During a recent presentation focused on the psychology of recruiting, I was asked to elaborate more fully on the difference in the psychology of generations X, Y and Z.  Specifically, the manager wanted to know what they could do to more effectively reach these elusive generations.  What was originally meant to be a brief response to this question turned into a prolonged sermon that resulted in more nodding heads than I’ve seen in a long time.  It resonated so much with these managers that I felt pretty strongly it was worth the time to pass these thoughts on to you.

There are three things you need to know: 

1. Yes, X, Y, and Z generations are very different.
2. Self-indulging and child indulging baby-boomer parents made them this way. 
3. At their core, most people are the same and will respond favorably if you meet their most basic needs. 

 Let's unpack each one of these individually: 

1. These younger generations do appear to be disloyal, are out for the best deal, expect to be paid immediately, aren't willing to do menial tasks first, and are willing to change jobs or firms in a moments notice.  These are real and true observations, and because of these observations, companies and vendors go to great lengths to try to find ways to respond to these characteristics that only wind up exacerbating the condition.  Why do I call it a condition?  Because it is a disease.  It cannot sustain your company, our culture, the nation, or the world.  Find a company or country that attempts to cater to these needs, and I’ll show you one that is on the precipice of collapse.
2. It's time to take responsibility and fess up to the values many parents within the baby boomer generation have created.  This is a generation that believed that immediate personal pleasure was more important than service to others.  Self-esteem without contribution was more important than earning the respect of others.  Frustration, struggles and hard work were to be soothed as quickly as possible and replaced with rescue and pampering.  Unfortunately, while all the above was going on, their most basic needs were being ignored.  Many of them were left alone, with a Nintendo, or X-box as a babysitter, activities were valued over relationship building, and family dinners were held on Thanksgiving and Christmas.
3. The good news is that to redeem the mistakes of the past, we can easily return to the core needs of all human beings.  There is an old saying…"There is nothing new under the sun."  When it comes to people, we are all basically the same and will never, at our very core, change.  When you purposefully seek to meet those needs, you can reclaim the dormant needs of these individuals and bring out the best in them, and your company.  As we have presented repeatedly in WorkPuzzle, science has proven without question, that happiness is never experienced through increasing the frequency and duration of personal pleasure.  Being confident in this allows you to offer these young people something more compelling that meets a need they didn’t even know that they had, and deeply resonates with every human being. 

People need to belong, they need to have high expectations, and they need a goal that is bigger than themselves…with a company painting a picture of doing something special.  Are you doing that?  What you have to offer is better than what many of these young people are being offered elsewhere: A chance to learn some skills that would be transferable to many occupations.

My 26-year-old son recently quit his last job to tour the world for five months.  Upon his return he had three organizations giving him fairly generous offers to work for them.  What separated the one he chose to work for from the other two?  The one he chose went out of their way to make him feel welcome.  Everyone greeted him as he walked in for the interview, several people emailed him with positive comments, and each of his questions was followed up with immediate answers.  He even received a very nice note from the boss of bosses in this firm.  In other words, he was treated like he was already hired and part of the big, efficient, family.  He was also introduced to top performers who treated him like he was a peer, and yet clearly introduced to what was expected in a way that raised high expectations without undo pressure.  The support he would receive upon being hired was clearly seen in every interaction. 

So, the question for your company is:  Can you move past what you’ve heard about these younger generations and speak to their deeper needs?  If you can, you’ll attract the best of the best. 

Editor's Note: This article was written by Dr. David Mashburn. Dave is a Clinical and Consulting Psychologist, a Partner at Tidemark, Inc. and a regular contributor to WorkPuzzle. Comments or questions are welcome. If you're an email subscriber, reply to this WorkPuzzle email. If you read the blog directly from the web, you can click the "comments" link below.