Business Innovators Radio - Episode 28: Bridging The Generational Gap with Megan Wollerton

Episode Date: March 11, 2024

In this episode of “In the Zone,” host Jeremy Owens, owner and founder of US Construction Zone and 3 Generations Improvements, dives into the topic of “Bridging the Generational Gap” in the workplace. The episode features expert guest Megan Wollerton, owner of Lifeforce Wellness, who brings her extensive background in health, wellness, and corporate wellness programs to the table. The discussion focuses on understanding the characteristics, values, and workplace behaviors of different generations—from Baby Boomers to Gen Z—and the importance of creating a more inclusive, understanding, and effective work environment across generational divides.Show Notes:Introduction of the Topic: Jeremy introduces the theme of bridging the generational gap, emphasizing the need for better understanding and respect among Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z in the workplace.Sponsor Segment: A shout-out to build12.com for sponsoring the episode and how it’s revolutionizing efficiency in the construction business through automation.Guest Introduction: Megan Wollerton, a multifaceted wellness expert, shares her journey from the oil and gas industry to founding Lifeforce Wellness, highlighting the importance of addressing burnout and promoting health and wellness in the corporate world.Discussion Highlights:Understanding Generational Characteristics: Insight into what defines each generation and how historical contexts have shaped their workplace attitudes and behaviors.Challenges and Solutions: Addressing common workplace challenges faced by different generations, such as burnout, work-life balance, and the need for mentorship and purpose-driven work.The Role of Health and Wellness: The importance of a holistic approach to employee wellness, including mental health, positive psychology, and resilience training, in improving workplace culture and productivity.Embracing Diversity and Inclusion: Strategies for fostering a more inclusive work environment that values the unique contributions and needs of workers from different generational backgrounds.Closing Thoughts: Jeremy and Megan reflect on the importance of giving each generation grace and space for better understanding and collaboration in the workplace.In The Zonehttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/in-the-zone/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/episode-28-bridging-the-generational-gap-with-megan-wollerton

Welcome to In The Zone and Construction Executives Live, brought to you by U.S. Construction Zone, bringing you strategies for success with construction innovators and change makers, including In The Zone peer-nominated national award winners. Here's your host, Jeremy Owens. Back to In The Zone. I am your host, Jeremy Owens, owner and founder of U.S. Construction Zone and three generations improvements out in Northern California. I live in Folsom.

And whenever did I say fulsome, people say Johnny Cash, I understand, we're a prison town, but we are a robust suburb of Sacramento. So I appreciate you tuning in today. We have another great show for you and a fascinating topic that I'll get into here in a second. We are sponsored by the great team at build12, build12.com, automate your construction business into a revenue-generating machine with the build-12 system. As I've mentioned a couple times, I have started using Bill 12, and it is phenomenal. It's helping me be more efficient, value leads more, create automations. And really, that's really what I'm trying to do in my business is create more systems.

I don't want to replace it with more people. I want more systems and processes in place so that eventually, I can replace myself. I can make things a little bit easier for my team. So try out Build12.com. So the show today is titled Bridging the Generational Gap. And it is a fascinating topic about getting into the different generations, Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z. And really trying to do a deep dive on all of those different generations,

why we are the way we are, what happened in those generations to make us the way we are. And really with the understanding that we're not going to always change each other, but we need to understand each other better. And we need to give each other more respect to understand each other better. And so that's what really what the show is about. It's a great topic. And it's fascinating, really. When you start to do a deep dive on these generations, you really understand a lot more of why they are the way they are. And I'm a Gen X. And just so you know, that is the best generation. So I'll go ahead and reiterate that too in the show. So, We get to learn from thoughtful and incredibly knowledgeable expert in health and wellness,

Megan Wolderton, who is owner of life force wellness. She's a certified personal trainer, health coach, nutrition coach, corporate wellness specialists, positive psychology practitioner, stress management, sleep, and recovery coach. With the BS in business administrative marketing and a minor in psychology, Megan has a passion for creating engaging corporate wellness programs that work for both employees and employers. Please help me welcome, Megan Wollerton. So much for being here, Megan. Yeah, thank you for having me. Yeah. So I want to hear a little bit about your background. I mean, how did you kind of get started in all this wellness stuff and it ended up with

life force wellness? It's certainly been an evolution. I did not start in wellness. I actually went to school for business administration, marketing. I really thought I was going to be an advertiser. but when I came out of college, it was during the beginning of the Marcellus Shale boom here in western Pennsylvania. So my first job out of college was working, doing PR for a bunch of the oil and gas companies, the service companies that worked with them. And then I moved on to working with a service provider where anyone who's worked oil and gas knows that it's a grueling industry being on call 24-7. and like many, I experienced burnout. So after being burned out for six years, I finally stepped away and realized what a mess I was and got into health and wellness. And now here I am teaching health and wellness to others and trying to kind of correct these workplace cultures that burned me out.

Wow. Okay. Are you still in Pennsylvania then? Yes, I am. Okay. Got it. Well, that's interesting. When you kind of enter a field and you have a need yourself, right? So is that difficult to talk to yourself that way? Or is it, you know what I mean? Do you listen to yourself? It's interesting because I think it gives me some better insight. When I first got into health and wellness, I started as a personal trainer and a health coach.

And I'm working with these executives. And they come to me about, oh, our managers, this. And our people are really stressed out. I'm going like, yeah, I was there. I was one of your people at one time. Here's what they're missing. Here's what they're lacking. And I think working both sides of this equation, having been in that corporate environment where it's that grind and churn mentality, and then also being on the other side as a health and wellness professional, I think it gives me some better insight to really kind of bring both parties to the table.

