8 Reasons
Millennials Seem To Be Lazy At Work
Dianna Labrien
Millennials are challenging the traditional notion of
work. As they become the largest fraction
of the U.S. workforce, more and more businesses are
struggling with the demands and work ethics of Gen Y employees. If you are
struggling to understand their needs and find ways
to engage with them, here are eight reasons why you might
be failing
and think of the whole generation as lazy and non-work
driven,
while the reality is quite the opposite.
1. They no longer
value the traditional workplace rules
Strict dress code? Fines for being late for 10 minutes?
Meetings for the sake of meetings?
Millennials no longer deem such things important and
often fail to compile with out-dated rules. They will not work for a company
where certain things are done because
“it’s always been done that way.”
This generation has often been called the generation of tinkerers
and shortcut-takers.
They don’t want to get things done “just because.” They
want to get tasks done in the most efficient, least time-consuming way possible
and squeeze out the max results.
Next time you think a 20-something employee is just being
lazy,
have a closer look at his productivity time. He might
just have written a simple code to do
copy-pasting for him and now enjoys longer lunches while
the job is still being done by itself.
2. They believe in
life, not work-life balance
Work is not everything millennials want in life. They
would like to have time for their friends,
family, hobbies, and other small pleasures and pastimes.
They work to live, not live to work.
That’s why the concept of lifestyle business gained so much popularity in the last
decade
among these folks. Millennials want to combine their
passion with profit
and work long hours on projects they feel passionate about,
rather than helping someone else reach their profit benchmark.
In fact, think about this the next time you are nagging a
millennial about why
they don’t get a real job and how they should stop
wasting their time shooting makeup videos
or hunting for stuff around flea markets to sell it on Ebay
or Etsy:
These young and extremely successful entrepreneurs built
their business around their lifestyle:
Michelle
Phan started as a makeup blogger and YouTuber
and now owns a company with an expected revenue of $120 million in 2015.
Tim Ferriss is
a living legend, a highly successful author best known for
“The 4 Hour
Workweek,” and a serial entrepreneur,
having launched a series of
profitable businesses revolving around his hobbies.
James Khezrie launched his first menswear store Jimmy Jazz in Brooklyn
that
has now become a popular nationwide chain and an online store.
He was fueled by
his love for fashion and good music.
Marie Forleo is an extremely successful business coach
running an award-winning show,
“Marie TV,”
and premium training program, B-School where she teaches
how anyone
can create the life and business they love, while earning
a few thousand dollars per year.
3. They don’t want
to be just another cog in the wheel
Yes, millennials have been bashed as “the entitled generation” too many times.
Yet the reason for this is that millennials are not
seeking a life-long career to pay the bills.
They want a job with a purpose and to do something
meaningful in life.
According to a recent survey by Delo “the entitled generation”,
six out of 10 respondents said a sense of purpose was the main reason
why they chose to
work for a certain company.
On the other hand, most companies don’t provide their
young employees with the desired setting
as 28 percent of respondents from the same survey
admitted they feel that their current employer is making full use of their skills.
If you want to keep your millennial workforce content and
productive,
your company should focus on empowering workers and explaining
to them
why they should care, stressing how each team member contributes to the
overall success,
and praise more individual efforts rather than team
accomplishments or managers only.
4. They value
intangible work benefits more
A millennial job seeker is armed with technology and the
Internet. They can get to know all
the tiny details about your company, including reviews
from former and current employers,
before committing to the job. They no longer want just a
desk, fixed-working hours,
pension plan, and annual bonuses like other generations
did.
They are more attracted by intangible benefits like a
friendly work culture,
a lack of micromanagement and bureaucracy, sabbaticals,
and more, along with
some more palpable perks like a cool office space,
permission to bring pets to work,
or wellness benefits. There are numerous low-cost perks a company can offer employees
to keep them content, loyal, and motivated, other than
lucrative salary.
5. They are used
to being flexible and doing things on the go
Millennials are used to answering emails, making calls,
and solving problems on the go.
That’s why they don’t feel the need to be anchored to
their desk during traditional work hours.
Why should anyone spend eight hours in front of the desk
when they are already done with their daily plan and can
answer a few late emails
from the nearby coffee shop? They just don’t get why
people get paid for simply showing up
unless the job requires their physical presence.
This generation does not want to repeat the mistakes of
their parents
who spent over 60 hours per week at work; instead they
want it all —
a successful career and the life outside the cubicle.
Being tech savvy,
they have the ability to set up their office anywhere and
work at their own flexible hours,
while accomplishing even more compared to their peers
stuck in the office.
6. They are
autonomous
Most of them learned to type and use Google earlier than
they started writing properly.
Millennials know how and where to find information they
need and often take advantage
of free
online learning tools out there
to gain lacking skills. Besides, they grew up hearing stories about
20-something tech entrepreneurs launching their multi-billion companies from a
dorm.
These stories help ambitious millennial workers feel
like
they have the ability to be successful too.
Young executives today don’t want to be micromanaged and
preached to; they want to be actively involved in the decision-making process
and don’t get why their voice doesn’t count.
If your company seeks innovation and the urge to progress
and develop further,
let them speak and act. Allowing even the most junior
person on the team to share an idea
about the product can bring huge positive impact.
7. They want
transparency
Millennial workers don’t merely nod and do as they are
told by the manager,
unless they see and understand the logics behind the
decision. They don’t want to waste
their time on things reasoned with “I’m the
boss, I know better”. They want to know the “why”
behind most important decisions made. .” They want to
know why important are decisions made. They may not always agree with them, but
they’ll appreciate the candidness.
8. They want to
learn from experience
Most millennials are rather ambitious and won’t be satisfied
with working as a middle manager
for the rest of their days. They crave new knowledge and
first-hand experience.
They are focused on personal growth, and unlike older
generations they don’t think their education is done the day they have
graduated from college.
In fact, they are often life-long learners.
They opt for courses and training based on real-life
experience,
rather than pursuing another degree, certification, or
diploma to hang in their office.
Allow your Gen Y workforce to spend time on mastering new
skills, watching courses,
or listening to podcasts. In fact, encourage them and set
up a tuition-reimbursement fund, occasionally invite speakers to your office,
and send your employees to training sessions and
workshops.
http://www.lifehack.org/articles/work/8-reasons-millennials-seem-lazy-work.html
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