Generation Y Not?

Generation Y includes those people born between 1980 and 1995. They are the generation that grew up with successful baby boomer parents, who didn’t make them walk to school up hill both ways, but gave them a car to drive. They are the generation that learned to use a computer before learning how to speak. They are the generation that was given more opportunities than the generations before them could ever dream of. There are a little under 80 million of these pampered, tech savvy youngins’ and they’re taking over the workplace and driving employers insane as they do it.

Recently, a SmartMoney.com columnist wrote an interesting article for employers who have to manage this new breed of adults, because Generation Y is not like any workforce companies have seen. According to this journalist, this new generation tends to "be a little high maintenance," as these young professionals demand more benefits and freedom. Generation Y typically didn’t have to worry about going without as their parents were part of the most successful generation to date, and with that security, Generation Y was able to study abroad, take on risky endeavors and not stress as much about the future and instead was able to live in the now.

What a lucky group. Well, a lucky and stuck up group according to most critics. You’ll find a lot of articles about this generation and the debate is over whether all this opportunity has gone to their heads making them entitled little brats or whether this opportunity has given them the confidence to create a better, more ambitious workplace.

The SmartMoney.com columnist recommends four things that employers should keep in mind to make sure they appease this growing workforce of young twenty somethings, because after all, we really are an untapped resource that potentially could revolutionize business as we know it, and if nothing else, we’ll be taking over the workplace in the next twenty years anyway, so you better get used to us. Since the columnist isn’t part of Generation Y, let’s see how well she captured what “we” really want.

First , the columnist encourages employers to “fully engage young workers”. I would say that I prefer to have a few things to juggle – I don’t stress multitasking, I embrace it. According to the article, since Generation Y grew up an era of technology revolution, we should be given the opportunity to leverage what we know recreationally and apply it to our jobs. So yes, I want a job that allows me to flex my creative muscle and demonstrate how my age is one of my strengths and not my weakness.

The second piece of advice is to “improve retention through incentives” – DUH. I’m pretty sure this advice applies not only to a young college graduate, but also to a 40 something with a high profile job, to a toddler being potty trained and to a dog learning to sit. No matter what generation, incentives are something we all respond to and want; however, I do think that Generation Y is more inclined to actually ASK for the incentives instead of patiently waiting for them. There is that whole Generation Y “entitlement” thing that critics complain about. But I personally think employers should appreciate such forwardness because unlike our 40 something counterpart who may leave a company because they weren’t compensated enough, at least you can try to salvage a position if you know ahead a time what your employee wants.

The columnist also recommends that employers should meet regularly with their Generation Y employees. This is something I completely agree with. Generation Y was raised to be social and growing up we had access to a crazy amount of social activities and have really come to depend on constant communication. So to all employers – the more you meet with your Generation Y employees the better off you’ll be because with each meeting you are creating a social bond that turns into loyalty, which is something that employers complain that their Generation Y employees do not have. Talk to us more and you’ll get a lot more bang for your buck.

Finally, it is recommended to “be true to your culture”. If you’re a formal, buttoned-up bank, don’t put a pool table in the break room just show how “hip” and Generation Y friendly you are. Generation Y is smart bunch of kids and we see right through those kind of things and resent it. Don’t insult us and think that “casual Fridays” makes up for an uptight office – we’re onto you – be real and we’ll do the same.

So overall, I think the columnist gave some pretty good recommendations to manage Generation Y, but there are a few others I’d like to add. Employers – are you listening?! These are pearls of wisdom...

Embrace the ambitious, ditch the lazy – Our generation is part of the most competitive entry-level workforces in history, so we see the good, the bad and the ugly. Don’t be fooled by Generation Y – we’re not all creative, hard working and innovative. Some of us are disguised as ambitious and end up being useless, so please recognize that because those of us who are really the keepers get frustrated when a lazy kid gets a job just because he/she has a blog – no amount of tech savvyness will dig you out of the holes that these sketchy, young morons can create for you.

Don’t remind us how young we are – I think my biggest pet peeve is when I’m reminded that I’m “so young”. I’m not denying I’m young and fairly inexperienced, because I’m both. But I found that generations before us, specifically those people who fall just outside Generation Y, really like to emphasize our youth and I’m thinking it might have to do with a small bit of jealousy – we may have been give a lot of opportunity, but a lot of us have worked hard in our short lifetimes.

We may have nontraditional work styles, but we still have traditions – Although Generation Y has introduced unconventional ideas to the business world and opened up unique and innovative doors for employers, it doesn’t mean we don’t value conventional lifestyles. Forget about Samantha Jones, you’d be surprised by how many of us want to get married before 30. We go to family birthday parties. We want to have dinner at a decent time. We value our time outside of work. Yes, we’re definitely an ambitious bunch, but that ambition applies to our personal lives as well so don’t think that adding a high-tech espresso machine to the office is going to make us happy as we work late, letting us have a life outside work is the best energy boost of all.

So, to all those employers fearing the Generation Y workforce invasion: don’t sweat it. Don’t think you have to bend over backwards for us because at the end of the day, we need you just as much as you need us. However, taking advice on how to manage us better may just benefit you in more ways than one because everyone could gain from some extra communication and a more relaxed work environment.

The next time you are faced with making a change to appease this young group, give it a try and don’t ask yourself “why”, ask yourself “Y not?”

