for a whole year.
The money, which Mein Grundeinkommen describes as "unconditional" has been used for a wide variety of things by the chosen recipients so far.
One woman said she wanted to "spend more time with her children and do volunteer work." Another said she wanted to "develop a theatre production."
Another recipient, 9-year-old Robin, plans to use his basic income to buy more books.
Robin and his family started receiving benefits in December 2014. Image via Mein Grundeinkommen.
However, as Michael Bohmeyer told the L.A. Times, "Not a lot changes: The students keep studying, the workers keep working and the pensioners are still pensioners. But there is a big change that takes place in their minds. People feel liberated and they feel healthier."
The idea has even gotten the attention of the German government, where leftist politicians have long supported the idea of a federalized basic income. Those who oppose it say that receiving unconditional money from the government might take away incentives to find work — an argument that sounds really familiar if you pay attention to discussions about "entitlement programs" here in the U.S.
German President Angela Merkel opposes basic income but has discussed it internally several times. Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images.
The big question: Could receiving a small benefit really improve your life?
Frankly, it's hard to imagine a situation where it wouldn't. But I also have some personal experience with this.
Less than two months ago, I was unemployed. Like, really unemployed. The kind of unemployed where you start to wonder if maybe your career destiny is at the local deli and not, as you imagined, in the corner office of a New York City skyscraper (or whatever your thing is).
During that time, I regularly received an unemployment benefit. It wasn't much, but it was enough to pay rent and buy some inexpensive groceries. (Put that cultured butter down, Zuckerberg.)
So me and my tiny government check had some time to ask important questions: What do I want to do with my life? What am I good at? How can I eat lentils again without jamming this fork into my eye?
It was in that time that I decided, definitively, that I wanted to write professionally.
So I wrote. A lot. I got published wherever and whenever I could, and in time (SPOILERS) I got a job writing for Upworthy.
And sure, unemployment benefits aren't the same as a no-questions-asked stipend, but it taught me a lot about being helped.
Unemployment and other government programs are constantly under threat in the U.S. via the narrative that if you receive government help, you won't want to help yourself.
Presidential candidate Marco Rubio is one of several senators who voted not to extend unemployment benefits last year. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images.
Receiving a benefit certainly didn't remove my incentive to work. In fact, I had never wanted a job so badly in my life.
What it did was give me the opportunity, and the time, to think about and work toward the job I really wanted. It relieved some pressure. Instead of panicking, I could focus on things getting better.
So maybe a basic income isn't such a bad idea. As Bohmeyer said, "to be able to work creatively, people need some security, they need to feel free. And they can get that with a basic income."
For some, that stipend might just be a little spending money on top of their already comfortable lives. But for others, it could be the difference between giving up and pursuing a dream. It was for me.
Millennial mom struggles to organize her son's room.Image via Canva/fotostorm
Boomer grandparents have a video call with grandkids.Image via Canva/Tima Miroshnichenko
Information from the NICABM website regarding the "Window of Tolerance."Photo Credit: The National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine 
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Gen Xers and Millennials share 17 of the strangest things their Baby Boomer parents do
"My mom writes her emails in MS Word, then attaches the Word document to the email."
A Baby Boomer couple.
Generational fights have raged since the dawn of time, and a recent spat between Millennials and Baby Boomers is no exception. Baby Boomers, who raised Millennials, accuse the younger generation of being entitled and irresponsible with money. At the same time, Millennials accuse Boomers of having it easier economically while making it harder for those who came after them.
Where is Gen X in the battle? Probably off in the corner somewhere, saying, "Whatever." Aside from the generational sniping, there are some things the older generation does that are just plain baffling to younger people. Whether it's outdated worldviews, a refusal to adapt to modern technology, or a lack of self-awareness, Baby Boomers can do some strange things.
To help the younger folks get over their frustrations with parents from the "Me Generation," a Redditor asked: "What is the most Boomer thing your parents still do?" The stories were pretty funny and relatable, showing that almost everyone with parents over 60 is dealing with the same thing.
Here are 17 of the "strangest" things people's Baby Boomer parents do:
1. Phones on full blast
"Play iPhone slot machine games at full volume in the doctor’s office."
"My dad pretty much exclusively has his phone on speaker, and just walks around in public talking with it at max volume (and talking really loud himself). I’m like 'Dad, the entire supermarket doesn’t want to listen to you, and Uncle Jim complains about how often you have to pee.'"
2. Still using checkbooks
"My mom balances her checkbook every week. They still have a landline."
"And she probably has way more money than you will until she dies!"
