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I'm a Gen Xer just now starting my family. I'm betting I do things differently, parenting-wise, than Gen Xers who had kids a decade-plus ago, and probably doing things differently than millennials.
I'm a Gen Xer just now starting my family. I'm betting I do things differently, parenting-wise, than Gen Xers who had kids a decade-plus ago, and probably doing things differently than millennials.
I get not all are the same and there is an exception...but the two things I have noticed are: 1. Entitlement 2. No Conversation Skills (okay one more) 3. Narcissism
What can be done to help the generation after them?
I am not here to have an argument with anyone but really get an understanding on your thoughts (please the older generations) and your stories too in working with them.
Thank you
Yep. absolutely. Entitlement personified. I manage 2 of them. One told me she was "promised a promotion after 2 years". My response was in this business, there are no absolute time frames. She almost quit when I hired another more experienced millennial instead of promoting her. What a nightmare! Bottom line is she wasn't ready. She's since been promoted and I still don't know if she's happy. Managing millennials is rough. Yes, they also have a lot of inappropriate personal discussions at work. They want to work only their 8 hours and not be team players. Yet they expect a promotion after a specific amount of time. I would bet baby boomers felt similarly about Gen X (my generation), but I never felt entitled to sh*t. I hated reporting to Boomers. However, I think my people don't mind reporting to me because I'm kind of a laid back, non political manager. Still, it can be tough.
I'm a Gen Xer just now starting my family. I'm betting I do things differently, parenting-wise, than Gen Xers who had kids a decade-plus ago, and probably doing things differently than millennials.
Good, maybe there's hope for me yet on the family thing.
I recently had to train two separate millennials on two different occasions. I found both to border the same. If I didn't find them taking constant selfies at their desk to post on Facebook, I found them talking on topics that made the minutes DRAG. The topics they chose where all about themselves, and all inappropriate to speak at work. They both didn't take notes nor feel they needed to (when I mentioned one didn't take the proper notes she went to my boss to tell on me) .I'm not trying to speak for all of us here, but if I were doing that it would be because I was afraid and felt more comfortable around my friends and familiar surroundings than the new surroundings. Did you give them any feedback on their performance? You know, you can block certain social media sites unless their jobs require it. My job doesn't allow teachers to access Facebook while on the job.
The last one was a complete nightmare, she hit the age of 30 and had kids (a lot), but still felt the need to make awful, rude comments about her coworkers (even though she had the largest belly I have ever seen on a woman) She felt she had an entitlement even entering a new job having never worked at an office in her life. I found both brought a lot of drama within the first two months of work, and having conversation with some other people there seemed to be an agreement about not hiring millennials in the workforce.
It hit me one day when the last one stated she wanted a big desk with a large chair because she deserved it, (she had been there for three weeks and her job performance was the worst I've seen in years) what is up with this generation?!? Maybe she was confusing cockiness with confidence? I have trouble communicating. I guess that's not a generation thing more than it's an autistic thing, but we're all a little on the "nerdy" and "non-conformist" side, from what I've seen. Perhaps it was misplaced enthusiasm, or perhaps she knew how terrible she was but wanted to cover it up by pretending she didn't know. Also, don't forget that we are perhaps a generation of un-diagnosed and misdiagnosed mental illnesses and disorders. Yeah, technology is better, but perhaps rules and regulations made it possible that more kids got a chance to slip through the cracks, and maybe that's still happening, or, worse, perhaps appropriate measures aren't being taken to help these kids integrate themselves into society and deal with normal social pressures. It can be a confusing nightmare when your brain doesn't work like everyone else's.
I get every generation gets nailed by the previous generation- but what is the current thought on this? I get not all are the same and there is an exception...but the two things I have noticed are: 1. Entitlement 2. No Conversation Skills (okay one more) 3. Narcissism Really? Speaking from experience as a member of this generation, I would say that we are not truly narcissistic. We want to please other people, but we don't really know how. It's hard when all of the standards and rules are unspoken. Try being more direct, not rude, but direct. Don't assume that anything is common sense.
What can be done to help the generation after them? Let's concentrate on helping them first. Don't throw them all away like that! I work as a teacher, and, yeah, it's a little depressing for me to see that we don't run things like when I was a child because "studies show that it's actually damaging to the child's psychological well-being." Yeah, you think? I so wish technology would have caught up with us when I was a younger child. My whole life would have probably have been different had I not had to endure the "socially appropriate abuse" I was put through, all because some silly adult decided not to take action.
I am not here to have an argument with anyone but really get an understanding on your thoughts (please the older generations) and your stories too in working with them.I guess it can be frustrating from someone else's perspective, but I like it when I can get step-by-step instructions and very clear feedback. I think I would be happy with near constant feedback because of my insecurities, but I realize that's not realistic.
