No, despite the clever moniker, muppies are neither derived from muppets or puppies; it's the expression used to describe this generations yuppie (Young Urban Professional-pie.). The upwardly mobile professionals of today are seemingly quite different from their briefcase toting, investment banking predecessors of the 1980s. You're more likely to find these social and professional climbers in a Start-Up than a professional service organization, for one, a change that is part the fall of Lehman, and part the rise of Silicon Valley and the lucrative "cool" factor that surrounds it. The potential to make millions (dare I say billions) if it works is also a pretty strong draw, too. Other changes include putting more importance in creating a personal brand over having brand affiliation, seeing value in social followers over sweet, sweet cash, and favoring locally sourced (read: hipster) goodies over foreign imports. Another interesting difference: muppies put value on changing the world over making money--though truthfully, any business minded person making a business type venture (to improve the world or not) will likely have a healthy profit goal in mind (even dear Toms).
In short, your Lululemon wearing, soul cycle taking, start up chick is redefining the traditional profile of a hungry young professional. In the workplace, the departure in a values and goals may have them butting heads with their Boomer bosses in more traditional offices, a
concern that's been voiced consistently on how they need to learn to work together. But Muppies and Yuppies are really just the same type of people, striving for the same things; just in a way defined by their generation. And one of them just so happens to be wearing yoga pants. Namaste.
Huffington Post, The Post Financial Crisis Millennial Takes on the Yuppie Lifestyle
