Millennials In IT: How To Talk To Old People 2
There are certain phrases that are like passwords to the heart of your IT managers. And, no, I'm not talking about, "I bought you a fresh box of adult diapers."
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Show confidence that you can get something done on a deadline. Hit your deadline. Have a problem? Try going to a teammate instead of the boss. Show that you can take initiative without the boss holding your hand. You've got this.
You've got ambitions. Of course you do. Here's the thing: A good boss is interested in your career advancement. He or she is also interested in getting today's work done. Show your interest in your current position and in meeting your manager's goals. If you help the boss hit all the goals, the promotion will happen.
Everyone gets told to work late. It is part of nearly every job at some point. Whining about it fits your stereotype. You will often know ahead of time when those late nights are coming. A deadline is approaching. A big project is behind schedule. Why do the ritual dance of having the boss tell you to work late so you can grumble? Grumble inside (all of us do), and make your manager's day just a bit easier by volunteering before he or she asks. You'll look good and you'll save time. Don't go crazy, because work-life balance is important. Try to time it for when you already know it's a necessity.
OK, don't really say, "Screw the poor. I want a raise." For some reason, managers think that Millennials prefer to work for companies where you have a chance to donate some hours of your workday to charity. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But, seldom does volunteer work require working at a specific company. Your volunteer work is your own business. Studies show that Millennials don't volunteer any more than any other generation, so why the myth? You need to be on the lookout for when a boss may be trying to trade "opportunities" for money. They might respect you a little more if you say you'll save the world on your own time. You want to be paid what you deserve.
Networking is cool. Teamwork is cool. In fact, there often isn't enough good cross-functional teamwork in enterprises. Still, the ability to go sit in your cube, work alone for a long time, and come back with something good is a trait your bosses will respect. Sometimes collaboration slows people down. Learn the difference.
(Source: "Home Alone")
Silence the thing. Do it in a very public way. Do it at a meeting in front of everyone, and put the silenced phone on the conference table so they know you can handle it being within reach without touching it. Do this publicly at every chance. If you are feeling especially vindictive, have friends text your boss so he's the one checking his phone constantly at the meeting.
This actually might be true of some younger workers, but it is not the unifying characteristic of a generation. Show your flexibility. If you are new and in need of some structure and guidance, first retreat and panic quietly in your cube. Then try to figure things out. If you can't solve it on your own, at least present some ideas for solutions when you ask your boss for guidance.
This is one of the most infuriating myths out there. People like to be thanked at work. They like to be told they do a good job. They are secretly starving for praise and respect. There is simply not enough respect in the enterprise. The idea that Millennials are alone in this is absurd. If you find your boss patronizing you with faint praise, tell him or her as politely as possible to save his praise for when it is earned.
Even if this is true, nothing warms the cockles of an old manager's heart (that's old-people speak for getting someone sprung) like being asked about how he or she had to walk uphill both ways to get to the data center and back. You've probably used this trick with older relatives to survive the holidays. It works in the enterprise, too. Just make sure you don't accidentally call anyone gramps.
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Hey Millennials, when the geezers you work with go to bed at 9 p.m., or try to stay awake until they realize Leno isn't on anymore, I want you to whip out your phone and read this. You don't deserve to be treated like they treat you. They've got you all wrong. They've fallen for articles written by site after site (including ours) about how you guys are entitled, spoiled, phone-addicted kids who can't go to the bathroom unless you're in a team.
Not only are such stereotypes insulting, they're wrong. Research shows that you Millennials want the same things from your careers as every other generation. Old people have been shouting, "Hey you kids, get off our lawn," since the days when lawns were outside caves. And every generation calls the next one spoiled and useless. Baby Boomers were called good-for-nothing, long-haired hippies by the "Greatest Generation." You don't even want to know what those hippies called my Generation X. Heck, they stuck us with that name. You know it wasn't going to go well. This is what they think of you:
Here's the truth. Old people are scared of you. They don't get how you easily do things that they struggle with every day. Sure, they've still got a thing or two to show you, but as long as they think you can't speak in sentences longer than 140 characters, they'll never get it.
Here's the deal: I'm going to train you, in a few simple slides, how to talk to old people. There are certain phrases that are like passwords to the heart of your managers, and no, I'm not talking about, "I bought you a fresh box of adult diapers." These are ways old people talk about work. These phrases will show them you're serious about this.
Each slide has a sentence that should work, the myth you're trying to overcome, and some advice. In a week or two, they'll stop shaking their canes at you and trust you to do something besides run the company Twitter feed.
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