Oh, yeah. Yeah, good point. If you're just always been in the industry, you've never, never seen it. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. So what problems are you guys currently solving at life force wellness? So, I mean, we do our typical health and wellness stuff, getting people up and moving, making sure that they're seeing their doctor. But, you know, we've taken a unique approach to wellness. We've expanded out to positive psychology and really been tackling mental health in the workplace. And I would say one of the biggest things trending right now is this idea, not just a burnout, but mental resiliency. And especially when we talk to like different generations, in the workforce. This has been a hot topic because we have so many generations in the workforce right now. Yeah, it's interesting. So you've got the older generation, the baby boomers who are, you know,

nearing retirement or retirement age. And they have a hard time asking for help, right? And then you have the Zs and the millennials that really need help and are as afraid to ask, correct? Is that what you're seeing? Yes. And then much to your point, then there's the Gen Xers in the middle who kind of get overshadowed and forgotten. Yeah, that would be a depending on the person kind of thing. I'm not afraid to ask for help, but I certainly know a lot of my guy friends who are still, you know, don't cry, you know, toughen up, all that the typical stereotypes that we grew up with. I mean, we had that growing up for sure. We were the generation where rub some dirt on it, get up, you're not hurt, stop crying, like all those weird things that you don't know it's

affecting you, but then you enter adulthood and you're like, oh, I guess that is kind of, I did kind of affect me. So we definitely are a weird hybrid, aren't we? Yes, yes. And also frequently forgotten, you know, that that's a common thing, especially with the Gen Xers is you were the latch key generation, you know, parents were working, you were kind of fending for yourselves. I joke that I'm married to a Gen Z or Gen Xer, I mean, and, you know, they're feral. You know, they were really on their own. You know, they were left to get off the bus, let themselves in the house, get if they were the oldest, get dinner for the other kids.

You know, they would ride their bikes out on the street. Who knows where you were or what you were doing? There was no cell phones, you know. That's when Unolved Mysteries was really a mystery. Yeah, totally. I mean, is it true that everyone you talk to, they think they're the best generation? Is that just a natural? I think so.

I think that just comes with the territory. Okay. Yeah. So you definitely have seen a shift then from, you know, from a lot of wellness. And I know that you get into a lot of, you know, exercise and the importance of kind of, you know, well-rounded diet and exercise. Everything is all related, right? So we can't just look at one without looking at all the other things. So I definitely notice that you guys are really heavy on that. But that shift into how do we become more resilient? And that is, that's, that's, that's, that's, That's a tough one and that's not an easy answer, is it? No, it takes a lot of work and, you know, it really takes a lot of practice and having a good group of people around you to support you in that. And, you know, based on what we're seeing is, you know, leadership in the company really buying into this. Because I do think much to your point with the older generations like the boomers and the Gen Xers, they were raised in that mindset of, oh, rub some dirt in it. come on, just toughen up, you know, like, oh, in my day, you know, kind of thing. But then with this younger generation who, you know, I'm an older millennial, so I'll call

ourselves out, you know, we grew up with the participation trophies. We always had a guidance counselor at our side. We've always had structured sports and schedules, and we need that extra support. And we really don't know how to like pick ourselves up. We were never really given those tools like some of the older generations were. we've always kind of been coddled in some way. And so now to all of a sudden make a shift and be like, oh, figure it out yourself. You know, we've never had to.

Help us. Yeah, you definitely want to get into that, do a deep dive on all of these generations. And how fascinating it is really when you start, you're already starting in and you're already making me crazy here. How logical this all seems, you know, when we just give each other enough space to understand each other. And I think that's the issue. And when we talk about construction industry,

we don't have a typical supportive culture. We're not very welcoming. You know, we've been really late, you know, welcoming other ages and genders and ethnicities. And, you know, we're slow. We are slow. And we've gotten away with it, too. Like, let's be on it.

We've gotten away with the cat calls and the, you know, the man culture and the wild part. partying, seen, we've gotten away with a lot. And now that's changing. And I think that's important to see that change. But, you know, have you seen any improvements in any of these areas in the construction industry? I know that there's some statistics that say yes, but how are you seeing it? I think there is a shift. And I think it's because it's coming on the urgency of baby boomers are about to exit. You know, they are ready to retire. These are grueling, late. laborous jobs. They do not want to be doing these as they are pushing in mid to late 60s, 70s.

This is not a job that they can maintain. And the need to bring in kind of that fresh blood onto these job sites. And how do we do that with a group that, you know, much to what we were just talking about, that mental resiliency piece, they're not as mentally resilient. So especially when it comes to kind of that hazing that kind of goes on, you know, asking the new guy to fill the ID10T form and they're running around those kinds of jokes and things that went on years ago not really standard now. I've seen a big shift in, you know, really building more camaraderie, being more understanding, having more empathetic language, because that's what's really needed to get that younger generation to feel comfortable on the job site. Right. Totally. I mean, I haven't

haze anybody in a couple days. So I really, no, I, I, I, I, I think it'll be great too. So what we're going to do is we're going to get into these generations. We're going to do a little deep dive on each of them so that we can all understand kind of general. We're all generalizing here. These are generalizations, sure. But when you say them out loud, they sure sound pretty accurate. So we'll start with the baby boomers because, you know, that's kind of like you said.

They're exiting the industry. They're getting to the point of or they already have. You know, and there's there's obviously still a pretty big chasm between the baby boomers and the millennials and the Gen Z for sure. We'll start with that. Have you seen an improvement in that chasm or is it as wild as it's been? And people are just free to talk as much shit about each other as possible. I mean, you can, you see it on any kind of news media. You just go like, oh, it seems so negative.

and is it getting better for you? I think it is. And I think the big thing for even the boomers and leaders to understand is the one thing that's good about millennials and Gen Z is they are eager to learn. They value mentorship. They want to be mentored. They want to learn. They want somebody to take them under their wing and show them the ropes. And it's not that they're lazy.

I think a lot of times it gets misconstrued of because you need me to hold your. hand, you're lazy, and it's not that. It's that I am eager to learn, but I want you to show me how to do it right. I don't want to have to repeat this process. I've always had that guidance in my life, and I'm still looking for that. And I think as companies embrace that, and I am seeing more companies embrace that in building more apprenticeship programs, I think we're seeing a big surge coming back into apprenticeship programs. More men are not entering college. We're seeing that. And I think the companies and the leaders that really embrace the fact that this generation is eager to learn. If we can just not see them as being lazy and needing handholding,

but instead flip that to saying they're eager to learn and willing to listen, it really changes that dynamic. Yeah, no, that makes a lot of sense. So baby boomers, let's see, they're born in 1946 to 1964, born in the post-World War II era. they're often characterized bear their strong work ethic and loyalty to their employers. I mean, how often do you see that? And the shows we watched, right? Like, I got my 50-year watch or whatever it was.

