Carving Up Generational Expectations (2017 edition)

Foreword:

The following is an excerpt from my only EVER article contribution to LinkedIn. It struck me when I joined steemit this weekend (SHOUT OUT TO GREG MANNARINO @marketreport) that I really wanted to re-approach the topic(s) I outline here with a modern tone. It's not an ancient transcription, by any means (note that the "New Year" transition the article mentions is that of 2014-2015), but upon re-investigation, I found my thoughts to be allegorically sound with what we face today; and I figure this the PERFECT platform to create a discussion around it.

There's a call to action by the end that I hope can find resonance with the reader, and the idea is this: We are all in this TOGETHER and the fictitious boundaries for what is and isn't, what should or should not be, or for creating who we can and can't be are ARTIFICIAL. Comparing generation to generation, creed to creed, or football team to soccer team, let's build something great together. Expect a more thorough examination of why it matters later; I'll post an introduction video that goes further into what I hope my personal contributions for this community to be. For now, enjoy my existential musings!

Article:

The transition to the new year is always a tough concept for me to get my head wrapped around. It's a mental reset button that gets hit and suggests that something in the way we approach the world is going to be different. There is no rhyme or reason, as far as I can tell, that forces us to engage in this mindset. Yet, invariably, it gives cause for some sort of progress that will get made. It also tells me that people are ultimately capable of consciously changing a routine that may not have worked so well in the past, making necessary tweaks, and applying a better concept. It's evidently possible that this is a rule of thumb that operates on momentum alone. Since that is indeed the case, I would have to believe that the same ideology can be used as the basis for larger ideas too. Specifically, to recognize the impending and exponential increase in the frequency of generational shifts, and doing something to approach it with a discerning eye. With the flip of the calendar now on our doorstep, there's no better time to examine.

What I have a reason to ponder about, is if companies will be collectively effective at changing their professional expectations to match the pace that generational shifts are occurring. If you are already thinking to yourself now that the landscape of the professional environment is difficult to navigate, then how will you react when generations are not separated by 20 or 30 years, but instead by (let's be crazy here) 5?! The question I pose to preemptively solving, then, is this: 'How will you pivot to accommodate for the complexities of the multi-generational workplace?'

There are certain considerations to tackle here that I think are quite valuable to keep in mind and offer the thought provocation necessary to keep everything in perspective. The ultimate culminating goal being that a higher form of preparedness in each would do well to service the quandary that will undoubtedly be staring us in the face. The keys, as I see it, to successfully being able to to do this are to 1 - cater to the conflict between generations that will occur, 2 - know how to properly motivate within and among the generational groups, 3 - understand the outside cultural beats that inform behavior/mindset and 4 - better set the hierarchical standard for more efficient interaction and problem solving.

Starting with the first point, it's likely no secret that the obsolescence that will pervade from disparate skill sets among shifting age categories will be a problem. There's a certain uniformity that exists within defined generations that set the norms for how to operate and moving away from those are what I predict will accelerate that obsolescence beyond control. Some more of the commonly subscribed to norms for the incumbent generations can include things like: knowing how much effort to put out to stay reasonably compliant with your boss's expectations, being resistant to adopting a new tool or technology so falling too far behind the aptitude curve won't have to be a concern, or holding steadfast to HR policy that may be antiquated/outdated because change poses a threat to comfort level. To avoid the conflict that can and will arise from differing ways to approach things like these, compromises will have to be made, understandings will need to be reached and solidarity formed. None of these are complicated in and of themselves, by any stretch of the imagination. These thoughts and others are of immense importance to not lose sight of. The underpinnings will only get more complicated as generational life-cycles shorten. But focusing on them ahead of time can be the difference between it adversely affecting YOUR workplace atmosphere.

Secondly, as for motivations, we are already seeing the stark disparity between what drives Millennials when compared to, say, Gen X'ers. There is a very commonly held to, systematic shift in lifestyle and thus, values between the two groups. Where before, the tendency was to earn a lot of money, build a nest egg, have a stable foundation for a family etc, one's accomplishments in the Millennial mindset skew closer to living a nomadic and carefree lifestyle. They don't have as many benchmarks to measure themselves by and don't care that they don't either. The enjoyment in life comes from its spontaneity and sometimes recklessness and they simply believe that things will work out for the best in the end. What drives them is travel, friends, overwhelming activity level and social fortitude. At large, the takeaway here to think about is that structure and daily routines are great to have and necessary for functional work environments. However, clinging too closely to any one established group's idea of what that may look like may have a consequence of derailing even the strongest of environments in this brave new world we are diving into.

Given the third assumption, and rehashing a previous point, it's not ridiculous to project that you may one day be working alongside people from half a dozen generations at once; all with their own idiosyncrasies, reactive behaviors, thought patterns etc. It's a very realistic possibility and one that will cause rise to a situation of unfathomable navigability to overcome if not recognized. Oddly enough, in a recent episode of South Park, this very conundrum comes up in the form of how kids used to approach video games versus how kids do now. The premise being that the most youthful of the kids these days have transitioned over to watching OTHER people play video games while accompanied by commentary over YouTube; instead of playing the games themselves. It's a real shift and one that I don't understand myself. But it's things like this that I don't need to understand the why. I only need to accept that it's happening and be o.k. with it. Who knows what the real implication for behavior like this will result in down the line, but aren't you curious to find out? Being resistant will only stymie the progress that we can make by inter-operating with those of different age groups and flat line the learning that each can grab from each other. It will be the most interesting of social experiments to date, but harnessing it would cause a much more favorable outcome.

At last, in terms of the structural leadership that we point to for guidance and assumed expertise, I truly believe something will give one day very soon. There's something very interesting happening from my point of view in the world, and it is the rate at which incoming generations are gaining and applying knowledge. As a colleague of mine recently wrote, the landscape of the educational system is changing dramatically and is becoming less and less relevant as time progresses. The future I see for that is that it will go by the wayside altogether (traditionally speaking). The resources that are now available to us dictate a MUCH broader spectrum of avenues to use to amass the skills necessary to invent, tinker and program our way to a more advanced future. Why then, I ask, would we trust those put into positions of power or "title" with such implicit framing? They came from the old world, right? In my daily conversations, I already see people frustrated by the fact that this paradigm shift is not being allowed to happen and it will only compound as we catapult forward without a way to rectify it and encourage it to get better. Once again, with so many factors about to be in play from generational shifting, a more comprehensive and collective way of solving the world's problems is what my minimalist approach would be, but the steps to achieve that are something far greater than me, and require more attention from all of those who would recognize a better way as well.

There are a lot of different things that I, more or less, hope for ultimate call to action to here. I think a lot of the change proposed may be a little too early on the progress curve to enact wholeheartedly - yet - but we need to start somewhere and I'm actually a bit pessimistic for the future if we don't at least start to address some of them. What then, is the catalyst for all of this you may ask? It's quite unassuming actually - simple recognition that it will happen and a foresighted effort to not let it be so. If you can so easily frame a new calendar year as the boundaries to better yourself, then why not think bigger and use that same methodology as reason for a bigger and better cause? That's the challenge and the promise all at once.