By Kevin
Daum An Inc. 500 entrepreneur with a more than $1 billion sales and
marketing track record, Kevin Daum is the best-selling author of Video
Marketing for Dummies and Roar! Get Heard in the Sales and Marketing
Jungle . @ KevinJDaum Inc. 500 entrepreneur and best-selling author @
KevinJDaum
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Millennials are now ubiquitous in the workplace. Not just as
newcomers, but many have years of experience (as they range in age up to
35) and hold positions of management. Patterns are emerging both for those who fall into generalizations and for those who buck the trend.
Understanding the behavior patterns is not just important for past generations to cope with millennials on the job, but millennials themselves need to understand potential weaknesses that make them get in their own way of success.
Fortunately, with a little awareness everyone can avoid the
obstacles and help young people exceed expectations. Here is my
observation on how millennials create their own success barriers and additional insights from my Inc. colleagues.
1. They focus too much on disruption.
Very little success in life is built on disruption. Sure, we in the media love to write about it, talk about it, and create heroes
of those who succeed in creating it, but that's because the disruptors
are indeed anomalies. Millennials have grown up in an era where
disruption is touted as the only path to success. In truth, most
attempted disruption fails miserably, while those who emulate patterns
and execute well do achieve success consistently. There is value in
experience and history. Millennials would do well to own the knowledge
of the past and disrupt only when it makes sense.
2. They want responsibility without accountability.
I hate addressing this issue because a negative
generalization is unfair to so many people. But with that said,
maintaining the idea that dues do not need to be paid is a typical fault
of this generation. Millennials love being given responsibility — don’t
we all — but are quicker than my generation to expect responsibility to
be granted almost immediately. Of course, that can be turned into a
positive, because when you find people with the right skills and
attitudes you want them to want more responsibility. Jeff Haden--Owner's Manual
Want to read more from Jeff? Click here.
3. They avoid key conversations.
It's no surprise that our millennials lack in traditional
communication skills. Being raised as gamers, with a tech gadget always
nearby, they seem to have been given a pass on verbal communication
skills. While 55 percent of our millennials still prefer to communicate
face-to-face, 34 percent prefer text or email, so it can be difficult at
times to coax the smaller details out of them. Be patient; it's not
that they don't care. They would simply prefer to get the job done
rather than talk about it. Marla Tabaka--The Successful Soloist
Want to read more from Marla? Click here.
4. They struggle with staying the course.
Working with 20-somethings can be a challenge. They are
always looking for the next new experience, which means they get bored
easily. When a 20-something gets bored, it can be tricky to keep them
engaged. They lack the patience of other generations and don't expect to
stay with a company or in a job for the long term. They have grown up
in a time when company loyalty is a thing of the past and if they don't
feel challenged, appreciated and that change is happening fast enough,
they will leave.
In order to motivate a Millennial, keep them in the loop
during slow times. Give them a challenge they can own, a goal to attain,
and help them understand the impact they can have on your organization
by staying the course. Eric Holtzclaw--Lean Forward
Want to read more from Eric? Click here.
The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.
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