We Millennials Don’t Want Jobs, We Want Lives
We’re in the year 2018, and the topic on ‘Millennials are hard to manage’ is still getting thrown around. As a Millennial myself, I’m often hearing complaints from business owners and executives about our work ethic, such as we’re hard to manage, we’ve got no commitment and no drive whatsoever. Furthermore, there are many articles out there saying that Millennials just won’t work, we’re lazy, and think we’re entitled to a job.
We get it. Back in those days where employers had the “take it or leave it” attitude and employees had the “deal with it” attitude with just about every job, people were happy to have a job and they did whatever they had to do to keep it. That’s an understandable view, however, it’s also largely incorrect – time is changing.
Millennials Want Lives
Like it or not, Millennials are needed for the success and sustainability of your business. If you want to attract and retain the right talent, you need to start thinking fundamentally different and face a new reality. Don’t solve the issue by offering more interesting jobs. Millennials don’t want jobs. They want lives.
According to Jamie Gutfreund (Chief Strategy Officer) of the Intelligence Group, Millennials will represent 40% of the total workforce by 2020. Let this sink in for a moment.
Additional important findings on Millennials are:
- 64% say it’s a priority for them to make the world a better place.
- 72% want to be their own boss, but if they do have to work for a boss, 79% want their boss to be more as a coach or mentor to them.
- 88% prefer a collective work-culture instead of a competitive one.
- 74% want flexible work schedules.
- And 88% want work-life integration where work and life are blended together, which isn’t the same as work-life balance.
Millennials are strategically searching for opportunities to invest in an organisation where they can make a positive difference, preferably one that itself makes a positive difference. This is a certain lifestyle centred around freedom in making choices for themselves and showing a sense of independence.
With the technology nowadays, anyone can do anything with the right tools and aspirations. It has never been easier to work for ourselves or any other organisation, no matter where we live.
Redefining Work
Instead of focusing on squeezing whatever you can out of the Millennial workforce before they move on in two to three years, you need to stop and listen. We’re not shy about telling you what we want. Our way of looking at the world and life is often misunderstood by older generation managers.
We aren’t entitled – we are empowered. We want more out of life, and we will get a lot of what we are seeking. This doesn’t make us better or worse, it just means that life is different now. We are growing and evolving. We don’t buy into the concept of sitting at an empty promise desk for eight to ten hour a day trying to look busy for a boss. We see a bigger picture, leveraged by technology. This means the ability to add meaningful value from anywhere at any time.
Regardless of what you think you can get out of Millennials in the short run, it is outdone by the benefits of a long-term relationship filled with ambition, creativity, collaboratives, passion, tech-savviness, and cultural awareness.
So, here are four ways to attract and retain the best of Millennials for your organisation.
1. Creating An Entrepreneurial Culture
72% of Millennials want to be their own boss. This means working when, where and how you like as long as results are delivered. At the same time, it offers flexibility and freedom, and removes discussions around the dead concept of work-life balance. With technology nowadays, work and life look the same. Being your own boss not a job, it is a lifestyle.
If you embrace the Millennial entrepreneurial spirit and build an internal culture to support, rather than step all over it, they don’t feel the need to leave your organisation to fulfil this desire. Anyhow, results are all that really matters at the end. By giving them the flexibility and freedom, where possible, to be their own boss with a focus fully on results. In long-term, this produces greater employee engagement, loyalty and ultimately better business results.
2. Having A One-Team Mentality
88% of Millennials prefer to collaborate instead of competing with others. There are still many organisations whose employees spend more time competing internally against themselves instead of their external competition. Millennials don’t want to work in such an environment, but they’re interested in working together to make the world a better place. An organisation that truly embraces and lives a “one-team” mentality will attract and retain the best of Millennials.
3. Caring For People’s Success
A step towards attracting and retaining the best of the Millennial workforce and organisational improvement is the recognition that people’s lives matter. Organisations are not special, but how they care about the success and health of their people is. It’s important for organisations to understand that creating a successful life for its people can maximize their engagement and business results. This ultimately leads to their ability to change the world.
Supporting the life success of your employees requires leaders and managers who take on the role of strong coaches and mentors. They should focus on both short- and long-term career and personal development. 79% of Millennials say this is important to them.
4. Communicating Higher Reasons
It’s key that both the Millennials and you know how the required work is having a positive impact on the world. This thoughtful consideration is what will excite them and the next-generation workforce and where true value adds up when it comes to engaging people, fulfilling purposes, and driving business results.
Most businesses are not established with the purpose to make money. They started for a higher reason. Know your industry and organisation’s purpose. Know how you make the world a better place. If you can’t connect the dots, Millennials will look elsewhere. 64% of Millennials say it’s a priority for them to make the world a better place.
