They don't make 'em like they used to

Cunningstunts wrote

Ahahaha! Maybe this will help explain things:

I get that this is a joke, but I haven't seen this. Granted working in a small company my experience is limited. But what I've seen is that millennials are capable and give you a good day of work during our official hours.

They are especially good at using google to find solutions to digital problems. So much of our business (digital marketing) is tied up with Google and Facebook and those companies don't offer easily accessible sales help. Sales reps won't give you their phone number, referring you to online videos or other help. When I was younger sales people would help you buy from them in any way they could.

They do walk out the door enmasse at 5:00 and the building has only our older employees at 5:01. I actually think this isn't a bad thing. My generation has thing about putting in all these hours, and I think it is BS.

Another difference is they aren't going to stay. Our older employees value different things: short commute, relaxed dress code and some other kinds of flexibility.

In my experience millennials seem to care most about what they are paid. We interviewed a woman last night to replace the guy I mentioned earlier in the thread. She graduated this past May and she wants $60k with very little work experience. She lives with her parents, currently works in the city, sets her alarm for 4am and gets home at 8:30pm. She spends over 20 hours a week commuting. She's probably paying $5k a year to commute, and also gets NYC tax taken out of her check. She could probably take 8 or 10k a year less and come out even on take home pay, not even counting the time. But it seems like she isn't going to budge on salary. I don't get that. I've been working for less money with a 5 minute commute my entire career.

Another thing I've noticed is a focus on job description. We're a small company and sometimes we need people to pitch in, in ways that might not be listed as an official responsibility. One of my jobs is to put out the recycling once every two weeks. It seems that if we ask our younger people for help in areas that weren't specifically defined at hire, they ask for a meeting to discuss their salary.

My partner and I don't think that way. We are from a different "era" (lol) and just need to be more clear upfront and learn how to communicate better. I'm not judging this, just working through it, trying to keep our company moving forward.

Harvey wrote

I don't understand his thinking, I'm sure he doesn't understand mine either.

Stinks to lose good people, I’ve had it happen a couple of times.  I also get the gap in understanding.  

That said, wouldn’t this kid be the exact opposite of what Jon was observing?  Sure, this kid might end up years from now wishing he worked at a smaller company, and had a shorter commute and better quality of life.  However, a kid who is looking at the long term, considering career advancement paths and his future, and is willing to put in the leg work to secure what he THINKS is going to be a better future......well, that doesn’t seem like unmotivated youth to me.

As for college, while right place/right time and who you know are factors that can make a huge difference, college is also what you make of it.  If you are the type who is inclined to be passed out over a cone in one of Scottie’s Potties every weekend I think it’s going to show in your resume and how you present in interviews.

The 20 and 30 year olds who have worked for me have been highly motivated and intelligent hard workers.  Heck, better than some of the 40 year olds I have.  I’m also proud that my daughter (third year of college, can graduate a semester early) is one of the most highly motivated and extremely active (classes, multiple internships, mentor within her major, dance, television productions, travel and more) students on her campus, and she doesn’t get wasted.  My boys (still in high school) seem like lazy asses in some ways (chores, part time jobs) at home (but so did my daughter when she was in high school), but we allow them to focus on academics, sports and other school activities.  Even with their degree of “laziness” I don’t believe they are unmotivated, as they clearly have their eye toward their futures.

I used to think that as a parent in today’s overprotective everybody gets a trophy society we were robbing our kids of valuable coping skills, but I’m happy to say my daughter is proving me wrong.  So, I don’t weep entirely for the yutes of today, as there have been kids from every generation passing out in their own vomit in college!

Yes, obviously not being very serious.  I don't think I want to try to stereotype an entire generation of people or generalize them to a few sentences.

The one thing I do notice and have a hard time with the is the attachment to the phones, social media and online socializing.  I realize the irony of this as I am posting on an internet forum.  But I find it incredibly rude when people stop to look at their phone during a face-to-face conversation or text while they are talking to you.  I've also seen groups of kids sitting around a table, not interacting with each other at all, and all texting.  I just don't get it.  Usually if I take the time to be present for someone, I give them the attention they deserve.

