One of the more notable differences between Millennials and other generations are their equivocal feelings about work. While they (and their parents) are anxious to get a good job and begin establishing their adult lives as functioning members of the modern economy, they are also vaguely uneasy about the place of work in their lives. They expect they will need to make serious compromises to land and keep a job.
We identified some of these anxieties in focus groups last spring among young professionals at major companies. Last week, Ad Age featured our findings in an article, “The Inside Scoop on What Spurs Millennial Hires” Nearly everyone we talked with was concerned with two issues: ‘work-life balance’ and ‘making a difference’. These two concerns were sometimes related, particularly if their job was not seen as offering much opportunity to ‘give back’.
No doubt the recent financial shocks are causing Millennials to give even greater thought – and worry – to what the work world will mean for their lives. Shrinking job markets make for fewer chances to ask for concessions on vacation time, education perks, and other incentives dear to the hearts of Millennials. This week, in her GenNext blog, Sarah Ewing frankly discusses the tradeoffs she considered in taking a more ‘strategic’ job with fewer perks. Alex Kniess’s posting is titled, “Your Career Should Be Part of Your Life (Not the Other Way Around)”. And in his GenNext blog entry this week, Michael Girts, a new AAE at Leo Burnett in Chicago, posted a wonderful video, “”Music and Life” that neatly encapsulates Gen Y’s fears about the potential lack of fulfillment they face by continuing to chase workplace success. The 1-minute video (you’ll be glad you watched it) pairs an Alan Watts voiceover with adorable animation to capture the angst many young workers feel about the school – career — success trajectory. “Then when you wake up one day when you are about 40 years old and you say ‘My God! I’m here, I’ve arrived. I’m there’. But you don’t feel any different than you’ve always felt… you’ve missed the point.” Are you sensing a theme here?
In our research, this translated into a desire to tell their bosses, “This job is not my life” or ““This job is not my life!” Or as another put it, “My job isn’t life or death – I’m not saving lives, I work in marketing – sometimes people forget that.”
I’m not exactly sure how this insight to the psyche of Millennials relates to marketing, but I think it’s important; they are unsure whether to be motivated by the same incentives as the rest of us — or at least up until this latest economic crisis.
