How Not to Mystify Generational Roles!

 

Come on kids, gather around. This is going to be about one of my favorite things to write about. I have always been curious about anthropology. Where do we come from? How did we get shaped into the generation that we are today? Anthropology is a fascinating subject that would take massive amounts of research, but today I want to talk about us – millennials. And the fact that we are seeing FOUR generations working in the same corporate environment, perhaps for the first time.

Millennial – I am a millennial, which means I was born in the late 1980s, making me part of a group that is frowned upon for just having it so easy. The baby boomers do NOT like us. Mind you, they are the ones who gave birth to us and to generation Xs.

Gen X: nobody talks about them anymore. They are the tiny segment of people who were born between 1965-early 1980’s. They are your older cousins, aunts, and uncles – you know the “cool” ones who don’t drop adages on you, like your parents. For example, "you should spend that internship moolah wisely, money doesn’t grow on trees”. All of us heard that one from at least one parent.

 

Post the early 80’s until 1996 (no one truly has come to an agreement about the end year), came millennials. If you do a Google search (like I did), "why do millennials……" and let the autofill do the job, it’s horrific.

Most of these questions have probably been asked by a 55-year-old, tapping away at their Facebook accounts, trying to understand why their 30-something-super-successful daughter is refusing to “settle down”.

 

I kinda get it. My grandfather belonged to the generation preceding baby boomers. They were called the “silent generation” and/or the “greatest generation”. Don’t really know about the silent part, but great for sure. Why do you ask? Because they belonged to a time when there were tectonic shifts happening in the political landscape of the world. There were the World Wars I and II, there was the India-Pakistan partition, the wars following that, the horrors, the Bangladesh separation. My grandfather was in the army and he actually had fought in two of the major wars India had seen. So, you see, my grandparent’s generation actually experienced war, experienced the horror, saw The Great Depression happening which impacted everyone, fought for basic necessities and life was a daily struggle of bare minimum survival. They are perceived to tend towards conformism or restraint in their outlook and behavior. Early on, their motto became ‘waste not, want not’. This brings back memories. My Dadaji used to say this to us, quite often.

When the world finally calmed the Eff down, and our militia finally were able to come back home and settle down into a stagnant life, a boom of babies happened. Tired soldiers returning to their wives, what did you expect? *wink* *wink*. We got our baby boomers!

If nothing, I truly believe that every generation strives to provide a better, safer, cushy lifestyle to the ones succeeding them. Our parents for instance never stop drilling that into our ears, how much they had to sacrifice or save so that we could have a comfortable life. (#joke #ilovemyparents)

The silent generation crawled, so that baby boomers could walk. Baby boomers walked so that we could run. Millennials ran so that Generation Z could fly!

So, I get it. I. Get. It. The preceding generations saw their own set of struggles and we as humans always like to have a bit of narcissistic tendency where we think we have had it worse. We, millennials, think that baby boomers just don’t get us. We are the ones who grew up with technology, struggled to learn as quickly as possible and secure jobs in a highly competitive market. We are the generation who invented the word, ‘disposable income’. We relish in the phrase, ‘work hard, party harder!’ Since our parents and their parents saw hardships, they just can’t relate to our lifestyle of working hard so that we can spend that hard-earned money on things we "don’t really need” ( I think my folks have a permanent residence in my head).

Heard about Generation Gap? That’s what I am talking about!

Addressing the generation gap at work has become a hot topic in today’s corporate environment. For the first time, we have four generations of workers in the workplace at any given time. Companies are now hiring Millennials and Gen Z into the workforce alongside Baby Boomers, and Generation X, and that can lead to some major differences. 

Communication is the key factor in any relationship, be it business or personal. However what happens when you’re used to communicating by one style, and you start working with someone who prefers another? 

As the older generations mingle with the newer generations in the workforce, opposing styles are bound to crop up up on a daily basis. For example, research shows that older generations often prefer to call people on the phone, but newer generations are more interested in using chat or text to get in touch with their colleagues. 

Motivation is another area where the generations seem to differ quite a bit. It does seem that many organizational leaders make the mistake of assuming that every employee is motivated by the same thing – money. But that’s not the case. Below are the reasons why:

Baby Boomers:

For instance, Baby Boomers seem to be motivated by a good health insurance/benefits plan, followed by a boss that they believe is worthy of their respect, followed by their salary. (Salary come last)

Millennials:

Millennials seek job challenges/excitement, followed by the ability to pursue what they’re passionate about. Millennials and Generation Z are also more interested in work/life integration, and are often looking for more flexible working options, like work-from-home capabilities. 

Generation Z:

On the opposite end of the scale, Generation Z is motivated by a good salary, the ability to pursue their passions, and job security.  Generation X and Millennials both find salary important, but Generation X is motivated by job security and job challenges/excitement.

I would love to hear from you in the comments below. What do you think about the generation’s role in the economic and corporate scenario? Let’s discuss!