"I'm a Millennial. If you want to engage me, trust me. Give me enough responsibility and independence to succeed or to fail. Explain to me why, and take the time to help me understand my successes and my failures. I want to learn from you, but that doesn't mean that you can't learn from me."
Good Morning Folks,
There's a huge shift taking place inside organizations as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 80 million Millennials (individuals born between 1980-1999) have joined the workforce.
What must the C-Suite know to leverage this next generation's strengths? Today we'll explore that and link you up to the best and brightest resources to take it the topic further.
Start-up Mentor, Executive, Marty Zwilling recently wrote in the Huffington Post:
"A lot of executives have noticed that the workplace is being flooded by a new generation of workers, and they are questioning who will be the winners, and who will be the losers. In reality, Gen-Y is here, and they are already inheriting our businesses, so let's figure out how to make them winners, or we will all be losers.
"By definition, Gen-Y is the generation born between 1977 and 1995 (synonymous with Millennials). There are about 80 million of them, and nearly two-thirds of them are already in the work place as entrepreneurs or with jobs. They will inevitably be taking over after Gen-X from the Baby Boomers, who are now running most companies, but pushing 60."
"In fact, according to new data from a recent j2 Global survey, Gen-Y is undergoing a significant career shift today, trending away from applying for jobs and toward launching businesses of their own. As the most connected and technologically equipped generation in human history, Gen-Y entrepreneurs are using today's tools of communication, collaboration and mobility to build startups with little or no startup capital and few employees."We understand. And I've been saving relevant articles our Gen-Y'ers right here at FSO have been sending me to share with you:
Engaging Millennial Employees
Managing Millennials: 5 Quick Tips
In Defense of Millennial
What Can We Learn From Millennials
Study: Millennial Parents Just Like Those From Previous Generations
Millennials Who Want Careers, Not Just Jobs, Should Watch This Video
If you are among the Millennial generation, this same j2 Global Survey referred to earlier, also offers the following tips how to improve your chances of success as an Gen-Y entrepreneur, or even as a young professional working for a larger organization:
==> Don't let student loans rain on your parade.
The federal government's Student Startup Plan allows Gen-Y entrepreneurs to defer their loans or lower their interest rates to help them jumpstart their business, with an Income-Based Repayment Plan to make Federal student loan repayment more manageable.
==> Don't let the lack of experience bring you down.
The successes of Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Tumblr's David Karp show that experience is not always a key factor for success. Resources abound on the web to help Gen-Y business owners learn from others and become long-lasting entrepreneurs.
==> Lighten your load with technology.
Gen-Y is learning that launching a business today takes far less cash than previous generations required. Cloud-based tools, like virtual phone solution eVoice®, let small business owners convey the image of a larger, professional enterprise for a fraction of the cost of a traditional business phone system.
==> Avoid all work and no fun.
Being a small business owner requires hard-work and dedication. According to a press release on a 2012 eVoice® survey, more than 40 percent of small business owners juggle at least four roles for their organization. The good news is that 60% of Gen-Y founders said they plan to take a vacation this year.
==> Keep calm and carry on.
The holidays will be around the corner, and for Gen-Y small business owners who are trying to capitalize the holiday hustle and bustle, it's important to keep yourself together to win your staff's respect. Explore ways to remain calm and prepare for problems that may come up.
For the rest of us, we have an opportunity to make an entire generation of 80 million people our competitive advantage early, or just wait until they take it away from us.
Why not make it your strategic initiative, and a positive legacy for yourself? I'm accepting the challenge. How about you?
I suggest that we forget the hand-wringing about what millenials want and how they'll change the world.
The wonderful thing that millennials bring to the workplace is the ability to own their own creativity and use it to better their own lives first, and then others. This is a significant blessing to the workplace and to society.
I think not enough is being written about what a blessing persons with this creative, eager and non-judgemental mindset are to the workplace
They're young, creative and energetic and are questioning the status quo and creating new ways of doing things. .
Isn't that what we're all supposed to be doing?
Have a GREAT day as I look forward to seeing all of you soon.
Chief Happiness Officer
*Get the latest from veteran startup mentor, executive, blogger, author, tech professional, and Angel investor—Martin Zwilling (@StartupPro).
"We have an opportunity to make an entire generation of 80 million people our competitive advantage early, or just wait until they take it away from us."
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