Ideally...

I call myself a pessimist, but something I am surprisingly optimistic about my ability to grow the organization I am with. Do I sound like the stereotypical GEN Y that believes they can change the world?

This post stems from a conversation I had with a recruiter. They asked me, "What would your first job look like*?" And I told them what it was, I said I would like to be in a role where I can consult different internal and external clients then come-up with a solution that I can implement. "Herm, that sounds like a dream job but probably wouldn't be in the scope of your first job. There is a lot of learning that you have to do.*"

Well, they are right. What do I know about managing a billion dollar business? I even have to pause and figure-out how many zeroes are in a billion! In other words, I am naive in thinking I have decision-making capabilities.

Maybe, what I should have said was " My first job is a role where I can see how my work is impacting the organization". That is a big career value of mine and probably a lot more realistic!

Back to the point of naivety. I think it is both a strength and a weakness. It is strength when it is not hardened by the pessimism of 'this is how things are done'. But it is a weakness when one does not realize the full impact of their decisions. Surely, there must be a balance we can strike between the strength of weakness of being naive.

This is where mentors and supportive supervisors come to play. Allow your GEN Y to dream and believe in change but CHECK to make sure they are realistic and implementable.

I cannot imagine any employer intentionally stifling the enthusiasm of their subordinates, but does your GEN Y hire feel it is safe to voice out their opinions? Are you giving them adequate explanations when you shut down their ideas? Have you taught them how to solicit support when they are proposing a change?

It is not that we are stubborn and want to have it all our way, but we just need to know Y.

*Some paraphrasing involved.