Trained to be Navy seals, but forced to serve as basic infantry...
Generation gap - this topic was discussed by many writers, psychologists, educators, and bloggers many times. Generation gap issue has existed for centuries and it is almost unavoidable. However, nowadays, it is more obvious, and not only because of the technological advances, but, also, because of upbringing, the way how Generation Y was raised.
I was observing and analyzing this issue for some time and came up to the conclusion - We (on some level I am relating myself to this generation) are raised, trained for special forces (I found this military analogy the most suitable here), to become a "Navy seal" of marketing, engineering, or finance, to be a part of an innovative company, or any exciting, even difficult, start-up or a project. We are tough, open-minded and educated enough to accomplish any assignment (despite the fact of the project's difficulty). Yes, it might look hard, but it makes us more excited, gives us some challenge, forces us to go and finish it. We are curious, we want to explore this world, learn new language, absorb something new every day, make a difference, we truly believe that we are special. Doing triathlons is already too boring for us (we already finished it couple times), we want to participate in "Spartan race" or "Tough mudder", latin dancing is too simple for us, we want "Zumba" party, having only one major at the college/university is too easy, we want two or three majors plus various certificates - our minds are rebelling and requesting more and more challenges.
Reading all the above, one might ask, "What is wrong with such a dynamic Generation? This fast-paced world needs them". Even though we hear about that all the time and observe incredible changes and innovations right now, somewhere around 80% (I would assume somewhere in this range) of the society hasn't changed and doesn't like and want any changes. It requires an average representative of the present work force to be a basic infantry, a soldier which doesn't ask any questions and just silently and obediently finishes any assignment (doesn't matter how inefficient and illogical it might be). It was like that for centuries. No one ever has asked any questions, gave any suggestions, it wasn't necessary and it wasn't encouraged before. It was (still is) safe just be average and do not show of.
Ys like to discover or explore. This is their advantage and drawback at the same time. Doing something new, Gen Y representative probably is not going to ask any questions for the FIRST time because this assignment will be something NEW, but when he or she will be asked to accomplish the same assignment forth or fifth time, Y-person might ask oneself, "WHY AM I DOING IT? AM I LEARNING SOMETHING?" Even though it is a simple assignment, Ys need some inspiration, some encouragement, at least the REASON why they are doing it.
We, as a generation, were raised with a concept that LIFE IS TOO SHORT, inspired by accomplishments of Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, Sergei Brin, and Larry Page - the list is unlimited, you name it.
For a long time, we were watching our parents living their reserved lives, saving for retirement everything what they earned, never doing something adventurous, substituting adrenaline with simple "toys" shopping (like cars, boats, etc.) and then retiring and sharing with us their regrets that they never accomplished, what they had planned.
The "old school carrots", "American Dream" attributes do not work for our generation, a classic picture: a house with a backyard, a car, and a lazy vacation in Florida do not make us excited, doesn't make us to move forward.
So, We are, questioning previous generations' lifestyle, came up to the conclusion that we do not want these lives. We truly believe that we are unique or special, or at least we want to feel special, treated with respect like ones, and phrase "LIFE IS TOO SHORT" is pumping in our heads, calling for action.
On one hand, someone might call it spoiled, daydreaming, or not-practical generation.
On the other hand, that might be a new challenge for the true leader or manager. How to deal with/motivate these troops of tough, well-trained, educated, and idealistic young people? In my opinion, the most applicable answer was given by Sun-Tzu in his "Art of War", "Keep your army continually on the move".
In other words, keep us busy, encourage us, lead us, teach us something NEW, and we will accomplish the most unachievable, from the first sight, assignment. We were raised to believe that this fragile life is given to us to realize all our talents and inner potentials. We want to "stay hungry, stay foolish", - we absorbed this phrase from Steve Jobs' Stanford commencement speech, and, moreover, we want know the reasons, observe the results of our efforts, and spend one third of our lives working on something fulfilling and enjoyable.