Like, that was so important to them. Why these characteristics? Let's do a little deep dialogue on why some of these things are accurate for them. Well, I really like to take it back to just history. And what was going on in the world during. that time. And when you think about it, they were raised by parents who had survived this war. And everyone had to jump in and do their part. They were the silent generation, the traditional. That's who they were raised by. And so they were brought up under a time when authority figures

were respected, which is where we get some of the rug right now in the workplaces that they now are the people in authority. And they're expecting the younger generation to respect them, much like when they were younger, they respected their authority figures. But that's kind, that dynamic has shifted. And so that's kind of causing some of the friction in the workforce. They were also raised in a time when, you know, it was very common to hear, children should be seen and not heard. And, you know, that was a very common thing.

They were supposed to act and behave a certain way. The parents are the ones who made the decisions in the house. The kids really didn't get a say in what was going on. And so when they have younger, people coming into the workforce with demands, they kind of balk at it because that's not how they were brought up. But that's based on, you know, what the mentality was coming out of a war. If everyone didn't fall in line, we were not going to win those wars, were we? You know, it really took everybody doing their part and that piece has still been instilled into the baby boomer generation. Everyone

needs to do their part. Yeah, so true. And they had such defined roles, right? So, So the marriage roles were different. You know, you had a lot more women at home, a stay-at-home moms. So that role shifted to the job site too, right? Like where, you know, you have very distinct roles, you know, shut up. This is my decision. So we did create some pretty gruff managers, right? I mean, I know looking at my grandpa when he started in the 50s, they're just a gruffer.

mentality. And it was, it was my way or the highway. It was, you know, listen, kind of like, you know, I didn't ask for your opinion kind of thing. And you can kind of see why, though. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. Okay. So, so we created, we created kind of these very tough, tough workers for sure. And also hard workers. So the work ethic is pretty strong. They, they were modeled out from their parents. you know, like you said, their parents were Great Depression. You know, you didn't always have stuff, you know, right? I mean, a lot of people did, the white picket fence was still, that mentality was still a goal.

But it wasn't necessarily a boat and several cars and, you know what I mean? Like, it was a different vision, I guess. Yeah. And I think what we also need to remember is when the baby boomers came in, of the workforce, they also disrupted the workforce. You know, what the Gen Z is doing now with their DEI push is not much different than what the baby boomers came in because prior to them entering the workforce, things like health benefits weren't a standard.

You know, a lot of the things that we have as standard norm now with vacation days and health benefits, those came from the baby boomers changing the work from what the traditionalists even did. the traditional switch just fall in line. We do the work. Boomers were the ones that pushed the envelope and really gave us a lot of the benefits we had today and a lot of the cultures we have today. And I think there's a piece of them that also takes ownership. And I built this. And that's why they also stayed in an organization a lot longer because they helped build it. They helped create it. They helped transform it. And having that little bit of,

you know, I helped make this also helps them stay there. And really, encourages them to like, you know, take a job and want to retire from that job because they could see the transformation and what they were really doing. Yeah. And they didn't have the, let's replace the older guy for the young new model feeling back then. That wasn't a thing, right? I mean, because you, you saw that loyalty as such a positive thing. You know, they, I mean, but now that's what it is, right? You don't see, you see the older people get cut out for the, cheaper, younger person who maybe has a different skill set too. But why do you think that was?

I think there's also a certain level of adaptability. You know, I think with the I created this, I like this to be this way. I think some of that older generation hasn't been willing to adapt to changes in technology, changes in the work culture. I think we're even seeing that now with how many people want to grip on to the, you know, policies, well, this is the way we've always done it. And I think a lot of organizations are opening up that if that's the mentality you're going to have, then yes, we're going to scoot you out and we're going to bring someone else in that's going to have more those fresh creative ideas,

who is going to be cheaper later, who is going to be more adaptable. And so I don't know that it's necessarily about prices. I think it's about adaptability. Yeah, yeah, very true. So I think for each one of these generations, we're going to do two positives and two names. is. And we're going to just talk about in the workplace so that we can kind of understand some of the things. So what would you say are the two negative aspects of baby boomers in the workforce? I would say for, and this isn't for all of them, but for some of them, it is a

almost shut down mentality. I've already put in my time. I'm not really looking to change. It comes back to that adaptability. Some of them are one foot. I mean, they are so close to retirement. Some of them are one foot out the door. They're not. looking to change policies. They're not looking to adapt to the trends. So I would say that's probably the biggest. And then also their mentality towards the younger generation, not being as open. I think having that mentality of a, why can't they just be more like me mentality. I think that's very rigid, right? Just rigid. Just stuck. And I get it. We have parents that, you know, that are that way where it's just like, you're not changing their opinion on much at this point.

if anything at all, really. It's more about how can we get them to understand me and vice versa. So those are good. Those are good ones. So what about the two positive ones? I would say the positives are, you know, we have to remember that they created this landscape and they have a lot of great ideas and experience. I think we cannot take that for granted.

What they are able to accomplish, the amount of knowledge that they have. It's just a matter of how can we disseminate that. I think that's the hurdle to overcome is they have such great knowledge and they are hard workers and they can get it done. You know, I think the biggest thing that we need to look at is that is a huge asset to companies, what these people are capable of and how are we passing that down to the next? Because that is going to be so sorely missed when they leave. So I would say they're years of education and then that just hard work ethic and determination to get it done. Yeah, I talk about this often in our industry too, that there. they're not always passing on their knowledge, right?

You know, we have that we have podcasting, and we have just so many channels that we can plug into to make sure our words live on and our thoughts and feelings. But a lot of times those older guys, and even the guys that are still swinging hammers, they have it up here, and they don't really care to, they aren't really interested in training because they don't listen.

You know, and so it's like, it's just stuck there, so it just leaves with them. And it's really unfortunate because a lot of them have really cool, cool ideas and cool things to say, but they just don't care about sharing them. They don't care about podcasting. They don't care about, you know,

talking about stuff. They're like, nah. Interesting. Well, it's even kind of like the story with the guy with the hammer, where there's this piece of equipment that needs to be fixed and all these engineers come out and they can't figure out how to do it. And then, you know, the guy that's been there for 40 years walks up with a hammer, taps it in one spot, and then it starts working.

