The New Age of Individuals

The generational differences within the workforce today are among the most relevant current business topics. Coming from a much different background, Generation X has noticed a significant shift in generational traits when observing personality traits of millennials. Since millennials make up the future of the workforce, it would make sense that businesses would want to efficiently utilize this section of the population to remain successful in the future, right? Well, in that case, why are less than 30% of millennials actually engaged in their jobs? Are they under-used? Do they have low initiative?

The millennial generation is arguably the generation that was pushed the hardest towards individualism, starting from birth with how they were given their own names. In the year 1950, one of every three boys born received one of the top ten most popular names of the time. By comparison, in 2012, less than one in ten did. The trend is the same among female babies born in the same time frame. Relishing in individualism is something millennials were raised to do, which can also be observed with the rise of personal image accessorizing.

Millennials are more independent- specifically with their image- than ever. With 38% of millennials having a tattoo compared to 15% of Baby Boomers, and having access to more clothing and accessory brands in popular culture than ever, independent thought and sense of self are two of the hallmarks of the millennial generation.

With a sense of independence in thought and image comes a sense of confidence. In general, according to Jean Twenge, author of Generation Me: Why Today’s Young Americans Are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled–and More Miserable Than Ever Before, millennials are not as in need for social approval as past generations. That is not to suggest they do not care what others think, but the sense of independence and confidence instilled by the parents of this generation gives a very strong sense of self, sometimes to a fault.

In a survey of college faculty, over 60% of educators reported that a student has either verbally disrespected or challenged their authority during class. Now, although I certainly don’t condone disrespect to teachers, I think this is an interesting finding. With a combined sense of individualism and confidence in personal thought, how is it that this generation can be tamed to follow direction and flourish within the walls of a corporation?

65% of millennials, according to a survey, say that they chose their current place of employment because of the opportunity for professional growth (a chance to expand their individualism). This is a prime area to target this generation from a business standpoint. In allowing millennials to work on tasks that truly contribute to the big picture of the business, they will feel more powerful and confident, as well as respectful of the company. Giving them work that challenges their minds will keep them engaged, while menial tasks will leave their sharp minds to become dull.

The truth is, millennials have become accustomed to gradually increasing their intellectual capacity since elementary school. Throughout high school years and, typically university/college years, millennials have experienced gradual intellectual growth each year. If this pattern comes to an abrupt halt, it breaks the psychological pattern they have become accustomed to.

When millennial minds have become accustomed to growth and immediately are forced to break that pattern, it is very hard for them to adjust to that mindset. Pushing marginalizing tasks on the next generation of the workforce will not be beneficial for growth of a company, and will be difficult to adjust to for millennials themselves. By allowing them continued intellectual stimulation, they will continue to feed their sense of individualism and will allow them to perform better.

Involving millennials from the get-go seems like a relatively obvious idea, but even so, only a small percentage of millennials report to being engaged at work. A good approach to at least get the mental wheels turning for millennial employees is this: if they are too inexperienced to take part in any big billable projects, have them come up with possible company strategies on certain projects that truly contribute to the company’s bottom line in a significant way. Feed their individualism. Doing that will get them into the mindset of what the company should be doing and how they should be thinking.

A few benefits come from this: they become more confident in their ability to think regarding the landscape of the work, but also, it gives employers good insight into what their youngest workers are capable of doing, and how far they can be challenged. The kind of interaction that comes from two parties that push one another is one that builds energy and chemistry between the parties, which, in turn makes it more likely for the group to stay and grow together.

In the age of individuals, millennials are constantly looking to create better, more improved versions of themselves. They want the work they do to have meaning and to give them a chance to reach higher goals. By nurturing their eagerness and making them feel more seasoned than they might be, they will in turn become more willing to stay with your company to hang onto that feeling of gratification and improvement. It’s the age of individuals now. The business world is gradually becoming more diverse and in some cases divided. Maintaining the talent you have and organically growing it is a good strategy for business development.