In this issue:
Word to the Whys
"If you don't know where you're going, you'll surely end up someplace else."
~ Anonymous
"There is nothing more dangerous than a kid who's lost sight of his dream."
~ Rev. Anthony Campolo
"Not all who wander are lost."
~ J. R. R. Tolkien
"The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: decide what you want."
~ Ben Stein
"We know who we are and we know what we do."
~ Michael Dell, Founder, Dell Computers
"Choose the difficult right over the easy wrong."
~ United States Marine Corps
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Employing Generation Why by Eric Chester is being called the quintessential guide to recruiting, hiring, training, motivating and retaining the emerging workforce.
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January 2004
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Seeing Beyond the Present
No Goal, No Buy-In, No Future
If you're like me, you've already broken a few - if not all - of the resolutions you set for the New Year. Perhaps you are holding steady to the one or two really important ones and are determined to see them through, knowing that by doing so, your life will improve.
Goal setting is an important part of our psychological make up. When I was a senior in high school, I had the privilege of hearing the legendary entrepreneur J.C. Penny speak at a national student leadership conference, and his words forever impacted me. "Show me a stock clerk with a goal and I'll show you a person who will make history. Show me a person without a goal, and I'll show you a stock clerk."
Even if we don't practice it, Baby Boomers and Generation X'ers believe in the awesome power of goal setting. We are chronological thinkers and we process information in linear form, from front to back, from top to bottom. We understand how today's decisions impact our tomorrows. We're wired to look down the road, decide what we want, and make the choices that will bring us those desired results. Although we don't always make the right decisions, we fully understand the basic tenets for success in life, and we know how important goal setting is to the formula.
Gen Whys, however, are digital thinkers who think and process information randomly as opposed to sequentially. As a result, they are not inherently convinced that today's actions will affect tomorrow's outcomes in any certain way. They know all-too-well that someone can be the hero today and a villain tomorrow - and visa versa. They hear pop icons expound the virtues of living for today only to be made larger than life in documentaries showing how they bounced back from drug addiction, brushes with the law, and shocking sexual misconduct.
The message to our emerging workforce? Today and tomorrow are independent and unrelated. Anything you do today, even if it's wrong, can be easily fixed to work out in your favor tomorrow. So why bother to set goals, delay gratification, and keep your nose to the grindstone?
This kind of thinking creates monumental challenges for managers. If you're working with young people who have no reverence for how their actions affect their future, you're playing with loaded weapons.
Our work is cut out for us. We must make a concerted effort to connect the present to the future for Generation Why and make certain that they know a) what they do today really does matter, and b) tomorrow is going to come despite frequent 5 o'clock headlines to the contrary.
Here are three ways to get your Gen Whys excited about goal setting, making good decisions for the long-term, and planning for their future:
- Showcase success stories of other Gen Whys. Demonstrate how goal setting, hard work, and virtue have lead to good things for their peers.
- Expose them to books and tapes from the motivational masters. Chances are, a timeless message from Dale Carnegie, Zig Ziglar, or Tony Robbins might really fire them up. And every good motivational program places a strong emphasis on goal setting.
- Offer to be a success coach for your young people. Ask them what they'd like to accomplish in one month, six months, and in one year, and don't limit them to only workplace goals. Make certain to capture their goals on paper and then offer to help them to design a blueprint to meet those objectives. Suggest that you meet with them regularly to determine their progress and to help them make necessary alterations. If you help them to achieve a short-term goal, they'll become believers for life and will be determined to learn more about setting and achieving goals.
Stephanie Pors, 14, was singing Christmas carols at her home in Cloverdale, B.C., Canada, when neighbors called 911 to report a woman was screaming. Police responded and Stephanie's mother, Caroline, said no one was screaming. "I know my voice is bad and I'm just assuming she has my genes," Caroline said. Officers noted in their report that the girl was "Exercising her vocal chords" and there was not "any danger, except perhaps to surrounding windows." (Ottawa Citizen)
FEAR IS OBVIOUSLY NOT A FACTOR
Let's see. NBC has brought us Couples Fear Factor, Family Fear Factor, and even Twins Fear Factor. So what's next?
Last week, Steve Irwin (a.k.a. The Crocodile Hunter) dangled his infant son in front of a live crocodile during a show in his native Australia. This was less than a year after Michael Jackson dangled his newborn son from a balcony high over a mob of adoring fans. Both senseless acts drew angry criticism from around the world.
My question is, how long before NBC capitalizes on this insanity to bring us the next generation of reality shows - Baby Fear Factor?
What do your colleagues have to say about LIVE Generation Why Presentations?
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~ Lee McCroskey, Director of Sales Development, The Southwestern Company
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