Like, that's the thing. the knowledge that's going with these people, the know where to tap the hammer to get the stuff going. Yeah, no doubt. Okay, so on to the next and best generation, the gen Xers. So we were 1965 to 1980. We were known for their independence and skepticism. The Xers were the first to grow up with computers shaping their adaptability in the workplace, but also did not have them, right? So a lot of our childhoods were without anything. It was still TV and that was it. Maybe some of us had like an Atari if you were lucky. But for the most part, you were not plugged in as a kid. You were like you said earlier, you were out. When the streetlights came in, that's when you came in.

Parents had a, I would say the easiest time with this generation because it was like, bye, we'll see you for dinner. And like, you didn't worry either. You didn't worry about them getting kidnapped or like, you know, if they fell off their bike, they'll figure it out. It was just such a strange, I don't know, when I describe that to my kids now, they're like, no way. Like, I would ride my bike when I was at second and third grade several miles to school. Like, no way. Like, yeah, no, that's what we did. So, so that, I mean, that kind of does a quick description of them.

many of these are managers and owners now. So how do you think that they are faring in the workplace right now? I think that they're also experiencing some levels of burnout. We kind of forget about this generation because they're so small. Compared to how many people are in the baby boomer generation and then in the following the millennial, they're like a teeny tiny blip. And the problem is that they're really the ones that should be moving into those leadership roles and getting that knowledge passed on to them. So as the baby boomers phase out,

they should be the next ones taking the reins. But there's not enough of them. And so there's, you know, a lot of responsibility thrown on them right now. And there's not enough of them. I will also say there's this unique mentality with Gen X because they've always been on their own. And some of the things that have happened in history, you look at some of the politics and what was going on in the economy with the dot-com bubble bursting, as many of them were exiting college. they're a little more cynical. And for a Gen Xer, a job is contractual. I'm not here to make friends.

I'm here to do X amount of work for this pay. And they are very contractual. And they're very much head down. And as long as you keep up your end of the bargain for employment, I'll keep up my end of the bargain for employment. And they're not really the ones that are making a lot of waves. They're really the ones that are keeping their heads down and getting the work done. Yeah.

How different from the two? that we're sandwiched between, right? That you're not afraid to leave your job, right? I mean, it's commonplace to be like every couple of years you'll see. I know I have friends that do it. Like every five years I got another job. You're like, wow, I cannot keep up with you. But we're not afraid.

But if you look at our parents, they were afraid to make that move. Even if it was better money or there might have been better things, they were like, no, I'm sticking with it. I'm loyal. That's not who I am. You know, so it's just straight. Why, why so quick to switch? Or maybe did we see our parents doing that and go, that's not what I want to do?

I think that's a big part of it. I think that we've seen our parents be burned, you know, and again, coming back to like, I know the dot-com bubble was a huge thing for this generation, how many jobs just disappeared in the flash of an eye. You know, I think that time when the baby boomers got the gold watch and the pensions, we don't see those anymore. It's very rare to get those kinds of jobs and really see that. And so it's a why am I going to work for you and have you use me and abuse me?

That's why it's a very cynical and contractual thing. Like I will work for you for this for this pay when I feel like that no longer feels this or I feel like I can get better or there's a better contract over there. They are willing to switch. Now they don't jump as frequently as say millennials or Gen Z, but they are willing to move if the grass is greener. Right. So we were risky too. So I know the dot-com thing burned a lot, folks. But they, there was a lot. I mean, I know the dot-com boom and the Silicon Valley and all this stuff. And there was like this, this pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. And a lot of people were willing to stick their necks out and try something really crazy and really different. I mean, there's nothing similar to to what that job looked like. compared to what our parents had. So why do you think we were risky enough to do that when our parents really weren't that risky, what they were?

Yeah, I think there's a lot of different things. I think it really also comes to the changing technology. And they were just more open to embrace it. I think the way that they were raised in being more independent, you know, I think when you are a little more independent, you do tend to be a little more risk adverse versus when you're kind of being coddled. The other thing, too, is that people need to remember is, yeah, absolutely, Gen X is the innovators. As much as millennials might want to take credit for all the social media and stuff, you have to understand most of that was made by Gen Xers. Most of our, our most, you know, our iPhones and, you know, you think about Facebook and it started with my space with Tom, who was a Gen Xer.

You look at Elon Musk and his inventions, he's a Gen Xer. So Gen X is a very innovative group, and I think it's because they saw this burst in technology and these changes. And things moved very rapidly when they were coming of age. And so I think it was just kind of a natural thing to be like, hey, the world's at our fingertips now. We went from this Commodore 64 to like, you know, an Xbox from the time we were in elementary school to college. You know, like look at this change. Yeah. I mean, do you find, I mean, I know that there's mental health issues.

up and down the board. I don't think it's going to nick every generation, no problem. But I think that there's something to, that we didn't grow up with technology. So sometimes we can find a place to put it away. You know, and say like I remember when we didn't have this and how much fun that was. So it's not like we're quite as hooked,

obviously, as the millennials are hooked with the technology. And I still am a big believer that this is partly devil. And it's not all, it's a computer, it's a super computer our hands, but I think it's, it can be very negative at times. And I wish, I wish it didn't go as fast as it did. And I think it's, there are elements to it that are very bad for our society. But obviously it's too far gone now. But do you see that that is a positive thing, if we're talking about the positives of Gen X is that we can put it down maybe sometimes? I think it depends on who you ask. I think as somebody who promotes mental health, I think it's a great thing that Gen Xers are more able to unplug as are boomers. But at the same time, I think they're also sandwiched between these two hardworking generations that are just always on. It's like, why aren't you answering your phone? Why aren't you answering this email?

I do see that the Gen Xers are the best generation at putting up some of those boundaries, you know, for I'm unplugged. They're used to it. They remember a time when they were unplugged. They're okay to be unplugged. Right. Yeah. Okay. So let's get into the two positives and two negative. Let's start with the nays of Gen X. How are they in the workforce on a negative side? I could say just because they're a little more cynical and contractual, they're not seen as that really engaged employee. You know, they're not the ones that, you know, like the younger generation, maybe, yeah, I'm ready to learn something new. It's just a what's next. And so that can be seen kind of in a negative light to other leaders and coworkers that make. Maybe they're just not as engaged as some of the others. They're not as there to make relationships.

