Anne Loehr is an expert on Millennials in the workplace. She has published some really good stuff about the Millennial Generation (aka Generation Y, those born between 1981 and 2001). Google her. You will find that she does not see Millennials in the same light as others. Specifically, she does not see them as entitled, lazy and high maintenance as a group. Neither do I.
The key is getting to know Millennials and their values. Anne writes and talks about how to speak to Millennials so that they will listen, recruiting and retaining Millennials, how to effectively manage and motivate Millennials, among other topics. Check out her website so that you know what the Baby Boomers and Generation X lawyers are saying about Generation Y lawyers — what you need to know to dispel the stereotypes and succeed in today’s workplace. You also could read my book, Best Friends at the Bar: Top-Down Leadership for Women Lawyers (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business/Aspen Publishers, 2015), particularly Chapter 5 on “A New Generation to Lead,” and Lauren Rikleen Stiller’s book, You Raised Us, Now Work With Us (American Bar Association, 2014) on the nuances behind the stereotypes that are attached to all three of the generations in the workplace today and the effect on team building.
In a new blog, Anne Loehr addresses the Millennials on how to be taken seriously at work. Here are a few of the very thoughtful and helpful hints from Anne — with a few of my own parenthetical thoughts:
- Let people talk about themselves and listen (and, presumably, learn from them);
- Pay attention to tone, grammar and rhetoric to communicate effectively (get rid of slang and useless emphasis and use exact vocabulary);
- Be knowledgeable about what is going on in the world ( to demonstrate that you are curious and thoughtful about the world you live in …. beyond Facebook and Twitter);
- Be both humble and confident (listen carefully to know when to use which approach and when both approaches can work simultaneously);
- Dress and act like a professional;
- Be accountable and take responsibility for yourself and your actions; and
- Challenge opinions respectfully.
Tune into Anne Loehr’s blog to find out more about how Millennials can be taken seriously and make good impressions at work.
