A Bird in the Hand
It is said that certain traits — wealth, twin offspring, laser vision — skip a generation. Perhaps that is why the Millenials are reminiscent of the Boomers. The Boomers worked hard, for a time, and now they want their shit. Many Millenials, steeped in this milieu, want theirs fronted.
I was reminded of this recently. I had a position to fill and an existing employee who was a solid candidate for a promotion. He refused to apply. Much like Cousin Eddie, he was holding out for management. Rather than take a better schedule and a nice raise, he was angry about being expected to pay his dues. Perhaps he wanted me to beg, but I’m not that kind of boss. I present opportunities, I may nudge, but the onus rests on the individual. Over the past five years, many of my employees have gotten promotions. Others have moved into bigger positions elsewhere. I’d rather provide a reference and lose a motivated individual than deal with those who are preternaturally content. The content aren’t often great workers.
The millennial wasn’t content, he was just unmoored from reality, from the progression of gaining new experience, building the resume, expanding the professional network. He was sure that he was going to get the phone call with a new offer at any moment.
If someone is offering you money, take it, especially if it involves a promotion. You can continue to plot your next move. If the promotion is beneath you, what about the job you’re refusing to leave? You’ll never make it into management by being obstinate and focusing on the full shitter.
The NY Times had an article on the difficulty of managing snowflake generation workers. They cited the expectations of management jobs within 2-3 years. I think a problem is that they never had to work hard for anything. A go getter Millenial can really separate themself from the crew. We promoted one recently while the others bitched after, and I said “She wanted more at work more than all of you”. Gotta be hungry.
I’m on the border as I am either a Gen Xer or Millenial depending on when the range ends or begins. The longer I work, the more I feel like a Millenial molded by hard working parents and grandparents.
My last departer was a highly motivated Millenial. Honestly, despite my ragging on that generation in general, that’s my favorite archetype, but they are elusive. When you find one that shines, though, he shines brightly. He also ruins it for those in his cohort who are oblivious to why he shines. They assume favoritism rather than skill and work ethic.
I myself was born in the middle of gen x. We’re far from perfect as a generation. I do well because I recognize my imperfections and recognize the strength of my team — mostly by stepping back and giving them opportunity to excel — but that’s more a fortunate personality trait than a product of the times or my upbringing. (I do not come from control freaks, but that didn’t preclude me from becoming one.)