We Are Who We Are
If leaders and managers effectively communicate and align both organisational and employee purposes, organisations will experience greater employee and customer engagement, and greater business success.
We Millennials are interested in work; we are not lazy; we don’t think the world owes us a living; we want more out of life and we want to leave the world a better place because we live.
Infographic
Infographic made by Q at Infograqhics
- What is your opinion on Millennials?
- What is your opinion on organisations nowadays?
- How is your experience with Millennials/organisations?
Have your say in the comment section 🙂
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Faster information transfer as the world is becoming smaller, populations becoming larger, greater economic competition for jobs, more awareness of the overall meaninglessness of being a cog in the machine, Millennials are in a nihilistic void of meaninglessness due to there greater awareness and don’t want to follow suite with generations past, check out Sam Harris – Free Will, nobody is lazy, just our circumstances
I don’t find many of the ideas in this article to be unique to Millennials. For instance, I’m part of Generation X, and I hoped to find almost all of the same things early in my career as Millennials hope to find now. The confusing part for me is why a large portion of Millennials seems to think these aspirations are unique to them. Additionally, I never personally expected to achieve those things immediately, just because I wanted them; I had to work for another person in order to eventually, maybe, get some of what I hoped to achieve. That was the reality then, and still is, so it would make sense that many Millennials are frustrated with their jobs if they expect instant gratification, promotion, and success.
Hi Jason, thanks for sharing your experiences and insights. Instant gratification is a pitfall where many, not only millennials, fall into. As for why a large portion of millennials seems to think these aspirations are unique to them is something I cannot answer because there’s nothing mentioned in this article that millennials are or feeling unique.
Well quite an interesting piece I might say! So if you want to be the boss, as someone said, buy or start your own business, piece of cake! This generation has an eye-opening in the future, everyone wants to start from the top, well good luck. What you can learn on the computer, in college or any other school, is great, however, in the REAL world, you need live experiences to succeed! But I guess if walking around with your face in a phone, and living on the internet is going to make you successful, well good luck! I never thought I would say this however. maybe it’s time for all the immigrants that want to come into this country, well I welcome them! Because they will be the REAL workers this country need, and will eventually own the businesses that all you lazy asses wouldn’t work for. But you probably will, but still keep on whining! Suck it up buttercup and start from the bottom, work your way up and you will be a better citizen! God Bless us all!
What is the “real world?”
Yea. Screw wasting what precious energy the human being has, each day. Older generations became influenced by a piece of paper with numbers on it, lost their lives sitting under artificial lights. It’s sad to see how creative humans have into consumption habits driven by western thought.
Governments are controlled by corporations that want to control all the people for numbers printed on paper which is pure abstraction. Try eating $100 bills for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s not the same as an apple. But yes, they both grow on trees.
This nonsense is what is ruining the work environment. I am a millennial myself, but was raised with the proper morals and expectations of what a “job” is. Jobs have not changed. There still has to be people filling the positions that make a company run so that it can continue to provide for its community. Not every employee is special or “making the world a better place.” This article just comes off as instructing the leads and managers that they have to continue babying the millennials just as their parents and the new norms of society have been doing their whole lives. The whole of their youth these days, children are told how special they are and that they are a significant part of changing the world for the better. Adulthood and entering the work force pops that overinflated ego and is making the millennials miserable. But this article says that the employer should just continue to stroke that undeserved ego even more, leaving the millennials naive and ignorant to the reality of life.
I am currently in the process of stepping down from a management position because I am sick and tired of dealing with my fellow willful lazy millennials. They care nothing about filling orders or meeting company goals to better serve our customers. Only about hiding out of sight from us management members so they can goof off, talk with their buddies and take extended breaks. And I am tired of taking the heat by being held responsible for their inability to accept what their role in the job is. I started out where they are and I worked hard even without the promise of promotion. There’s something that a lot of people fail to point out about true work ethic these days. True motivation does not come from the belief that your work will be rewarded in the future. It comes from having pride in the quality work you put out. That’s also why a competitive work environment has good qualities too. Posting a weekly productivity report so everyone can see who worked hard over the week adds a nice sense of accomplishment to the hard workers who make it to the top of the list.
Hi Micheal, I’m sorry to hear that you’re having a bad experience with millennials. Even among the millennials, the same with all previous generations, we either offer the best or the worst traits.
People are special, that’s why some are better skilled than others. Take for instance an unhealthy person who is sick and weak, standing next to a healthy person who is a martial artist and is strong
I agree with you Michael. I’m a gen Xer and I spoiled my millennial daughter. I did her no favors and now she struggles to “work” her husband is same way. I had it tough growing up and wanted to make it easier on her so I spoiled her and she had no chores etc. Now she is a bit entitled. I’m trying to not repeat this with my young grandkids. My husband sees this also at work, he says the younger workers are pretty lazy unfortunately. GenX parents spoiled our kids too much. Just my experience.
