Do You LOVE or HATE Millennials?
Daniel Disney
CEO @ The Daily Sales (LinkedIn's BIGGEST Sales Community) LinkedIn Influencer (Over 1 Million Followers) - Award Winning Keynote & SKO Speaker - 4 X Best Selling Author - Advisor & Investor - No.1 Social Selling Trainer
I wrote a post a couple of months ago "Do Millennials Make The BEST Sales People?" and started it with this paragraph:
Millennials could easily be compared to Marmite (Vegemite), either you like them or you don't! Some people do believe that this generation are different and are having a huge impact on the world today where as others don't want to stereotype or group people together.
The more and more I watch, read or talk about millennials the divide seems to be very obvious. People either LOVE Millennials or they HATE them! Thinking back to the old marketing campaign that Marmite used, you either love it or you hate it, I'm curious to know whether you love millennials or hate them?
So who or what are "Millennials".....?
Millennials, also known as Generation Y or the Net Generation, are the demographic that follows Generation X. They've grown up in tech filled and increasingly online and socially-networked world. Born between 1976 and 2004 their attitudes towards work and life are found to be very different than previous generations.
- By 2018, Millennials will have the most spending power of any generation.
- 89% of Millennials would prefer to choose when and where they work rather than being placed in a 9-to-5 position.
- Millennials are the most educated generation in American history with over 63% of Millennials having a Bachelor’s Degree.
- 54% either want to start a business or already have started one.
- 90% of Millennials surveyed think being an entrepreneur means having a certain mindset rather than starting a company.
- By 2025, 3 out of every 4 workers globally will be Millennials.
Those who love millennials are excited by this new generation that will soon represent the majority of people in the work place. They love the energy, creativity and their deep rooted understanding of the technology that is now everywhere. They understand that whilst their needs are different this just needs a different and more modern approach to leadership and business.
Now those that dislike millennials tend to dislike them for one of two reasons:
- They dislike what they perceive as the negative attributes that millennials are said to possess. This includes job hopping, feeling entitled, laziness, lack of patience etc.
- They dislike the principle of stereotyping people and so don't like using the term millennial.
Starting with point number 2 I'm certainly not one to always support stereotyping people as it can be done in an offensive manner. That being said, you cannot deny that there are groups of people that share similarities and in this instance the millennial generation of people do share a lot of things in common.
It would be silly to not understand this to ensure that we adapt and modernise the way we run businesses and manage people. If you ignore these common themes or refuse to accept them you may find it hard to grow and progress and the world around you does.
The view from an actual millennial.....
As someone who is very much a millennial and who shares a lot in common with millennial stereotypes I see huge potential in where we fit into the modern world. I fully agree with some of the areas that we clearly nearly work on. With that in mind I also believe there is a lot that businesses and leaders need to do to ensure they utilise millennials to their true potential.
There is a fantastic video by Simon Sinek which went viral on social media recently where he discusses millennials in the workplace. It's slightly long for a viral social video at 15 minutes but well worth watching.
Simon explains that while millennials may have some flaws, those flaws are NOT their fault, but the result of the changes in society, technology and parenting. He puts a very convincing argument and I certainly agree that there are some key root causes for the way this generation are.
What I would add to that is that whilst it may not be their fault it is their responsibility to turn those flaws into positive outcomes. Yes there needs to be a big push within businesses to adapt the way they recruit, manage, reward and develop millennial employees however there is equally a big responsibility for millennials to take accountability for their actions.
Whilst Simon suggests that we've been dealt a bad hand it will always be our responsibility to change that. We can't sit here and blame our upbringing or the environment we were bought up in and live in for our flaws and struggles. Instead we must accept who we are use our strengths to overcome those flaws. There will be areas which we need to work on and change so let's meet our employers in the middle and work together to create success for us and the businesses we work in.
What do you think?
I would really like to know what you think. Do you LOVE or do you HATE millennials (or less extreme, do you like or dislike them)? What are your thoughts on millennials in the workplace and where they fit into the changing world? Please do write your thoughts and ideas in the comments box below.
I've seen a lot of people share that they dislike stereotyping or they dislike millennials for the flaws and I'd love to know why. Equally if you love millennials and what they bring to the workplace I'd love to know what you think about it.
If you enjoyed this post please take time to read some of my other recent posts.
The 10 BEST Sales Meme's............Ever!
Why Millennials May NEVER Succeed In Work
The 10 Films You MUST Watch If You Work In Sales!
About the author: Dan Disney is the Head of IT Service Line at The Training Room and is the founder and owner of The Daily Sales. Dan writes regular posts and blogs on Leadership, Millennials, Technology, Sales, Social Selling, LinkedIn, Marketing and Recruitment .
If you work in sales make sure you check out The Daily Sales, It's the number 1 place on social media for hilarious sales memes, inspiring sales quotes and informative sales blogs.
Love building and leading great teams in the CRM, loyalty, data and marketing industries!
8 年Interesting read. My view is that the term 'millennial' isn't that helpful as it lumps together people who may have nothing in common other than the year in which they were born (as noted in one of the other comments below the same issue exists for gen-x or gen-y etc). I did a pitch recently for a large retailer who had asked how to market food to this group. I asked them to think of the last time they went to a restaurant with a group of friends and everyone ordered the exact same thing...rarely, if ever, in my experience. What I do agree with is the undoubted power that this cohort will have in the next few years, be it either through their roles in business, society and politics or simply through the money (or lack of) in their pocket. However, to effectively market to these people or integrate them in to business we need to use whatever data and observable behaviours are available to us to understand what makes them individuals. It is only by treating people as individuals that you can build a relationship and get the most out of their potential. https://www.responseone.co.uk/blog-entries/2017/1/17/part-1-the-fallacy-of-the-millenial
Digital Marketing Manager @ ForrestBrown Limited | MCIM
8 年Rob M. I read this and thought of your blogs on millennials.
Logistician/Novelist/Certified Canine Instructor
8 年Years ago, i read Brokaw's book "the greatest generation." He remarked how the generation before them said that they were lazy and worthless. We know how that turned out. Adversity tends to bring out the best in people. Ethics depend on the individual. Experience differs from person to person. I think that laziness and carelessness transcends generations. I also think that we can all strive to be better. Grouping and stereotyping serves no greater good.
Finance Director, ACMA CGMA
8 年A really good read. Picking up on the point of satisfying the expectation of the older generation - if we did things in the same way then we wouldn't contribute to the important changes and developments that are required for the progression of the companies we work within. It is so easy to stereotype and the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" couldn't be more appropriate for those who have a negative attitude towards millenials. I think we do a pretty good job and could surprise those who are on that side of the arguement ??