How do you spell Chipotle? L-O-V-E

Why do I LOVE Chipotle? First, let me state the obvious. Who doesn’t love a full, delicious meal wrapped in a convenient tortilla shell? I mean, come on. Its not only mouthwatering, it’s portable. And recently, I was granted 10 of these foil covered morsels for FREE after my business card was pulled from a raffle. Could a girl get any luckier?! Well actually, as I ate my free burrito, I was keeping my eye open for a hidden diamond ring, but my luck had apparently run out. Next burrito.

So why am I gushing over these burritos? Two reasons: one, they were free and I mean, how cool is that? The cost of 10 burritos probably totals a little under 70 bucks and if you ask me, that’s one nice giveaway. Leave it to Chipotle to be generous to the common man. And two, I ordered all the food through their “DSL” website, which stands for “Don’t Stand in Line”, and I was very impressed.

I’ll admit that at first I was a bit confused with the whole online ordering process. In fact, I accidently processed a “practice order” of mine and had to call the restaurant at 8 am to cancel my mistake. My bad. Once I finally got it down, I had a laundry list of complicated orders and a few special requests; one of my colleagues didn’t want cilantro in his rice and I assumed asking Chipotle to make a cilantro-less burrito is like ordering Oreo cookie ice cream without the Oreo – pretty much impossible. But I made the request anyway and I also asked that they label each burrito with a name of the person they would go to – a shot in the dark request, but wouldn’t that just make life so much easier? I then specified the time I would be in and hoped for the best.

Now, I have never been one to have much luck with to-go orders. Something always seems to be missing and someone always ends up getting upset. In this case with the burritos, the pressure was really on because what if the boss’s burrito missing?!

When I arrived to pick up my order, I happily bypassed the hungry lunchtime crowd standing in line. After identifying myself and handing over my credentials (i.e. the “Congratulations, you’re a winner!” certificate), I was handed two full bags and immediately was astonished to see that the burritos had a name associated with each one; if they were the correct name, I wasn’t sure and didn't even care... I was just amazed that they did it.

So I come barreling back into the office like a Mexican Santa with sacks full of Chipotle and lo and behold the right names are on the right order. [insert wiping of brow]. Now the final test would be when my boss bit into his burrito – would he find cilantro and fire me? Or would he be greeted by plain rice and realize what an asset I am to the team? Well, let’s just say that I’m a burrito bearing asset. I didn’t even know that Chipotle would honor cilantro-less requests. What a place. This is why I L-O-V-E Chipotle.

Yours, Mine and Ours.

Marriage is on my mind, I can’t help it. It seems that where ever I turn there is something relating to holy matrimony – either someone I know is getting engaged or there is a marathon of a Wedding Story on TLC or I look up in the sky and see clouds that resemble a 5 tiered wedding cake. Recently, even random one off conversations result in a mention of marriage as the other day, a friend of mine asked me if I thought it was weird that a couple would share the same email address once they tied the knot. So for example, if John marries Jane, then their one and only email address would be something like, john&jane@gmail.com.

This random question arose when this friend of mine received an email from a newly married couple announcing that they would be ditching their separate email accounts and creating one joint account that they both could access. Good bye are the days of e-solidarity for this twosome, through the vow of marriage, they have meshed their lives, their homes, their families and the random “You know you’re a redneck when...” forwards they receive from friends bored at work.

So what do you think about sharing your personal email account with your significant other? Personally, I would never do it. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing to hide electronically from the love of my life, because what fills my personal inbox are emails about the latest products from Coach and e-cards from my mom; however, when I’m married, I plan on sharing pretty much everything and having a personal email account will be one of the last solo ventures I keep.

So beyond the personal email account, I’m pretty much an advocate meshing everything with your spouse – if you listen carefully you can hear the screams and expletives of feminists from around the globe, cursing my decision to “lose” my identity to a man. Say what you will, hairy feminists, my decision has nothing to do with gender power, it has to do with the power found in numbers.

Did your mom ever tell you not to walk alone at night? Or that you could go to the mall as long as you were with a group? For me, I feel that when you get married you have a permanent clique comprising of you and your spouse. If the person you say “I Do” to is the right one, they will back you up, protect you and take half of all your stresses (give or take a few).

For example, I believe that finances should be shared when you get hitched; none of this, “funny money” bank accounts that you each hide from one another, never knowing exactly how much the other has, thinking that it may be enough to fund that air conditioner repair that supposedly you don’t have the shared moolah for.

When the day comes for me to me tie the knot, I want my husband to share half of our financial burdens if for no other reason to spread out the stress. And yes, I’ll be able to buy my designer handbag every now again and he can splurge on season tickets to the Brewers, its just that the funds for both will come out of the same pot of gold. And please don’t start to argue with me, I KNOW that this technique doesn’t work for everyone and thank goodness, because I’m NOT everyone. You do what you want and I’ll have a joint bank account.

So how could someone like me who is so for sharing money with her spouse not be into sharing an email address? The last time I checked, my bank statement doesn’t let me send invitations for a surprise party and doesn’t forward funny sayings about how stupid men can be. Email is trivial, finances are not, and I personally think major things need to be faced head on with your partner in crime. So when it comes to a marital relationship, I say share what makes you comfortable, even if that includes an email address, and keep those things separate that will help prevent confrontations ... bathroom towels, closet space, toothbrushes, etc., because “what mine is yours” is not always the case.