We totally agree with this. Times are changing! As millennials, we want to blur the lines between work and play. For us, it’s liberating to have people wondering what we’re really up to. With our imagination, the possibilities are endless. And it’s that kind of optimism that keeps us going when we could very easily be pulled back down to the drudgery of the typical 9-to-5. We won’t let a four-letter word like “work” kill our spirit!
It all comes back to loving what you do and doing what you love. When you’re truly passionate about something, work doesn’t seem like work. And while many of us do have the entrepreneurial spirit, not everyone will own their own business. But we can still get a taste of ownership in the authenticity, autonomy, and collaboration that comes with contemporary companies changing the face of “corporate culture.” We might not own the company, but we can own a little piece of the dream.
Hi Nicole, you’ve explained this brilliantly! Thank you 🙂 As long as we don’t fall into the trap of entitlement, which I see so often in different generations.
That is very true! The key is being confident without being conceited. i.e., having faith in our abilities, but being open to feedback. Teamwork makes the dream work 😉
As a millennial myself I could not have said this any better than myself. I find it extremely hard to be satisfied in my office job I don’t find that I achieve anything important nor do I feel satisfied, I have been working in accounting for the past 2.5 years and I am so underwhelmed with the past 2.5 years of my life. I find myself itching at the 1 year mark and becoming extremely dissatisfied to the point where it starts toying with my mental health. We want to live and work, not work to live. Great article
Hi Madonna,
I understand that feeling so well. Do you have an idea what kind of work might satisfy you? Have you tried talking to your supervisor about it? Maybe a change in approach or work within the organisation?
Thank you 🙂
I just have to laugh at this.
You want to be your own boss? Fine. Go out and start your own company. Don’t have the capital to start your own business? Too darn bad. Suck it up. You’ll have to work another job you may not like until you make enough capital to do what you DO like. The world owes you NOTHING, and nobody is gonna hire you right out of college allowing you to be your own boss. You’re in fantasy land and not living in the real world yet.
Hi Sally, I understand that my blog came across quite provocative and I wonder how come and why.
Yes, we millennials do want to be our own boss, but if we have to work for another, we would like to have a mentor who guide us as we grow and not a self-absorbed person who sees us as a money making tool. Yes, sometimes we DO have to suck it up, but it won’t for the long-term. Yes, the world owes us nothing. That’s why we will work our butt off to make something out of it. If fantasy land is the nowadays open sources where we can obtain information and create opportunities for ourselves, than that’s the most realistic fantasy ever. Are companies aware of this? Maybe. If not, than they will be outplayed by companies that are aware and do understand that things are changing.
Excellent article. I’m not a millennial myself, and was raised to believe that work was your life (how wrong was the thinking back then). But I can totally relate that it is a different time now and work should not be your life. Today’s world is a different place. I really enjoyed your perspective on the workforce of today.
Hi Doug, I’m glad we have similar views 🙂 And thank you for sharing your thoughts on this.
Beautifully written! As a millennial myself, I can totally agree.
Best,
Claudia
Hi Claudia, thank you 🙂
Always enjoy reading your posts. They say exactly what Im thinking but just cant put it into words.
Cheers!
Jordan
Hi Jordan, thank you 🙂
This is such a fresh perspective on this issue – I feel like this change is going to take a while until millennials are in higher positions in the workforce because unfortunately, we’re still being led by people from a different generation who don’t quite understand how the workplace has evolved. Great post.
Hi Stephanie, thank you 🙂 And you’re right. Eventually, we’ll be the ones who will lead the next generation (Gen Z) and I hope we will show more understanding on their perspectives.
Yyyyoooooo Chen, you plucked the words right outta my mouth! Thanks for that.
Heeeeeeyy Micheal, thanks bro 🙂
This is such a great post! My feelings exactly – work should not be your life. There is so much more to live for 🙂
Thanks for sharing
Aishah
Using food and fitness as medicine
I agree. Very well said. Thanks for posting.
Thanks Taylor 🙂
I love that this generation thinks outside the box. With the advancement in technology in all areas of employment the world is changing faster than anyone realizes, The world is going to be a different place and Millenials are preparing the way. Nice article!
Hi LaRena, I couldn’t agree more 🙂 thank you!
Great perspective and so true! Quality of life is so important, the days of working like a horse till you die are slowly coming to an end, which will mean mean more time to enjoy life for all of us, millennial or not!
Hi Michelle, absolutely! Thank you 🙂
Nice article! Loved it. As a millennial myself, I can really relate. Keep up the good work.
Thanks Zjir 🙂