[News Terms] 'YOLO' is Gone, 'YONO' Has Arrived

The ‘YONO generation’ is coming. YONO stands for ‘You Only Need One,’ referring to a consumption pattern where people buy only what is necessary and reduce unnecessary spending. As the ‘three highs’ of high inflation, high interest rates, and high exchange rates continue, this term has come to symbolize the consumption habits of the 2030 generation who are changing their spending behaviors.

Over the past decade, the ‘YOLO generation’ was dominant. YOLO stands for ‘You Only Live Once,’ a consumption behavior that pursues present happiness rather than investing in an uncertain future. This expression first appeared in 2011 in the song ‘The Motto’ by famous American rapper Drake and, along with Psy’s hit song ‘Gangnam Style,’ was selected as one of the top 10 buzzwords by the New York Times (NYT) in 2012. In 2016, then U.S. President Barack Obama caused a stir by shouting “Yolo, man” in a promotional video for the health insurance reform known as ‘Obamacare.’

Citizens looking at hot dogs stacked on the display counter of a snack bar in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

YOLO, which is entirely for ‘me,’ intertwined with the rise of single-person households in Korea, known as ‘honjok,’ greatly influencing the consumption tendencies of the 2030 generation. Various new terms representing their consumption trends emerged. These include ‘nasimbi,’ meaning spending without considering price for self-satisfaction; ‘hokangseu,’ enjoying luxurious rest at hotels; and ‘flex,’ showing off oneself through purchases like expensive electronics.

However, since the 2020s, frugal and practical consumption has gained attention over YOLO. According to a 2020 report titled ‘Understanding the Financial Habits of the Millennial Generation’ by Hana Financial Management Research Institute, 63.2% of respondents said they prioritize saving and spend only with the remaining budget. In contrast, only 14% said they spend immediately when they want something, like the YOLO generation. This contrasts with a 2017 survey by the job portal Saramin, where 84.1% of respondents viewed the YOLO generation positively.

Yearly Mention Trends of Gatseng, YOLO, and Flex [Photo by Seoul Institute]

New buzzwords representing this trend have also appeared. ‘Gat-saeng’ is a representative term, meaning to live a practical and planned life. It combines the English word ‘God’ and the Korean word for life, ‘saeng (生).’ In 2023, the Seoul Institute released results of an investigation into the volume of online mentions of trend keywords. The Seoul Institute explained, “Since ‘gat-saeng’ appeared in 2020, mentions of ‘YOLO’ and ‘flex’ have started to decline, while mentions of ‘gat-saeng’ have steadily increased.” The number of mentions of ‘gat-saeng’ reached 639,657 in 2022, a 58-fold increase compared to 2018.

This trend has led to the rise of the ‘YONO generation.’ An analysis by Korea Economic Daily and NongHyup Bank of financial transaction histories and card payment records of 32 million individual customers of NongHyup Bank last year and the first half of this year showed that the number of dining-out transactions by the 2030 generation in the first half of this year decreased by 9% compared to the same period last year. This contrasts with increases of 3% and 11% in other age groups. During the same period, the number of luxury car purchases by the 2030 generation also dropped by 11% compared to the previous year, while other age groups saw only a 3% decrease. YOLO is gone, and YONO has arrived.