Sure. Yeah. That makes sense. What about the positives? I'd say the positives for them are they are really, you know, I think they're a good bridge for the millennial and the boomers. They are very adaptable when it comes to the technology. And, you know, with some of that cynicism and that contractual, you know that they're going

to get the job done. They do uphold their end of the bargain. So they are hardworking. They're just kind of that silent worker in the back. Yeah, got it, got it. Okay, that makes sense to me. So millennials, 1981 to 1996, they're digital natives who value flexibility and purpose in their work,

often seeking jobs that align with their personal values. These are the tech giants typically, right? I mean, pretty much, right? And what kind of workers have they become? I know that they get some good reps and some bad wraps, but what do you think they're, how do I think they're doing? So I'm going to be biased here because I'm speaking as an elder millennial. And I think it depends.

So I view the millennial workforce is hardworking, but we definitely need that handholding because we've always had it. And again, sometimes that I need more direction comes off as I need handholding and can be seen as being lazy. and I think that's where a lot of the information gets misconstrued. But the millennial generation, they're really, like you said, they're about purpose. So, and I fell into that box. Look at me what I'm doing now.

I started a company that's driven by my purpose. My purpose is to help companies develop good, positive work culture so people don't fall into the same trap I did. And I can tell you, many of my peers are in the same thing. They work for companies that fulfill them with a sense of purpose. That is something that's really big. Work life balance is also something that's big, especially for some of the older millennials who were also Lashkey kids. We saw our parents working all the time.

By that time, mom and dad both were in the workforce. And it's like now we're having kids of our own. And we want the flexibility to be there for our kids. We don't want our kids to grow up like we did. Yeah. And so I'm curious how they came to be. Like, so what was their, what was their history? like what what was their kind of defining moments because I'm trying to figure out why

why they kind of came to this sense of purpose which is totally needed by the way I support that all the time it's that you know we needed to get back to purpose if we were all exors and boomers like it's just so contractual it's so you know people get away with a lot corporations would get away with a lot they would be dumping oil into those streams you know what I mean it's like I didn't see that you know so it's like how do they get a sense of purpose? Yeah. I think for the millennials, though, the Gen Zers are the ones that are the climate change

and we want to change the world. They've taken it even a step further. But I think for the millennials, it's I don't want to go and work for a company and give up all my time, my energy for somebody that's just going to lay me off or somebody that's just going to outsource my job. And I think it's because we grew up in a time when that was going on. That was really prevalent. You know, we've seen some major inflation spirals.

You know, you think about like the 08 housing market crash. That was around the time I was looking to buy my first home. I went and I saw what my parents were going through growing up during those times. And it's like, man, you, like my parents are boomers. You grinded, you hustled. You worked so hard for this company. And then they kind of did you dirty. Yeah.

And I think so many of us saw that. And we went, uh-uh, not me. You're not going to do that to me. I saw what you did to my parents. I'm going to go work for somewhere that's more fulfilling. And I will say millennials have turned the tide on. Many of us would take a job for less pay. But if it gave us more sense of purpose and more flexibility to pursue things that we

kind of identify as purposes for our life. Yeah, no, I love that. I think that's the best quality. Do you think they're more happy at work? Are you seeing that? Or is that still undecided at this point? I think it's still undecided. I think a lot of them have kind of fallen into a groove.

But I also think that there's a lot of pressure that millennials put on themselves because they're also lacking some mental resiliency. And they're experiencing that burnout and that stress. And again, it's just lacking the tools to deal with that. I think they're in love with their jobs, but they're having a hard time finding those boundaries and putting them up. And then, of course, we're always hit with an, this has actually been something that's trended is a lot of millennials will not admit that they're millennials. If you think they're a Gen Xer, they won't correct you. They would rather be associated because millennials have gotten such a bad rap of, oh, you guys are lazy, you know, you're, you're wanting your participation trophies.

And we don't like that on us. And so we almost have put that on us that we have to work harder. And we're putting up this fake facade. We can't be authentically ourselves for fear that you're going to judge us for being lazy and, you know, entitled. That's interesting. So the participation trophy thing, Obviously, everyone's been in this debate before, and I don't even know what the right answer is necessarily. But I mean, the Xers and the baby boomers are the ones that allowed it, right?

So why did we, as the coaches, I'm a coach, like, why did we allow that to happen? Why did we start to go down that route? Because we were the ones giving it away. So was it helicopter parenting at that point where it came in? Like, no, you're not going to make my kid look stupid. We are going to do it the same way for everybody. I think there were a couple factors at play. So for those that were raised by boomers,

boomers, as we said, were raised by our children were seen and not heard. And I think they grew up and they said, I don't want that for my kids. So it's so funny, as much as boomers want to complain about how the millennials speak up and don't respect their authority in the workforce, you wired us this way because you were the first ones to step out in your parenting and kind of give more of a democracy in the household. You know, my parents would say, hey, here's what's going on.

They were more open with me. They were more willing to hear my opinion. Hey, we're looking at going on family vacation. We weren't just told to get in the back of the station wagon for hours. We were given kind of options. They were giving us a voice that they didn't have as children. And so now we're in the workforce and we're talking to you so nonchalantly. And you're going, you should respect my authority.

You know what? My dad's like you. You kind of remind me in my dad. And my dad and I have this open, democratic relationship. Sure. And so that bleeds into there. And so it seems as being disrespectful, but it's not.

It's a, it actually should be seen as a level of comfort in that I want to work with you. But again, that's, that's a miscommunication thing. The other thing, too, is in the 80s and 90s, there was a huge push for building kids self-esteem. And so this is when we had all the programs coming in and the walls got plastered with posters of positive affirmations. You rock.

You're so great. are so smart and we started giving the participation trophies in the hopes that we would build up kids self-esteem. But in the process, what we didn't realize is we were giving them the wrong type of praise. We were giving them personal praise. And that can lead to fixed mindsets and that actually decreases somebody's ability to develop mental resiliency versus process praise. One research study says the worst thing you can say to your kid is you are so smart because

it doesn't tell them what they did that made them smart. think, oh, I brought home in A, I'm smart. But when they start bringing home C's, Ds, and Fs, what does that make them? And you're done. And then they spiral and they don't know how to fix it because you never told them what it was that made them smart. What did I do to earn this participation trophy? Like, you just handed me a trophy.

