![](https://www.hrheadquarters.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/19179-HRHQ-online-web-banners.gif")
By Brian Geddes
I think the term “millennials” is highly overused, but it’s the easiest way I can think of to refer to a whole group of people I’m about to bash. Think people born between 1980 and the mid-90s. That’ll be specific enough. (Disclaimer: I’m a part of that generation, too).
Anyhoo, millennials suck*. For a lot of reasons, but none more so than their attitudes. I think we make a lot of our “trophy culture,” where everyone makes a fuss just because we suited up and participated, but we rarely investigate the specific impact this kind of thinking has on our daily lives (besides an increased incidence of whining).
*This statement firmly excludes young people that serve in the military. They are braver and better than all of us.
Trophy culture breeds entitlement. We expect praise after accomplishing nothing; we used our parents’ money to go to college, then we graduated expecting a high-paying job, even though most of our undergraduate training prepared us for nothing. Now we expect promotions after a certain amount of time has passed, regardless of our accomplishments or actual skill set. We compare ourselves to others and assume that we are being treated unfairly if someone moves faster than we do.
Millennials are such babies.
Millennials are also innovative, blisteringly intelligent, and on track to become the most educated generation in the history of mankind. They’re necessary. So rather than just bash their whimpering unwillingness to toughen up, I’m going to show you how to deal with them like I deal with my one-year-old son, Colin.
1. Recognition
“Notice me!” screams a generation. After a couple hundred years of individualistic indoctrination, America has created a horde of attention-seeking monsters. In more Gemeinschaft societies (Wikipedia that word – it’s a good one and literally the only thing I remember from Social Psych), like China, community takes the forefront. Children are encouraged to integrate into the group and contribute quietly. In the US of A, we clap for the kid belching the alphabet while tap dancing and spinning in circles.
Colin, my firstborn baby boy, has a basic intelligence level, because he is a baby. He is still testing the world’s levers and exploring new ways to influence his surroundings. One of his metrics of success for new actions is the amount of positive attention he gets when he acts. Say “balloon” when you’re pointing to the balloon, and you’ll hear Mom and Dad lose their shit; throw your puffs on the floor so you can watch the dog eat them, and you’ll probably get the cold shoulder.
Part and parcel to this process is our reinforcement of his good tricks by recognizing each and every time he does them. He begins to expect positive stuff each time he says balloon – because we’re good parents and because we’re sort of patient, we recognize his accomplishments over and over. It’s exhausting.
Switch to the millennial workforce. If you have ever worked with a member of this group, you’ll immediately see the point. Millennials are trained to thrive in their careers when they are recognized, and then to expect it consistently. They need their shareable moments and title changes and email shout-outs to feel important. And, even if it’s annoying, it’s not that hard to accommodate. Set the bar high for accomplishment, but remember to celebrate the wins, large and small. Nothing is better for engagement. Millennials need to feel valued in their career path; so show them they are.
2. Relativity
To be fair, the next point can be extrapolated to any person, but it’s still important. We judge ourselves based on what others have. We overvalue our own contributions and undervalue others’, which makes us bitter when someone else is succeeding (“there’s no way she deserves that”).
Colin has Mommy and Me playgroups, where he gets to interact with a whole bunch of other babies. They play with blocks, read books, and then, because we’re in Brooklyn, they draw with organic, edible crayons. It’s funny to see Colin’s interest in a toy wax and wane based on who is holding it. He’ll let a stuffed doggy sit right next to him, paying it no mind, until Lucas crawls over and starts to show some interest. Then, the stuffed doggy is FIRE, bro. It’s all he wants. Sometimes parents have to intercede and say “Hey, child, this is the logical reason why you can’t play with this right now.”
Employers have to do the same thing – make ranking and movement as transparent as possible, so people can see an objective reason for rewards. The bitterness will fade if there is a foundation of objective reasoning, and employees will even start to model the stuff you are rewarding.
3. Retention
Millennials change careers four times by the time they turn 32, which means they’re slippery little things. Most of the time, they’re leaving because they’re bored.
I try to read a few books to Colin each day. Sometimes he doesn’t want to pay attention; he’d rather pull the dog’s ear and spill water on her back. I have to make things very interesting in order to get him to stay. That means funny voices, movement, putting underwear on my head; anything to keep him engaged.
Same for millennials. Start a rotational program to keep minds absorbed. Allow your employees to experience multiple departments and processes; they’ll be smarter for it, and the change will provide a much-needed mental stabilizer.
