10: Millennials in the Middle

Millennials are culturally different than any of the generations that have come before them. Previous generations have had more shared experiences around world events, & popular culture. Most Gen-Xers, Baby boomers, and The Silent Generation would immediately ‘get’ references to the Beatles, Dukes of Hazards, Friends, and 'You're fired'. Millennials lack a cohesive ‘shared experience’ in the same way, they have had access to the internet since their earliest ages, the ability to dive into whatever niche they were/are interested in, and there is a sense of communal isolation among many of them. The information sought by the individual, their particular upbringing, their innate personality, and where they were raised, have all led to vastly different outcomes for Millennials and makes it much more difficult to "categorize" them as a whole.

Lucas Currie joins me to talk about what it is like to be a millennial in this new, ever-changing, work environment, his struggles and perceptions, and what he would like all Bosses to know about millennials.

Lucas Currie works at Washington Crane & Hoist in estimating and sales

What you’ll hear in this podcast:

Lucas and many other Millennials prefer a family environment over a corporate one Flex hours, time to work on their own projects and downtime are important perks that are not only expected but an 8 hour work day 5 days a week is mentally and physically exhausting for many of them, they would prefer to work longer hours with more breaks in between Being able to speak directly with their superiors and having open lines of communication is important to them (the royal ‘them’, Millennials) Respect and trust is often lacking in leaders and it affects the millennials do Managers, leaders, and bosses that ignore the ‘bad’ or lazy behavior of one employee risk losing many other employees without discussion, if left unaddressed. This time in our society is like no other, with economic changes, issues with wealth and equality, a stagnation in the older workforce not moving on, up or retiring has led to a lot of disenfranchisement in millennials Millennials must aggressively advocate for themselves and negotiate their salaries in order to make a living wage Millennials never know what they are going to get, you can hold the same position that looks vastly different depending on the company you work for, it may be the same job, but it looks vastly different Whether a millennial knows more than a superior or not, it is assumed that they do not Job hunting is like a mine-field, you never know what you are walking into until you get the job. You may be going to a place that has a kitchen and game room, an open warehouse with cubicles, or have your own office and work alone. Leaders would benefit from harnessing the technology that is available instead of flying or driving to distant meetings Your individual personality; Whether you are an introvert or extrovert Flourish in a team environment Learn Kinesthetically (by doing) Are an Auditory Learner Prefer Verbal directions plays a huge part in the type of environment, and position, you look for work in

Resources:

Washington Crane & Hoist

Chef’s Table

PEW Research on Millennials 

Quotes:

Anyone who grew up with the internet wants to work in a family type environment

Treat me like a human being, trust that I know what I am doing and that I will get my work done

It’s not about working hard in your job, it’s like house hunting, you have to aggressively advocate for yourself and negotiate with your superiors 

You move from one workplace to another and it’s a mine-field, you never know what you are going to be stepping into, it could be a newer start-up with a kitchen and game room, or you could be stuck in an office for 8 hours a day

Show Intro music is Whispering Through by Asura