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Ryan Paugh graduated from Penn State in 2006 with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business. After working in corporate communications, freelance writing and reporting, he co-founded 
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Forget About Generation Y: We’re All to Blame for Workplace Woes
I’ve been blogging about generational differences for over a year now. But with all the back and forth, constant banter, and little resolution, it feels more like ten years.
It feels like everyone is saying the same stuff over and over. Boomers and X’ers complain about Generation Y, and then Generation Y complains about everybody else. But really, we should all just be complaining about ourselves together.
We all have a lot of similar traits that make the workplace really suck sometimes. But for some reason we’re so distracted by the minor differences between us that we forget how we’re all a pain in the ass sometimes.
Generations aside, here are three things that will always remain the same:
We all have unrealistic expectations of each other.
Does Generation Y have unrealistic expectations when it comes to our first jobs? Absolutely, but who can blame us?
When it comes to education, I can’t remember one professor who taught me the ins and outs of entry-level living. And parents, well, let’s face it. It was a much different world when then got out of school than it is today.
So while Gen Y needs to get a grip on what it means to be at the bottom of the food chain, managers need to re-evaluate what they expect their young workers to be in tune with. It seems pretty logical to me that we won’t know everything.
We’re all a little stubborn at first.
My first real project was facilitating groups of senior management on a new operating model being released to the company. Nobody wanted to change and there was a lot of resistance.
“Why do we need to change now?” they’d ask.
Everyone left grumbling about all the work they’d now have to do, explaining this system to their employees. I didn’t hear from any of them for weeks.
Then a couple weeks later people starting calling for materials to hand out to their employees. It started to make sense that no matter how much they fought, the company was still making a change.
I think the same is going to happen with the rift between Generation Y and the rest of the workforce. Only it will happen a lot slower. Change is a dirtier process when it occurs from the bottom up.
But just wait until you catch your boss texting and loving it. They’re already sending emails via Blackberry, which is really not that different.
We’re all whiners.
The older I get, the more I realize that we are all just a bunch of whiners. And by we I don’t mean Generation Y. I mean we as in everybody.
For over a year now I’ve listened to older generations hate on Generation Y, then Generation Y hate back. Even I threw my own two cents into the blogosphere, adding some fuel to the on-going fire of generational conflict.
The sooner we come to terms with the fact that we all have something worth complaining about, the sooner we can cooperate using the only method that’s ever kept the majority happy—give and take.
I’m hoping as more Gen Ys mature and become accustomed to the realities of the workplace, it’ll be easier for us all to grasp that we all have problems, regardless of our generation.
But even then, Gen Next will enter the working world, bringing more grief for the rest of us who are corporately over the hill. So let the cycle continue, I guess. Just don’t let me become the guy who calls all those young employees selfish and entitled. Let me be the cool boss, please.
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Good post, I totally agree. I think for many people is is a lot easier to assign blame then to work with the person so that both parties can on the same page. Like companies with a high turnover rate of recent college grads, instead of saying that it is the new employees fault that they don’t work out at the company and continue to have high turnover rate the management should see what they can do that alleviate the situation and work with the new employees on what the company expects from them realistically.
All very good points, Ryan. You are sounding like you may turn into the cool boss.
If we all were able to skip the whining and complaining step and got to constructive dialogue, change and harmony could come faster. That’s what I try to facilitate…but it’s often a slow process.
A dirty little secret about the human condition is that some people really get off on whining and complaining. They are not fun to be around if you happen not to get any satisfaction out of it. I’m for skipping the whining and complaining step and using that time for something more enjoyable and productive.
Jessica: I totally agree. And I think some companies are starting to get it. But it’s still a work in progress.
Phyllis: Thanks! I hope I turn into a cool boss.
It makes sense to me that some people “get off” on whining. I definitely know a few of those people and they aren’t fun in the least. I’m with you though, skip the whining and focus on enjoyment and productivity.
Thanks!
Ryan,
Have you checked out any of Paddi Lund’s work yet?
www.solutionspress.com.au/content/standardnew.asp?name=SixSimpleSystems
I’ve read “Building The Happiness Centered Business” and it seems a very workable model for small service businesses - and possibly also scalable to the corporate world, team-by-team and dept-by-dept.
Not sure which generation will carry that torch into the heart of the Western corp world but I suspect it’s time is long past due.
I also have a Ricardo Semler quote that continues to inspire: “Success is not measured only in profits and growth”. The antidote to predatory capitalism?
regards
mark mcclure
tokyo
Ryan…you are sounding like a very wise man.
I have found that people who whine and complain aren’t doing work they love OR they aren’t being challenged enough. If you have time to whine, you don’t have enough to do (of course, this is the world according to Bea.)
I also have discovered that we all have unrealistic expectations, because most humans don’t live up to their potential (whatever that means.) When I have an unrealistic expectation of someone, it is usually because I am not using my strengths to their fullest.
Great post. I’d say ageism plays a big part in it too. When we first meet people, the 3 unconscious traits we automatically assess in order to categorize people’s coalitional allegiance are race, sex, and age. I’ll be the first to admit I am a little ageist. I usually have more positive stereotypes when I might young professionals, and I assume older ones are stodgy and distant.
on a side note I think it’s important not to unconsciously allow our [negative] stereotypes to be reinforced. If you find yourself blaming a simple mistake on someone, look at the situation (they worked a 70 hour week, they rarely make mistakes, they had a long night, etc.) as opposed to a permanent attribute such as age (he’s immature and sloppy, or that happened because he’s borderline senile).
Ryan - great reflection in this one. As an HR professional at a large (and fairly traditional) corporation, this is a constant challenge for us. I’m a Millennial myself, personally resonating with many of my generation’s sentiments about work, careers, and life. On the other hand, I understand the needs of the organization and the challenges of shifting a culture in any direction. Shifting to create more cross-generation collaboration is definitely a daunting challenge in many ways.
I’d love to see more about what is working to bridge this gap. It is clear how each side needs to change thinking and expectations, but what actions/initiatives are actually working? My initial exploration of this is that it makes manager coach/development practices imperative - not just best-practice anymore. Both sides - employee & manager - need to be more advanced/skilled in communicating, setting expectations, aligning on goals/objectives, and modeling inclusion in the workplace.