3. Email issues
"My mom writes her emails in MS Word, then attaches the Word document to the email."
"Like the email is just the virtual envelope for the digital letter."
4. Restaurant jokes
"All those little restaurant comments.
'Wow, they'll let anyone in here!' when seeing a friend at said restaurant.
'Thanks for having us, not everyone will' to the waiter at the end of the meal.
'As you can see, it was terrible' when the staff takes away the clearly entirely eaten plate.
'You're going to have me floating away in a minute' when more water is put into their glass"
5. Always have to mention race
"Constantly mentioning the race or ethnicity of everyone she mentions. Never with any negative connotation or comment, but usually, there is no reason for it to be relevant to the conversation."
"My Jewish mother will always whisper the word 'black' in case anyone hears her: 'So the nice black man at the hardware store helped me find the right garden hose.'"
6. Googling their Google
"Typing Google on Google before they Google the thing they’re looking for."
"In the Google search bar, they type Google? Lol."
7. Getting a job is a cinch
"Believing you can walk into a business and hand in a resume. If you have a college degree in any field, they'll hire you."
"Just physically hand over your resume to HR or the hiring manager. You'll make a mark and get hired!! Call the office and ask to speak to HR/Hiring Manager."
Any Millennial who argued with their Boomer parents about how hard it is to land a good job should feel vindicated by a 2022 study, which found that most older Millennials didn't secure good jobs until their early 30s, while most Boomers did so in their 20s. "To secure a good job, young adults need to acquire more education and high-quality work experience than was necessary for previous generations," the researchers wrote.
8. Why are they together?
"Stay married forever while they behave like neither one of them can stand each other."
"I'm on the other side of that. After my mom passed, my dad now acts like their marriage was picture perfect and they were the love of each other's lives, even though they couldn't stand each other for at the very least 40 of the 54 years they were married."
9. Collectables or hoarding?
"Think their 'collectibles' are truly valuable."
"My mom insists her Hummels are going to put my kids through college!"
"Mine are the Thomas Kincade paintings. She has a Victorian glass piece that might actually be worth something, but those damn paintings are the real investment."
10. Can you grab the mail?
"Ask me to bring in the mail when they go away for more than 24 hours."
"My parents think everybody is standing at the door waiting for the mailman every day, and don’t believe me when I tell them that some people go days without checking their mail. They think everybody is waiting for the mailman every day because 'somebody might send them a check.' Like, really?"
11. Zero responsibility
"'Well, I guess I was just a bad father.' Yeah. That attitude of anti-responsibility is exactly why 3 out of 4 of your children don't talk to you."
"Ha! Have the same dad, do we?"
12. Comment on people's appearance
"Comment on EVERYBODY’s body/appearance/weight. The first thing my dad does after not seeing me for a year is poke me in the gut and tell me how fat I am."
13. Boomer panic is real
"Literally throwing their hands up in a panic when they don't understand something. Where did they learn that?"
"Or just saying 'well, I don't know', especially when that comes right after you explaining it and showing them how to do something, with them nodding along and asking relevant questions all the way through."
In a video by YourTango, editor Brian Sundholm tried to explain Boomer panic in an empathetic way: "Most of us nowadays know the importance of recognizing and feeling our emotions." Sundholm then quoted therapist Mitzi Bachman, who explained that when people struggle to express their emotions, it can result in an "unhinged" reaction.
14. Annoying Facebook posts
"Post nonsensical rants on Facebook for other boomers to like, share, and comment. Often these rants are political, but not always. Basically cringe-fest."
"Most people won't do it, but share this post if you believe in god and freedom."
"I do NOT give Facebook permission to use my photos and personal information!"
15. Dinner pushers
"While we're eating breakfast. What do you want to do for supper?"
"Can't we enjoy this meal without worrying about the next?"
16. They print everything
"My boomer in-laws print EVERYTHING! The number of times I have said, 'quit wasting ink, email it to me, or text me the link. Or just text me the schedule, don't print it out.' GPS on their phones? Nope...print a map."
"Boomers and their paper man. My dad has finally started using the internet, but he still prints everything he likes. Like he'll see a boat listing on Craigslist and print the entire page, including a massive color photo of it, and he's definitely not going to be buying it either. He's got a stack of papers that is the internet that sits by his recliner. He just sits there with Fox News on (though it's usually muted for some reason, that's a plus) and looks at his papers."
17. Flirting with servers
"My dad is 77 still flirts with the young waitresses. It's f**king weird for everyone."
"He thinks he is in cute old man territory, but he is not."