A Guide to Understanding "Millenials"...by a "Millenial"

A Guide to Understanding “Millenials”…by a Millenial (Forrest A. Tennant)

It’s interesting. Whenever I log into my various social media accounts, I frequently see articles written about “Millenials,” or the so-called “Up and Coming Workforce.” Most of these articles are written by adults, seasoned in the workplace, who are not even a part of the “Millenial” generation. So, I’m going to offer a few key points that will give a true perspective on this generation, coming from someone who is actually a part of the Millenial generation. Innovative, isn’t it? So sit back, relax, and take some notes, Corporate America.

1.      We are people.

a.       Millenials are not test subjects and we should not be analyzed or picked apart by every professional study attempting to find out what makes us “tick”.

2.      We have communication skills.

a.       Do not become blindsided in your judgment based off of our frequent use of technology and social media.

              i.      (e.g. I can stand in front of a room of one-hundred people and confidently give an hour long business presentation, just as easily as I can give the same presentation via Skype.)

            ii.      Furthermore, there are actually many of us “Millenials” that prefer face to face conversation rather than texting back and forth.

          iii.      There’s just something about face-to-face communication that just can’t be replicated by endless texts or emails

3.      If you haven’t noticed already, “Millenials” are masters at multi-tasking.

4.      Most of us are not lazy.

a.       As a senior graduating in May 2014, most of my peers (including myself) are working our tails off trying to secure full-time, salaried offers, leadership development program offers, grad school acceptances, fellowships, etc.

b.      Most of us have a handle on the whole “networking” game. After all we are the most ‘social’ generation to have ever walked the planet.

5.      We should not be feared.

a.       Most of the articles that I have read online or in newspapers (yes I read the New York Times and WSJ frequently) shine a horrendous, sci-fi, anti-alien light on our generation.

b.      We are not aliens…in fact, we’re products of the people that came before us…and that would be you, seasoned Corporate America professionals.

6.      We are not “know-it-alls.” We WANT to learn.

a.       We don’t know everything about everything. We want to learn the trades and professions that we went to college for.

b.      We want something to flourish from the (sometimes hundreds of) thousands of dollars our families have spent on our educations. (I mean, do you think we just pay thousands of dollars for education because we have nothing better to do?)

c.       We look to YOU (seasoned professionals) as mentors, as people that we can learn a craft or a profession from. We are not your enemy and although you may view us as an impending wave of competition, that sort of paranoid thinking will lead nowhere good.

7.      If anything, we feel like we’re at your mercy, trapped in career limbo.

a.       All we ask is that you give us some credit.

              i.      A good amount of us have excellent experience on our resumes, but it is often overlooked or deemed unimportant.

            ii.      We would appreciate it if you did not make one-sided opinions based on our GPA’s alone.

1.      (e.g. Someone may have a 4.0 gpa in his or her field of study, but no experience on the resume. Is that really a reliable hire?)

8.      Please look at us. We should not be invisible to you.

a.       It is terribly annoying applying to hundreds of jobs listed on company websites or job portals that have far expired.

              i.      So many companies fail at consistently updating their job portals, so how will Millenials know that we did not just spend 30-45 minutes filling out a job application for an outdated job posting?

1.      That just boils down to common respect.

9.      Most of us want more than just a regular, ‘cookie-cutter’ 9 to 5.

a.       I often have conversations with my peers about what we want out of a career. These are the top answers:

              i.      (Excellent benefits package, flexibility in work location, travel, fair market-standard salary, consistent advancement/mobilization within an organization, exposure to abundant diversity.)

            ii.      It may surprise you, but yes, concerns about benefits is a frequent number one answer; especially considering the amount of media coverage and legislation benefits have been getting lately in the U.S., securing a well-rounded package is a top-priority…a.k.a. we’re not all necessarily trying to get-rich-quick.

10.   We want to take your organizations higher.

a.       One thing that you can count on with a “Millenial” is dedication. We don’t invest our time in things that don’t seem worth our while.

b.      We look at organizations like projects…projects that we can elevate to the next level

c.       To your surprise, we are looking to grow with a company, not hop from organization to organization every year

d.      We enjoy stability. We appreciate knowing that we’re worth just as much to an organization as an organization is worth to us.

Now that we’ve addressed these ten key areas concerning the anatomy of a “Millenial,” I think that maybe we can all start realizing that “Millenials” are here to work with you, not against you. It is possible for multiple generations to peacefully co-exist in the same job market. After all, every generation meets disapproval at some point. 

Thank you for reading this post. 

Forrest A. Tennant, Millenial