My parents were raised in a culture of “children should be seen, not heard.” I was from the latchkey generation and had a lot of autonomy with my time from a young age. My wife and I made intentional decisions to invest in our kids, teaching them to speak up, think for themselves, and ask questions. Some parents are guilty of going so far as to earn the name ‘helicopter parents.’ This is the environment where the Millennials have developed. (These of course are generalities, merely for the discussion of trends)
When I hit the work place, we were trained that when the boss said “jump” we asked “how high”. Millennials are looking for more than that.
Big Idea #3: Millennials want to be coached, not bossed
If you think about it, don’t we all? Great coaches don’t write annual performance reviews. Great coaches watch their team playing the game, use their wisdom to give the team frequent instructions and adjustments to improve, and invest in the long-term development of talent and potential. That is really the only way to build a winning team.
In addition, don’t limit the coaching relationship just to work, teach them how to live a life of significance. The Millennial paradigm is not about work-life balance, it is more focused on work-life integration.
So bossy, micromanaging, dictators…It’s not me, it’s you.
Next Week
Big Idea #4: Culture is not about espresso machines, ping-pong tables and free snacks