Gen Y: Why Do They Think That Way?

Have you noticed that your Gen Y employees seem to have a slightly different perspective toward work, authority, and feedback than some of your older employees?

I thought so.

When asking manager training seminar participants what their biggest challenges are, "What's up with those younger workers?" is usually on the list.

To answer that question, I spent the last year synthesizing the current research on Gen Y and interviewed Gen Y employees and their supervisors for clues about how to what motivates them, what drives them crazy, and how to balance meeting their needs with having them meet yours.

Just like with dealing with people who have personality styles different from yours, when dealing with people from a generation that's different from yours, it's really helpful to understand where they're "coming from" -- i.e. how they see the world and why they think the way they do.

Here's how this will help you:

1. It will help you understand more about how to connect with them and be more influential

2. It will reduce your stress level, because the more we understand why someone is doing something that goes against our way of being in the world, the less anger and judgment we have toward them.

3. The less anger and judgment we have, the more we can think and act strategically, rather than have a knee jerk Neanderthal response that makes us look ridiculous and makes the situation worse.

Big Caveat Ahead

I want to be crystal clear here... I am NOT saying that understanding where someone else is coming from means excusing unacceptable behavior.

I'm saying that from a purely practical point of view, we are FAR more effective if we have control over our emotional state when we respond. If we're foaming at the mouth with self-righteous indignation -- no matter how justified - we're simply not going to be as effective as we will if we remain cool and in control of our emotions.

To say nothing of how much more effective at eliciting productive responses in others we are when we maintain our composure.

So, with that in mind, here are 23 cultural factors that have played a major role in shaping the world view of your Gen Y employees. As you scan the list, think about their implications for what your Gen Y employees look for in an employer and what brings out the best in them.

Cultural Factors That Influence Gen Y Employees

1. The Self-Esteem Movement
2. Raised During Child-Centered Era
3. Highly Scheduled and Coached Childhoods
4. Adults as Peers
5. Parent as Coach and Friend
6. It’s Not Important What Others Think of You; It’s What You Think That Matters.
7. You Can Become Whatever You Want In Life
8. Sitcoms: Adults Are Silly; Disrespectful Behavior Is Funny
9. “In Your Face” Modeled and Celebrated: Rap Stars, Music Videos, American Chopper, Jerry Springer, etc.
10. Collaborative Learning Approaches in School
11. Technology Is Just A Normal Part Of Life
12. New Media Shaping Neurological Development for Short Attention Spans
13. Multitasking: It’s Easy; Its Fun!
14. It’s a Global, Connected World… Well, yeah…
15. It’s a Customized, On My Terms World: Starbucks, iPods, Tivo, etc.
16. Diversity Is No Big Deal
17. What I Have to Say Is Important; I’m Important: Blogs, MySpace, Facebook, etc.
18. Children as Activists: You Can Make a Difference
19. Be Rich, Be Famous: American Idol, Dot Com Millionaires, etc.
20. Problems? Blame Others: Personal Injury Attorney Ads, MacDonald’s Lawsuits: Spilled Coffee and Obese Kids, Parents Suing Schools When Child Gets Into Trouble
21. Seeing First Hand the Cost of No Work/Life Balance
22. Enron, WorldCom,… Big Corporations Are Not to Be Trusted
23. Unprecedented Affluence For Many

What Do Gen Y Employees Say About How You See Them

Make an honest effort to know that person and not generalize who this person is. You might be surprised who might be working for you. Don’t assume that I’m coming in as a 23 year old and I’m entitled, and like what you saw on MTV. I can understand where that comes from. If you are 65 year old person and see MTV and that’s your only exposure to 20 year olds, I can see why would think that way. But if you spend time around people like me who paid for college, paid for my car, you’ll see we’re not that way.

Gen Y Employee

Age-ism is an inaccurate approach to take… just because someone is cute and is young… they think they have an attitude… if someone uses that tone and treats me like a young person/little kid then I react standoffish

Gen Y Employee

If you're in New Hampshire and would like to invest in professional development for your Gen Y employees, check out this April 16th seminar