Just One ThingThe “Just One Thing” Series at Management Excellence is intended to provoke ideas and actions around topics relevant to our success and professional growth.

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In a recent program with experienced managers, the inevitable and mind numbing and stupid topic of how difficult it is to manage the younger workers surfaced and people jumped on this out-of-tune bandwagon like they were giving away free money. Complaints of poor work ethics, preoccupation with devices and not caring swirled around the room like a hurricane. Every generation looks at the differences of the generations coming up behind them and focuses on these differences as negatives. It’s cliché and yes, it’s stupid.

Spend some time reading the current “40 Under 40” issue of Fortune magazine and you will come away energized by the energy, creativity and world changing endeavors and accomplishments of this younger crowd. (And if you’re over 40, it’s reasonable for you to wonder why you’ve been slacking off while these people are changing the world.)

I also loved Fortune Editor Alan Murray’s four takeaways from the “40 Under 40” profiles in the latest issue of the magazine:

  • Bet Big
  • Have a Purpose
  • Failure is a Good Teacher
  • Have Breakfast with Dad

The last one, “Have Breakfast with Dad” was offered by artist, Taylor Swift. As a Dad, it caught my attention. She describes the advice her Dad gave her to “think about your actions,” and translated it into the dilemma faced by a teenager who might prefer sleeping in to taking advantage of this breakfast invitation. “As an 80-year-old looking back, you go to breakfast with your Dad.” Wise woman…and successful!

I spend a great deal of time with people under 40 and a fair number of them in their early to mid-twenties in one of my teaching endeavors…a leadership program for young working professionals pursuing their college degrees that repeats with a new group several times per year. I find their views on the world every bit as energizing as the individuals profiled in Fortune, and working with them as a teacher is truly a privilege.

While my students aren’t the ones who have made millions (yet), they are individuals holding down one or two jobs while serving as parents…sometimes single parents, and attending school. Many are navigating severe illnesses or family tragedies. One remarkable individual recently lost a limb to amputation and never missed a beat in class.

In addition to their fierce tenacity for working through life’s obstacles, I find that most in this youthful group reflect and aspire to Murray’s takeaways above. They are purpose-driven, they have an incredibly mature and refreshing view on what great leadership looks like and they often reflect the views on life and pursuing your passion that Steve Jobs so effectively outlined in his now famous Stanford Commencement address. I wrap up every term with these remarkable individuals just a bit more confident there’s greatness in this younger generation and it’s our job to help it emerge.

The Bottom-Line for Now:

If you’re an experienced manager lamenting the sorry state of the youth in your workplace, I encourage you to look in the mirror. In most cases, you’re the one who needs to change.

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