Here I am, stuck in the middle again...

·  ·      Managers struggle with understanding any new generation of workers.

·      We tend to think that applied primarily to millennials.

·      But it’s every new generation.

 

Nobody said managing was easy – dealing with competition, customers, regulations, and the people that work for you is hugely complicated. Let’s focus here on the people that work for you: It’s one thing to handle difficult conversations, but quite a bit more when they’re with people from multiple generations, each with different world views. And how that influences their thinking and actions. Take a moment to learn about the issues and times during which each of those generations grew into maturity: that’s a good way to begin to understand how they each see things. For instance: aby boomers were raised by parents who’d come through a depression and world war and were focused on raising families in the developing post-war middle class. And each successive generation had its own issues and challenges. It’s easy to blame disagreements on one of the other generations you’re dealing with because the alternative is having to look within yourself; as complicated as that may be, it can be very helpful. This is just one more aspect of the diversity of today’s workplace that leaders need to understand to be effective. Add this to the list of your professional development needs today.

 

Doug Larson (1926 – 2017): Columnist and editor for the Door County Advocate (1953–1964) and the Green Bay Press-Gazette (1964–1988), both Wisconsin-based newspapers.