JTG4eva! wrote

Harvey wrote

I don't understand his thinking, I'm sure he doesn't understand mine either.

Stinks to lose good people, I’ve had it happen a couple of times.  I also get the gap in understanding.  

That said, wouldn’t this kid be the exact opposite of what Jon was observing?  Sure, this kid might end up years from now wishing he worked at a smaller company, and had a shorter commute and better quality of life.  However, a kid who is looking at the long term, considering career advancement paths and his future, and is willing to put in the leg work to secure what he THINKS is going to be a better future......well, that doesn’t seem like unmotivated youth to me.

The guy who left was highly motivated, smart and totally busted ass.  Those were some of the reasons we wanted to keep him.  He tended to piss a lot of people off, telling people with more experience that they were clueless. Sometimes he was right, but it did cause some drama.

Harvey wrote

He tended to piss a lot of people off, telling people with more experience that they were clueless. Sometimes he was right, but it did cause some drama.

This is telling, I think.  It’s also perhaps an indication of what I think may be a bigger problem with younger generations than lack of motivation.  I think some younger people today are lacking in common sense, and social and workaday life skills.  

This is telling, I think.  It’s also perhaps an indication of what I think may be a bigger problem with younger generations than lack of motivation.  I think some younger people today are lacking in common sense, and social and workaday life skills.

Thinking its close to a 50-50 split between lacl of motivation and lacking social/common sense skills. And maybe my comment about a "sprinkling" of good ones needs to be upgraded to "adequate" number of good ones.

https://youtu.be/mkoPq5AOCOA

Deeper down the rabbit hole.  “They don’t make ‘em....”, but who is ‘they’?

Working under the premise that Millennials (or whatever) are a “product of their generation”, what makes that so?

Is it their environment?  Society (socioeconomic classes, single parent household)?  The economy?  Is there less pressure to succeed (everybody gets a trophy) or less opportunity (fewer menial jobs available to students)?

Or, as it always does to a large degree,.....does it come down to parenting?

Is ‘they’ the parents or the village that raises the child?

While you ponder that I’ll give you my perspective....

Here’s where I’m not sure if my being a piece of shit, Republican capitalist, ‘I got mine’ asshole (as some might have it) is a help or hindrance to my kids.  It always seemed to me that the current generation wants (or should want) their kids to have it better than they did.  Having shit growing up at the poverty level (mmm....government cheese, and mom and dad would send me to try and spend the food stamps on cigs.....but they loved us in their way and they were sick) I worked hard and made my own opportunity, as did my wife of very modest means, so my kids wouldn’t have to grow up the way I did.  Unfortunately, that sets the bar pretty damn high for my kids to try and achieve the same for their kids.  

What does this have to do with anything?  Oh, back to parenting.  It could be easy for some kids to not see beyond the relative “silver spoon”.....while other kids might, from an early age, see the challenge laid before them.  Depending upon how the kids are parented through that situation probably goes a long way to determining motivation, either being spoiled (with no motivation) or challenged to work hard and do even better (extremely motivated).

So, I guess I’m in with MC.  I think, to a degree, it has always been that way, and the kids are alright, at least (IMHO) if they had some decent parenting along the way......

JTG is right. You guys should listen to him.
Young people don’t suck as bad as you think and most old dudes suck too

Brownski wrote

JTG is right. You guys should listen to him.
Young people don’t suck as bad as you think and most old dudes suck too

More trouble...so this begs the question, "how old is old?"
Perhaps we should conclude, "young and old...we all suck". Maybe there's another life form out there with a population  of non-earthlings who don't suck. If so, then maybe they're the chosen ones, lol.

The ability to personalize everything creates a feeling that the individual is more important than the community.  Sometimes it's good, but more often it prohibits that person from seeing someone else's point of view.

I think what's lacking in recent generations is discipline, work ethic and respect for others.  Those attributes often come from parts of life like religion, competitive sports (i.e. no participation trophy) or just the need to rise above your surroundings.....like the blind person participating in this past weekend's 70.3 Ironman Lake Placid.

Just keep in mind this age group is used to having everything at their fingertips. Heck they've never even had to get off the couch to change the channel on the TV.