Only an Ass Resists Change. Young Workers Demand It.

I never wanted to own a donkey. However, my wife, Lori, did.

So we 'compromised' and we now have four adorable miniature donkeys: two males and two females.

Donkeys are the most misunderstood and often the most mistreated animals in the world, and have been for hundreds of years.

However, over?the past four years I've found them to be extremely intelligent and super affectionate. Moreover, they've taught me a great deal about behavior.

Every morning and evening when Lori or I go to scoop the barn (yeah, it's pretty glorious, I know) and put hay in their trough, they assemble themselves in this exact same order. (From left - Elway and Opie; Fiona and her filly Dakota.)

We have no idea why they ALWAYS line up like this. And they eat the same amount of the same food every single day. Makes no sense to me, but then again, I don't speak donkey and Babbel isn't offering any lessons.

Many humans also resist change. In fact, I've heard it said that "no one likes change except a wet baby" but that's not true, especially when it involves the workplace.

We all want some degree of change in our jobs and careers, we just want those changes to be a positive for us. More of what we like, less of what we don't, etc.

We definitely want to learn something new, and we want to do something different today than we did yesterday. We want to grow and make more of an impact, we do not put Part A into Part B yet again today.

This is especially true with younger members of the emerging workforce. Make no mistaake, this isn't your granddaddy's workforce who were content with the "keep your head down and put in your 40 years, then retire quietly with a pension and a gold wristwatch" philosophy.

Today, the smartest business leaders, owners, and managers keep this top-of-mind and are perpetually teaching, training, and growing their people. They keep an up-to-date learning agenda for each and every person on their team and they make certain that all are consistently challenged with new tasks and responsibilities.

The best way to avoid costly turnover due to employee boredom and stagnation (a major contributing factor) is to make sure that every worker on your team learns something new today that will increase their value to you, and in the workforce marketplace.

That means you might risk losing them because they outgrow the opportunities you have available. But that's a risk you must take.

Unless, of course, you don't mind having a bunch of dumbasses on your payroll.