Three Gen Z Stereotypes To Ignore
Maybe you’ve seen the headlines: tech companies are hiring etiquette coaches for Gen Z, mom and dad are joining interviews, and employers are firing Gen Z after mere months in a job citing unprofessionalism, lack of communication skills, and low motivation. What’s so funny about these headlines is that we’ve seen the likes of them before. Around the same age Gen Zers are now, Millennials were mocked for bringing their parents to work. And it seemed like every other article was about how their at work entitlement was deeply obnoxious! It’s a tale as old as time to stereotype and even punish the younger generations at work without taking time to truly understand them. So let’s take a closer look.
“They don’t want to work hard.” 🥱
We hear this from at least one person – no exaggeration – in every audience. You know the funny truth? This is an age-old complaint about the youngest generation, with one researcher pulling headlines about this very topic that date as far back as 1894. It is part of the human condition, a time-honored tradition, to complain about the newest humans to join the workforce. Experienced generations who have been grinding and sacrificing personal happiness to provide for themselves and their families grow impatient when youthful energy arrives and says, “but why? Why do you say yes to the boss when you actually want to say no? Why do we have to give our whole selves to work? Why can’t we do it differently?” This pushback, this attempt to rewrite the script of what a working career can and maybe should look like, can sometimes feel like laziness manifest. “They simply lack work ethic.” But is that so?
Reframe: When you get the urge to conclude that Gen Z just doesn’t know how to work hard, consider that they are a generation that is working to live, not living to work. And there is nothing wrong with that. Like any generation, they want to do good work and keep their job. They are simply eager to be efficient, and to uphold boundaries that allow them to thrive personally as well as professionally.
“They’re so entitled.” 💰
Gen Z is boldly asking for things that generations in the past would have never dreamed to request (or at least they’d wait about five years before doing so!). It’s not uncommon for a Gen Zer to ask for more PTO, a day off with little notice, or a pay raise after 6 months at the company. It’s also likely that a Gen Zer will say ‘no’ when asked to do more work without more pay, or if that extra work is outside their standard job description. Managers and leaders bemoan this “entitlement” to us at GCC, and while we understand the urge, we have to push back and ask: well, do you know why?
Reframe: Gen Zers are asking for compensation because they are taking home less money than Millennials were at their age, and simultaneously, living expenses are way higher. A none-too-favorable duo of conditions! Gen Z’s hypervigilance around getting paid has more to do with trying to stay afloat amid economic uncertainties, and skepticism around the promised American dream (something that’s looking more and more unachievable to them).
“They are obsessed with their phones.” 🤳
Let’s be honest with ourselves – aren’t we all a little obsessed with our phones? Smartphone designers know what they’re putting into our hands; devices designed to keep our dopamine fed, so we scroll, text, and swipe to our heart’s content (and it turns out that in this sense, our heart can be pretty insatiable!). Gen Z has had these devices from a younger age than any other generation, and it’s a tool by which they write papers in school, research & purchase products, and build relationships with their peers. Many of them know that smartphone reliance can go too far; that’s why they are practicing app-stinence and purchasing dumbphones. Consider also that they know how to use technology beyond what we older generations can comprehend, whether it’s turning to AI as a helpful aide during interviews or relying on technology to make any work process more efficient.
Reframe: The next time you see a Gen Z colleague look at their phone, resist the temptation to think “kids and their dang phones.” Maybe they’re responding to a work request. Maybe they’re researching a more efficient way to complete a task. And maybe they do need to put their phone away, but there’s usually a simple conversation to be had that can set those expectations with Gen Z, and all generations.
**One last thought - it’s not all on you, another generation, to bend entirely to Gen Z.**
Everyone, always, has to meet in the middle. It’s why one of our offerings is a workshop to teach Gen Z how to work with other generations! It’s all about staying authentic to yourself and knowing where to flex to do what’s best for everyone. And don’t forget, Gen Z will step into the majority of leadership roles some day in the not-too-distant future, and will be learning how to work with the generations that come after them. This is a cyclical management reality. They are just earlier in their careers right now, learning the ropes in a time unlike any other, and coping with it the best that they can.