I don't even know what I did to deserve it. And so I have no tools to handle failure. I have no tools that when I start to fail, how do I correct it? Because you've never told me what I've done that was good in a way that I could build upon it. Yeah, interesting. I mean, and it's interesting how it was like you couldn't, you couldn't have an NDP on a team, right? And like, I think that, that tide's changing a little bit. I just had a, our coaches, or a party with my basketball team last night. And I gave out an MVP. I've been doing MVP's. And yes, I stay something nice about each boy, but it's okay to highlight a kid and

say, you were the best this year, you know, but everyone else got it. You still got something. is still you still got praise. But it's not like they don't know. It's not like the kids are like, oh, I'm as good as him anyways. You know, it's like, so it seems like that's changing a little bit. But when I was, you know, when the kids were growing up and they were younger, I know there were parents that were not cool with that. They would have been upset with that.

And now it was very much like just everyone gets the exact same thing. And you need to say something pretty equal to everybody. So, you know, it wasn't building a kid up when they really deserved it, you know? Like they were just like, oh, okay, I guess it was just an average year. Yep. Yeah, I do think that the research is coming out and it's showing how that has actually been really damaging. And I do think a lot of people are reversing course. We're seeing it in schools now.

I think a lot of schools are catching on even how teachers teach in grade papers and give criticism. You know, we are seeing more literature come out. even about growth mindset. You know, you're hearing it in conversations a lot more. So it is gaining steam. And I think it's helpful. But we need to recognize that there's about a generation and a half that really miss that, that are now in our workforce.

And we've got to kind of reverse engineer it. Ah, gosh. That seems difficult. And that's like a whole other topic probably. So let's get into the negatives and positives at work. So what do you think the negatives are for the millennials at work? I think the negatives for the millennials at work is that you really do have to tie their purpose to their work, which can be difficult because everyone is different. And so their motivators are going to be different. And so finding those motivators, you know, is always a challenge, especially depending on the size of your organization. The other thing is they do need handholding. They do need mentoring. We have always had structure, you know, whether it's been in sports or in school, we've always had that kind of structure and we still need it. And so it's going to take a little more time to get us trained and

ramped up, but don't see it as laziness, but it can be a handicap, whereas maybe the older generations you could just throw, here's our handbook, here's our process and procedures, figure it out. Yeah. The millennials take a little more time to get trained and ramped up, but that's because that's just what we're used to. Yeah, no, that makes sense. Okay. What about the positive things in the work? I think the positive things, though, with the millennials is that when you do find them, their purpose and you get them engaged and you get the mentor, they are willing to stay. They're not jumping ship as quickly as some of the younger, like the Gen Z. You know, they will stay. They do have the right work ethic. And they are a fantastic bridge, you know, for all the generations.

For someone like me as an older millennial, I can really relate to Gen Xers. I can also relate to the Gen Z. So much like each generation is a good bridge for the net. And so I think, you know, helping. the millennials to understand, get them up to speed, then they can also help mentor the next generation coming up. Yeah. I mean, it's almost like we need them more to speak up with some of these social issues to help be a bridge because, you know, when we get into the Gen Zs, we'll talk about some of their cultural wants and needs and goals, but it's very difficult to change a baby boomer, right? And so when we talk about the pronouns and we get into subjects that are very controversial and difficult for them to understand.

There's not a lot of understanding there. There's just like, you need to do this or your ex. And it's almost like we need the millennials to help translate, you know, and to be, you know, a referee and say, okay, no, easy. That's going to be difficult for them. But let's just do it in a different way. Help them understand and vice versa. But it didn't, it doesn't seem like there's a lot of that going on.

And I think that's a negative thing because it's not an understanding both ways. And especially like we all have parents. You should know that they're not going to change. We should know that. But why do you think the whole as a society, they're just going to like quickly be able to adopt something? That's not the way we are. Now, and I also think it's unfair for either party to expect you to change. No, I'm fine.

You change. Right. We do have to meet in the middle. It's not fair to say, you know, now I'll speak as that bridge. You know, it's not fair for Gen Z to go to a boomer and say, no, you need to change. I'm right. You're wrong. And it's not right for the boomer to also say like, no, we've always done it this way.

You're wrong. Yeah. There is a happy middle. Being able to come to that table and have that conversation calmly and with an open mind. That's just really the struggle. Yeah, totally. And you wrote a great article and I'll put it in. in the notes below.

You put it on LinkedIn. It was called Unlocking the Potential of Gen Z. Strategies for HR managers and business leaders. And, you know, I guess let's start with that. What made you want to write? Obviously, you're talking to a lot of this generation and they're entering the workforce. So was that the kind of the reason for it? Yeah, that.

And I will say that I was just bombarded over the last probably six months of this mental resiliency piece. You know, we have these younger workers coming in, much to like what you were saying, you know, they want us to use their pronouns, and they want us to do this, and they're always triggered, and they're stressed out, and we don't want to trigger them, and we want to, you know, have all the right DEI and inclusivity, but it's just, it's so much, and I can't wrap my head around it, and why can't they just be more mentally resilient? And I think that just, it was just negative after negative after negative coming after this generation, and it was like, but there's a lot of good here that you're not seeing.

And so I just wanted to really pull that out and bring it to light that, yes, it can be a hassle. Change is hard. Changes no matter what they are, whether you agree with them or not. And I am not one to step into politics, but change is hard. And what do you, like, what's the positive? What's the return on investment? If you make these changes, if you go with them, if you go with the flow, what could be that return on investment be for you?

And then you can decide if it's worth that for you. But I think that a lot of companies, understand like this is our future. This is the way we're going. How do we bring it in and get it up to speed? Because we don't have time to mess around. Baby boomers are leaving. We don't we don't have time to like argue back and forth anymore. That time is gone. We got to be moving. We got to pass down information. We all got to start getting along. Yeah. No, totally. So so these are the these are the folks born 1997 to present. These are all my kids, the three of them. And they are very tech savvy. They're socially aware. They value authenticity and diversity in their professional environments.

