Young professionals are stressed out and considering Quiet Quitting to lower their stress and improve their lives.

Some Pointers on Working with Stressed Gen Zers

I am hearing some interesting descriptions of Gen Z at their worst – whiney, complaining, not my job, he/she hurt my feelings, seeking praise and promotions, and responding negatively to feedback. One explanation is that Gen Zers experience stress. It could be stress of succeeding, stress of failing, stress of looking good, stress of being liked, stress of finances, and any number of stresses outside of work. 

Gen Zers report enduring more “extreme” stress than other generations, and, overall, 58% say they’re at least moderately stressed, which is a really telling number. Axis – Understanding Gen Z

Another method for getting rid of stress is the practice of “Quiet Quitting,” as described in the August 14th edition of Forbes Magazine. In this practice, you keep your job but do just enough to get by, responding when you need to but not going above and beyond. Actually, this concept has been around for years, and these employees were referred to as “B Players” as opposed to the “A Players”. It makes sense that Quiet Quitting relieves stress because instead of a constant state of vigilance, focused on driving oneself and measuring progress, the Gen Zer can just relax and do what needs to get done, and often function more effectively in this relaxed state.  

From a leadership perspective, the Quiet Quitter is an employee that is not particularly engaged. As an employer, if you don’t want a room full of quiet quitters and you don’t want to give up on your stressed Gen Zers, here are some techniques and tools that managers and leaders can use to save talented employees and help them develop into valuable employees:  

·        Listen carefully to their concerns and make sure that you understand their issues. Reflect back to the employee what you heard. Reach agreement on his/her issues.

·        Review your mission/vision/policies. Determine if there are any touchpoints with the employee issues.

·        Help the employee learn about the differences between the generations so they can have greater understanding of others’ behaviors.

·        Discuss the purpose of work and your commitment to the employee. Offer classes for stress management, and any other related issues such as anger management, assertiveness, learning how to say no, etc.

·        Please contact me for a free consultation and more suggestions at lesley@changingbehaviorsconsulting.com·  

Seven Differences between Gen Z and Millennials

In some articles, Gen Z and Millennials are referred to as one group due to similarities. To clarify, below are seven critical differences between these two generations.

Expectations. Gen Z anticipates that work will be fulfilling with fun, inclusive, with engaged leaders and peers, offer financial stability, advancement, and development. Work can be some of those things sometimes, but let’s face it, there are boring projects, irritating people, and disappointments. Companies, coaches, and college career counselors need to help Gen Z establish reasonable expectations at the beginning of their careers. On the other hand, Millennials’ expectations are more modest and focused on free time (their motto is YOLO – you only live once). However, as Millennials advance into leadership positions work fills up a larger portion of their lives.

Characteristics. Gen Z reflect a global and pragmatic (having learned what not to do from Millennials) view. They seek uniqueness (style, brands, employers) and independence. Millennials tend to be more idealistic, team-oriented, conforming (think about all those shiny pictures and stories on facebook about happy and successful people), and although some global connections, less global in outlook than Gen Z, who identify globally as a cohort. Over time Millennials have proven to be highly resilient, overcoming setbacks from the 2008 financial crisis and COVID.

Addiction to Devices. Gen Z spends more time on devices than Millennials, with 40% of Gen Z admit they are addicted. Anticipating the impact of less time for TV, and more on devices, this could result in a massive shift in marketing strategies to reach this Gen Z. HuffPost

Time Alone. Millennials are team-oriented and collaborative. Although Gen Z has these same qualities, they covet their physical privacy and tend to be more independent. Workspaces have been configured for Millennials with openness, accessibility, and spaces for spontaneous conversations. As a growing number of Gen Z’s enter the workforce, private spaces will be needed too.    

Remote Work. Remote work has worked well for Millennials with established families. Gen Z is trying hard to transition from college to work life, and the isolation of remote work has been devastating. This dichotomy could lead to a workforce where Gen Z is in the workplace and Millennials and Gen X spend most of their time working remotely and leaving Gen Z without daily feedback, coaching and mentoring. 

Loyalty. Gen Z is prone to be loyal and committed to a company, mainly when the circumstances are right (a fair salary, employee development, diversity, and engaged management). On the other hand, Millennials have a reputation for moving from job to job. However, recent data supports that they are beginning to stabilize and are more apt to stay in one place longer. Millennials who are farther along in their careers, data reveals that some are moving to other jobs with less frequency. The US economy loses $30.5 billion every year due to millennial turnover (Millennials in the Workplace).

Communication. Gen Z desires face-to-face communication while Millennials are reliant on digital communication. Communications.