Thank you
I'm an older member of the millennial generation, and let me give you my perspective:
I was raised with un-diagnosed mild autism. I was subjected to horrible treatment that a child should never have to go through, and I was offered no coaching, no teaching, and no support for my disability, other than "stop acting weird" or "get over yourself." I was bullied and ostracized by what felt like almost ALL of my peers. At one point, I was afraid to ask for paper or to borrow a pencil. I was a target for pranks, mean jokes, and gossip. My teachers sometimes didn't get it. I was afraid of certain activities, and I was made to participate in those activities anyway. I misinterpreted what people told me, and I was scolded and blamed for doing the wrong thing. I gradually learned to cope by avoiding social situations and concentrating only on my school work. I didn't care about extra-curricular activities, not because I didn't want to learn new things, but because I could imagine the sorts of people who would be there. I learned very early that your skills don't really mean a lot if you have to function in a social environment. Credit for your accomplishments can easily go to other people who have better communication skills. Face-to-face communication is elusive and hard to master; it's best to try to communicate in other ways besides face-to-face so that your message won't be skewed or destroyed. The internet was a safe haven for me. I learned to avoid fact-to-face conversations whenever possible. I often opted for email instead and reveled in getting lost in the crowd of faces. Facebook and other online methods of expression became an addiction. I also used cell phone staring and other techniques to pretend to be busy so that I could further avoid interacting with people and making a fool of myself. Gradually, I learned a little template for casual face-to-face communication, and now it's not as intimidating, but I will always believe I present better online than in person, and I function best in environments where I'm given direct instructions and clear feedback. I guess that's why I love going to school but hate going to work.
Ironically, I chose the worst job for my skill set and personality. Fed up with how I was treated as a child, I thought I would make things better for future generations by becoming a teacher myself so that I could stand up for the gifted and misunderstood kids. Too bad no one told me life is not like a Disney series or Lifetime original movie. I've struggled as a teacher, and I'm not sure if I've made much of a difference at all, except depressing myself by constantly going back and ruminating on what I could have done at their ages.
Yay. Yet another millennial bashing thread. As if we don't have enough of those already So what are my thoughts on millennials? My thoughts are they are the generational cohort born between the early 1980s through 2000.
Yay. Yet another millennial bashing thread. As if we don't have enough of those already So what are my thoughts on millennials? My thoughts are they are the generational cohort born between the early 1980s through 2000.
My thoughts on OTHER millennials? They're a band of really hard-working motivated driven young people that you should be proud to have on your team. They're not all "defective" like me.
My thoughts on people like me? (that's not ALL millennials, mind you) They need a lot of feedback and support; you kind of need to play several different roles due to the social isolation (and subsequent lack of social learning) they've experienced in the early years. I know you would probably say that your job is only what is on your job description, but you can afford to be fair at least. You would want someone to do that for you. What you see as "rudeness" may actually be ignorance of certain expectations. Inform them. Pretend they're from another country, and follow the rules of cultural responsiveness. Adjust to them and give them a fair opportunity to adjust to the work environment and to meet your expectations. Also, don't judge the whole cohort by the actions of a few! If you give them a fair chance and they're not meeting expectations, follow protocol, but at least give them a chance. Calmly explain to the young lady who wants a big chair that that isn't the way things work in the real world and that she needs to improve her performance to (whatever the expectations are) before she can get that reward and recognition (if it's even available). Calmly explain to the people sitting around and taking selfies all day that you notice and that is not the way you expect employees to behave. Then, tell them what you do expect, and give them feedback to let them know you are watching.
My thoughts on OTHER millennials? They're a band of really hard-working motivated driven young people that you should be proud to have on your team. They're not all "defective" like me.
My thoughts on people like me? (that's not ALL millennials, mind you) They need a lot of feedback and support; you kind of need to play several different roles due to the social isolation (and subsequent lack of social learning) they've experienced in the early years. I know you would probably say that your job is only what is on your job description, but you can afford to be fair at least. You would want someone to do that for you. What you see as "rudeness" may actually be ignorance of certain expectations. Inform them. Pretend they're from another country, and follow the rules of cultural responsiveness. Adjust to them and give them a fair opportunity to adjust to the work environment and to meet your expectations. Also, don't judge the whole cohort by the actions of a few! If you give them a fair chance and they're not meeting expectations, follow protocol.
Good post. I have also noticed the need for a lot of feedback and support, a weakness of mine as a manager. I also agree on the ignorance. Yet they think they know everything. They don't seek out mentors and are not modest at all. They have no problem throwing you under the bus to your superiors. Maybe thats an ignorance thing, I don't know, but it infuriates me. I expect the people who report to me to make me look good, and in turn they get rewarded. They just don't get it. I guess I didn't either at 25, but I also wasn't nearly as arrogant or bold.
Last edited by Atlguy39; 11-25-2016 at 07:03 PM..
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So what are my thoughts on millennials? My thoughts are they are the generational cohort born between the early 1980s through 2000.