And right now, they represent around 8.3% of the workforce. So, yeah, they're entering. They're dip from their toes in. I think, you know, as we kind of said, there's a lot of misconceptions. There's a lot of negativity. And I think both you and I have been supporters of both millennials and Gen Z. And that's why we're doing this, is that it's not just about needing them. It's about let's understand why they are the way they are, and let's try to meet in the middle and make it a productive part of society. The bottom line is we need millennials and Gen Z from a purpose-driven aspect that I love. I wish we had more in the Xers is that they care, and that's cool. We need more of that. And honestly, what if that is the recipe that we need to stop wars and to

to come to the table with more peace and more thought. And we need leaders that are that way too. And what if, what if these two generations are the reason that that changes? Because we grew up in generations that was all war and hell. And it just, so I hope that that's their purpose. Oh, really?

It is. And what we need to remember is especially for Gen Z. Because like me as an older millennial, we didn't have a computer in the house. when I was younger. I mean, I remember when I got my first, like, Windows 95 machine, like in the cow print box from Gateway, you know, it was a big thing. It was a big deal. Gen Zee's never had that. They've always been connected to high-speed internet. You know, they can, I remember being on TikTok when Russia invaded Ukraine. There was a girl on TikTok live streaming from Ukraine.

Here's what's going on. You can hear the sirens of the background. And that's mind-blowing. I mean, the world seems so tiny to Gen Zee. And for a... boomer and maybe a Gen Xer like to say like, oh, I want to make changes in Ukraine. I want to make changes in China. I want to make changes in India. Whatever it is, I want to reach this thing. You know, for us, it seems like, well, that's on the other side of the world. But for them, it's like, no, it's not on the other side of the world. The world is so teeny tiny. That's practically our backyard. And we're also connected now in this global economy. And it does affect us. And so they are very passionate about things that might seem far off to those that are older.

But we have to understand from their perspective, they've always been so well connected. It's nothing. Are they too connected? I think they're almost too connected. They want to unplug. If anything, they need to take time. They need to take a lesson from the Gen Xers and put the cell phone down and get outside. It's hard, especially for my daughters, it's hard to pry them away.

And that is their environment. That is their community. This is how they do things. this is how they communicate, Snapchat is normal. Like all these things are like, I don't understand them at all, but it's their people. And so it's like, it's obviously not something that you can rip out very easily. But yeah, the immediacy of information and then not being patient,

not being creative in terms of like, hey, I'm bored. That comment of, I'm bored when they were young was just painful for me. Well, then go find a game. make something up like we had to do. Like, it's not always spoon fed to you. We went to the park by ourselves. Now we're as parents taking you to the park. And then we're doing a play date with other kids.

It's like, what are we doing? What's funny is I studied pediatric obesity for my personal training. And in that study, they actually went over. Kids don't know how to play. So many parents have put their kids in structured sports. If you throw them a soccer ball, they will just start to play soccer. Like one of the things I encourage any of my parents with young kids to do is like have them make up a rule. Like just even if they're playing soccer like make up a rule after you score a goal, you have to do something silly.

Like just to get that creativity back because yet that's that's something that they are losing. And, you know, it is something I worry about with technology even and we see like AI. You know, now how many people are writing blogs and they're going to chat GPT and it's writing it for them or articles and they're just taking whatever is being thrown at them. You know, how we even do schooling for this generation and the generation after them, Generation Alpha, it's going to be totally wild. I can't even wrap my mind about what it's going to look like with AI. It's just that that's, again, that's another whole subject matter. But wow, I mean, that's crazy.

So the thing about the Gen Zs are, they're not risk takers, right? So they're not going to, so my concern for them is the startup community. Like we need them. You know, we need people to take risks and to start things. That's how other people get jobs. So I know they're risk-averse. They're not going to stick their necks out. So where does these new startups come from, I guess?

Like it's a little scary, isn't it? Well, you know what? They are more entrepreneurally minded, but they live a lot more frugally. So the Gen Z are much more minimalist. They are all about being like financial. frugal now. They're all about retiring early. And I will also tell you, do not underestimate the power of Gen Z to work the side hustle. I mean, you can go down rabbit hole after rabbit hole on social media on how to make money with AI and Amazon and this thing and that thing. And they have just, I mean, like, I look at some of these. I go, why didn't I think of that? That's genius. And these people, they are very, I think, financially focused. Um, you know, they are saving. I will say most of the, the gen Zs I know and even that I've talked to,

they, they are, they kind of, even, uh, the way that financial advisors are working with them is far different just because they are really focused on being frugal now. And then they're focused on retiring early. And, um, you know, they're willing to work hard. Um, right. But they also want that flexibility. And they'll, they're kind of like, I'll button down now. I'll work hard now. But they also are willing to jump. They are like this group, I want to say the last report I read, the average Gen Z stays at a job like 1.4 years, not even a full two years. They're jumping jobs about every year and a half. And the thing that they're hearing from social media and stuff is, oh, well, you can make more because you'll get more of a pay bump if you jump every year versus staying at the same company and get that base minimum raise.

And so they're really the ones that I think industry is struggling with right now because they're so quick to jump. Like you've just, you know, how long does it take somebody to get really trained and up to date and comfortable with the system? And then they're, I'm out. I'm going the next one. And they're reinventing the wheel again. Yeah. I mean, that's a pro and a con, right? The con from an employer standpoint is that how do we get them loyal?

How do we get them engaged? And that obviously you have to bring in that purpose and that, you know, I don't know, I guess. What do we need to do to make sure they do stay? Because that is costly, as costly as heck to be doing that every year. Yeah. I think, you know, one is really looking at the work environments because they're another one that's big on flexibility. Like I said, they've learned the art of the side hustle.

And that sometimes is where they find their purpose. My nine to five job pays my bills, but I'm actually really passionate about this thing I'm doing over here. giving them that flexibility to do that is key. The other thing is absolutely being mindful about world issues. These are the next change makers, much like boomers change the landscape and how we have benefits now. Gen Z is changing the corporate landscape and looking what they're doing with DEI. That was really a big Gen Z movement.

