Meagan

Generation Z and Leadership is an important topic to discuss, as Generation Z is the first generation to grow up in the Smart Phone era.

How will educators, managers, and leaders adapt their communication styles to connect with the younger generation?

I was interviewing Dr. Elizabeth Pogge while preparing for my upcoming virtual presentation for a national preceptors pharmacy conference. A preceptor is a teacher or an instructor.

Dr. Elizabeth Pogge is also a gen Xer, like me. She pointed out how being a preceptor has changed and how the new learner, Generation Z, and Leadership has changed.

Dr. Elizabeth Pogge stated:

“When I was a resident and a student, one of the learning methods was the no intimidation type of learning tactic. You would stand up and you give a presentation. Your preceptor then would grill you. They’ll ask you all these questions. Students today do not respond well to that. They will shut down, get very upset, even angry. They feel like they’re getting attacked. That kind of a learning tactic doesn’t work well for students now. Being harsh or abrasive is very difficult for students to handle now. They need to be nurtured right now.”

During my interview with her, she shed some light on what it’s like to be a preceptor. What I loved the most was that she compared her experience as a student to the students of today. When she was a student, you stood up in front of the room, gave a presentation and your preceptor peppered you with questions. She called it ‘an intimidation technique’. You didn’t want to fail for fear of the reprisal from the preceptor.

She made the point that the approach would not work with students today, because they would shut down, get angry, and disconnect.

Generation Z

When we talk about students of today, we’re really talking about the Generation Z. These are people born between 1997 and 2012. This generation is nothing like the millennials! It’s an entirely different generation.

The biggest difference is that Generation Z is the first generation to truly grow up in the smartphone era. Yes, millennials had smartphones too. In fact, they showed us how to use our smartphones. But millennials may also remember things like DVD players, dial-up, etc.

Generation Z grew up in the smartphone era. They may have never held a textbook. They had streaming services, so they never had to wait for a DVD at a Blockbuster. Many of them grew up with a smart home.

How Does This Impact You as a Leader or as a Manager?

When Generation Z comes on board, you no longer are the assumed expert. It’s no longer the assumption that just because you’re the manager, my preceptor, my teacher, my instructor, or my supervisor, that does not mean you are necessarily the expert.

Generation Z and Leadership has changed.

Who’s the expert?

The internet.

This is the first generation to truly perceive the internet as an expert. Does that mean you can’t tell a Generation Z what to do? Of course, you can. All of us need to be told what to do, especially when we’re doing something we’ve never done before. Millennials told us what to do when we were trying to figure out our smartphones.

How to Lead Generation Z

There are some situations where we do tell people what to do, especially if they have never done it before. But when it comes to moving beyond those basic skills, it becomes more of a coaching exercise with Generation Z, versus a telling exercise. This means that you’re going to put a priority over inquisitiveness and curiosity, versus telling someone.

The second thing you want to do is give timely feedback. For Generation Z that timely feedback is vital. so for example we’ll go back to the preceptor examples Dr. Pogge said: “My students know that as soon as our rounds are done, I’m going to give them feedback. I’ve told them that from the beginning, so they will be expecting it!“

Do You Have to Coddle Generation Z?

Not at all! It is the end goal that we help people develop to be the best that they can be. To come to work prepared and ready. If we have to change our approach to make that successful, why is that mad?

Next week, we’ll continue to investigate the incredible generations we work with, live with, interact with and talk to every day.

Learn some tips for working from home. Each generation is approaching the new “working situation” a bit differently.

My first job out of college back in 1993 was a little company called Quaker Oats. I was really excited to get this job but I was more excited to see the office space. I thought it’s going to be a big shiny building downtown. I’ll drive to work every day, maybe find someone to carpool with. I’ll wear professional clothes every day and my co-workers and I will go out for lunch.

Then… the hiring manager told me that in this job I’ll be working from home. In fact, the entire team worked from home! I thought “Who does that? I mean this is the early 90’s! Working from home was considered voodoo science.”

Now 25 plus years later, I still work from home! I love it and I don’t work for Quaker Oats anymore. But I love working from home.

Even today, some people are essential workers and are leaving their homes to go to work, but the majority of us are now working from home. According to White Pulse, greater than 60 percent of millennials are working from home.

Which Generation Likes Working from Home the Most?

Babyboomers? Gen Xers? Millennials? Gen z?

Generation X!

That’s my generation. People born between 1965 and 1980. We’re built for this! We were the latchkey kid generation. We’ve been working from home since day one. 50 percent of Gen Z and Millennials report they find it harder to avoid distractions while working from home.

This was true for me, especially when I first started working from home and started my business as a speaker. I would often allow myself to become distracted with personal projects like reorganizing my closet, emptying the dishwasher, cleaning out the laundry room… etc, because I felt a sense of satisfaction i got from getting something done.

The problem was I just avoided work projects that needed to be completed. I learned to ask myself if I worked a traditional job in an office, is this a task that I’d be doing during working hours? If the answer was NO, that meant I needed to stop what I was doing and get back on the projects that needed to be completed.

Tips on How to Make Working from Home Work

I have conducted a non-scientific multi-generational survey and asked for some tips on how to make working from home work, especially if this is a new experience for you.

So, the number one suggestion was to set up a designated space to work. I totally agree. For many years, I sort of worked from the dining room table. And sometimes I worked at a desk in my bedroom. I found myself becoming much more productive, once I had a designated space to work.

The second suggestion was to shower and get dressed for work, just like you’d get dressed to go into the office. I don’t relate to that one at all, as the benefit of working from home is that you don’t have to get dressed professionally. Everybody’s a little bit different. Do what works best for you.

The third suggestion is that you have to allow yourself some time for breaks. Get up and move around. Force yourself out of your workspace. My dogs do this for me. They let me know when it’s time for me to take a break.

Give Yourself Some Slack

If you don’t have dogs, make sure you are getting up and moving around. Take a walk with a friend. Give yourself some slack if you woke up at three in the morning because you couldn’t sleep. You opened up your computer and got some work done. Allow yourself a longer lunch hour. Allow yourself to quit work early during this uncertain time.

You don’t want work to take over your life. Remember your friends, your family, they are still out there waiting for the day they can connect with you. Even though we are still all wearing masks, keep on smiling because people see it in your eyes and they feel it in your heart.