It seems every where we turn someone is exasperated by the millennial’s. Songs, poems and discussions on what to do have all been published. When I look at my own up bringing my parents taught us how to work hard. They not only taught us they showed us in their own actions. My parents are some of the hardest workers I know. My dad does not have an easy job and I have never heard him complain about going to his job.
I started worked when I was thirteen years old. I mowed farm yard of one of my mom’s friends. To this day it is still one of my favorite jobs. I got paid to drive a fun machine and get a tan at the same time. For a teenager, it was awesome! What I learned was a job well done paid off. I had other jobs after this one. I worked at St. John’s nursing home and the Lakeside Cafe.
Even though I had learned to work hard from my parents, I still had a lot to learn. As a teenager there were skills I had mastered because I had not experienced it yet. I didn’t have the wisdom in how to handle it. This is where my employer came in. Thankfully I have had employers who were as much mentors to me as they were employers. People who where willing to invest in me as a person. Helping to develop my character, which developed me as an employee as well.
As the millennial’s begin to come more and more into the work place and the generations after them, let us not gasp and wonder how they could possibly not know things. Let us not roll our eyes at them, it sends a message of we don’t care. It diminishes a persons worth.
They and the generations after them need mentors. They need someone to care about them not only as a employee but as a human being. Taking them under our wings and showing them the importance of not only a job well done, but the importance of family, of belonging. This mentality teaches empathy and helps teach them to see others as human beings. Not subjects only to make another dollar.
Welcoming and inviting the next generation to get a real, hands on experience to develop skills and character at the same time. Teaching them how to interact with the world around them. Inviting them, teaching them how to have a life away from their phones. Being addicted to work, chocolate or anything else does not teach them to interact with others. It teaches them to take up another addiction to fill the relational space their phone gives them. If we want them to connect, then we must be available for them to connect with.
I am excited to see the awesome problem solving, art, and inventions the next generations will come up with. I’m cheering you on, supper is on the table, come on over, we’d love to have you!