And they're really tied into that. And so, you know, making sure that we're up to speed on these. social issues that they're really tied into and also keeping them engaged. They want to learn, much like millennials. They too are eager to learn. They're looking for mentorships. If they see a path forward to growth, they're more likely to stay. But if it's, I'm going to stay here in the same job and grind it out for three years and you've got a boomer saying, well, it took me five years to get my first promotion. They're not going to have it. They don't, they'll jump. They know they don't have to stay here for five years. They can just go to that company and get a little bump. So,

Having a progressive plan for them to grow both personally and professionally is huge. Interesting. Interesting. Yeah. I mean, I'm still trying to figure them out. They're fascinating, though. They're like a creature to me. Creatures.

But okay, so let's start with the negatives. The two negatives of these, I know they're just starting the workforce, so we don't have a lot of context. But let's guess on that two negatives. I would say the two negative. Yeah. What was that? The jumping from job to job? Yeah, absolutely.

The jumping job to job, not having that loyalty would be number one. The other one is the social issues. Sometimes they can be a little overly passionate about the social issues, and that can create a lot of chaos in the workplace. Especially when politics gets brought into the workplace, it can get really, really messy, really fast. So just having something in place that we can show that we care, give them a place where they can maybe express, but not drive.

drag the rest of the organization down into heavy political matters. I would say that's the other thing. They're very outspoken and very passionate. Definitely, definitely for sure. Yeah, okay. That's, okay, so what about the positives? The positives of them are, the world is so small, and they see opportunities that we don't.

You know, they are so comfortable with this technology. They are exceptionally adaptable. Technology, more than any other generation, has changed so much for this group. and they've always had it at their fingertips. And so they are very flexible and adaptable when it comes to implementing new programs. But again, we have to be mindful that they are also a little less mentally resilient. So not changing anything in their environment too quickly. But they are adaptable when it comes to certain things like tech and social issues.

Totally. Yeah. No, that makes sense. Awesome. So, you know, I think it's clear to say that, you know, the differences between these generations are not easy to change. And an attempt to do so, we have to talk about it, an attempt to change a generation or a manager or a person can be offensive and disrespectful.

And I think that's the part that I think it gets misconstrued sometimes is that you can really hurt people by forcing something, both directions. That's both directions. And so how do we as owners, and I know in construction, this is tough, this is tougher because we are more male dominated. We don't have a lot of feedback from other cultures and women and all this. So how do we kind of dive into this? Is it kind of what you just said in the opening up more of the space for just communication,

just understanding? Like, is that the starting point? Yeah. So I teach a whole workshop on creating a culture, positivity and growth. And it's all about developing that growth mindset. People who have a growth mindset tend to also be more mentally resilient in open to hearing the criticisms because that's the problem we have right now is when you have people in your workplace that are not mentally resilient they're not open to hearing any criticism you have of them

and so that's going to cause that fight or flight response they're going to leave they're going to shut down they're not going to be an engaged employee and so it's really creating a culture and a space where one we build trust and i tend to teach the trust equation with that how do we build trust with each other and then what are the types of praises and criticisms like we talked about with the younger generation giving them participation trophies that was person praise. I teach organizations how do we give process praise and process criticism in a way that we can kind of move people onto this learning path so that they're more open and receptive to new ideas. And so it's really just building that communication and using some subtle positive psychology

tricks there. And it's really those come down to how we communicate it, though. You know, how are we communicating? Right. I mean, people are going to people, right? And I think that we all, you know, we're all going through something. And, you know, just because you're an owner and manager doesn't mean that you're the most wise and you're that, that you understand these things. So I think your perspective is, is very fresh. And it is what we need because we need to have these discussions before we can understand each other. I think it's just, it can be very negative at times back and forth with like, you're this, you're this. It's all these, you know, you're statements back and forth and it doesn't seem to be in my perspective in construction it doesn't seem to be improving fast enough and and I'm hopeful with organizations like you you guys have set up that now we have some tools that we can we can actually look into and say hey we're struggling with this we really need this generation um the ones that are going to be proactive are the ones that are

going to have a sustainable business and the ones that don't i don't know how they survive honestly Yeah, I mean, we have a lot of young kids entering the trades. I mean, there is a huge opportunity here for construction because the latest reports are men, especially, are not entering colleges and universities at the same rate that they were. They are being more open to the trades, to, you know, apprenticeship programs. And you really have a chance to take advantage of that. But if the old traditions of the hazing, the harassing, the rubs some dirt in it, we don't talk about our feelings. you've got to figure it out on your own. If that doesn't change, they're not going to stay.

And they're not going to thrive. Yeah, yeah. And they might just leave the industry altogether. That's the danger is that they give it one shot and they're like, nope. And then we're like, crap. We don't have a lot of chances anymore. We really got to start nailing these. So I appreciate your perspective.

That was a really insightful conversation. I love this topic. I just wish more people were as introspective and thoughtful before they, or they act and speak. So I think this will be a good, good starting point for a lot of my listeners. So how do people get in touch with you if they want to learn more about your programming and just get in touch with you? Yeah. So my company is Lifeforce Wellness. Our website is Lifeforce Wellness.com. And my email is Megan, M-E-G-A-N at Lifeforce Wellness.com. Thank you so much for being here. I appreciate you. And I'll have all those notes down below for everyone to

follow. So thank you so much, Megan. Thank you. I appreciate it. Yeah. Paul for tuning in to In the Zone podcast. I'm your hopes, Jeremy Owens. Let me know if you have a topic in mind. Like I said before, I'm really fascinated by interesting topics, people who are thoughtful, engaging. You know, I'm not, they're already great podcasts that they deal with, you know, marketing and tax strategies and things like that.

I listen to those. But I'm not really good at talking about those. But if you have a topic in mind, you know, something similar to this. Please let me know, Jeremy at us construction zone.com. I thought today's topic was fascinating. And it really helped me learn a little bit more about each generation. And I think the idea is to give each generation a little bit more grace and a little bit more space and a little bit more understanding. And I love that we hopefully accomplished a little bit of that today.

So thanks again for the great team at build12.com. Check them out. Build12.com, get a free demo and mention U.S. Construction Zone. Thanks so much for being here, guys. We'll see you next time on In The Zone. Bye. You've been listening to In The Zone and Construction Executives Live with Jeremy Owens. Be sure to subscribe to In The Zone and stay in the know with the best minds in the construction industry. To nominate an innovator or change maker in the construction industry, connect with your management peers and stay up to date with construction industry news. be sure to visit us construction zone.com