Onehealthpro

GEN XER'S AND LEADERSHIP

Gen Xer's, your need to cut to the chase and get the facts quickly is admirable.  And the best way to obtain facts from leaders is to establish yourselves as reliable and trustworthy.  Realiable equals showing up on time, ready to work.  Trustworthy equals keeping confidential information confidential.  If you're unsure what qualifies as confidential information, ask questions to clarify.  If you establish a reputation as one who repeats every slice of gossip you hear, leaders will be unwilling to trust you with important organizational details. 

WORK LIFE BALANCE

Will there be any life to balance if we don't get started repairing our communities and organizations?  Gen Xer's are noted for placing priority on family needs...figuring work and community needs are of lesser importance.  Consider this Gen Xer's:  That family you are raising will one day leave the safety of your home and enter the community and workplace for survival.  Are your contributions to your organization and to your community generating a future where your little ones will be safe and secure when you are no longer their protector? 

GEN XER'S: WE NEED YOUR VOTE

Gen Xer's, the statistics suggest you don't feel voting is important.  If you believe the decisions made by elected officials have no impact on your daily world, you are wrong.  If you are a health care professional, you should know better because the laws and lack of laws that govern health care define your daily practice.  Instead of dropping out, refusing to vote because you don't think politicians can be trusted, get informed.  Be a knowledgeable citizen and professional who can pose difficult questions of those who seek to serve via elected office.  I understand politicians aren't perfect...and like all human beings, they become less perfect when nobody is watching.          

GEN XER'S SURVIVAL MENTALITY

Gen Xer's you aren't the only individuals who face life struggles.  And your response to those struggles will not work.  Period.  The generational response I hear from the members of your generation is as follows:  "I'm looking out for me.  I have no interest in what the rest of the world is doing."  To which I reply:  "Good luck with that."  You do not live on the planet alone.  You do not work alone.  You do not survive alone.  What will you do when the generations who did believe in the value of community, the value of loyalty, the value of respect for the needs of others are gone? 

By the way, I'm aware my words are blunt.  As Gen Xer's suggest they want direct communication minus the frills the generations preceding them refer to as interpersonal skills, I've delivered the message in the fashion requested.

Also, I'm cognizant of the fact there are exceptions to the generational patterns...but in conversation with gen xer exceptions, they tell me they recognize and are grateful for their differenences from the majority of their peers.

GENERATION X AND TECHNOLOGY

Okay Xer's it's your turn on the hot seat. 

Yes, your technological skills are impressive.  You've learned to build solid relationships with electronic gadgetry.  It's great to be able to point and click and discover facts.  But data does not guarantee superior solutions.  Insight, thoughtful evaluation of data and wisdom about how to use the data cannot be obtained by pointing and clicking.  When Boomers attempt to explain why experience matters, these are the concepts they are referencing.       

BABY BOOMERS AND CYNICISM

Are your words honest?  Gen Xer's have been bombarded with negative news regarding organizations.  Twenty four hour news delivery guarantees bad news will be broadcast the instant it occurs.  Gen Xer's trust of systems and other human beings is low.  They can recite a litany of broken promises made by governments, religious institutions, educational institutions and business enterprises, not to mention broken promises made by married couples to remain faithful and avoid divorce court.  So, when organizational promises are made, Gen Xer's adopt a wait and see mentality.  They wait to see you break your word.  So, if you say your organization is dedicated to quality, you better be able to point out concrete examples that demonstrate that's a fact.  Gen Xer's want and deserve the truth.      

BOOMER INTERPERSONAL SKILLS

When Gen Xer's express conflict, their words can be withering.  Direct.  To the point.  No frills discussions.  Interpersonal skills learned by boomers have not been taught in the gen xer's world of instant communication.  Boomers were taught to keep quiet until they understood the political implications of their remarks.  Gen xer's were taught to go online and share their thoughts, impressions and opinions with no holds barred.  Put members of these two groups in a meeting and you''ll see conflict erupt regarding the communication patterns.  Boomer's here's the training opportunity for you.  Design, develop and provide education to new and experienced members of your workforce sharing the insights you've discovered on the fine points of expressing ideas without raising the blood pressure and irritation level of everyone in the room.       

BABY BOOMER EGOS

Get over it baby boomers.  Your egos are threatened because some members of our workforce speak technology with sophistication.  Instead of being intimidated by their superior knowledge, put them to work.  Let the advanced electronic users evaluate, develop training for and teach everyone how to use the electronic innovations with greater skill.  Worried about patient education?  Let the saavy members of your staff create blogs, podcasts, and computer based training to help provide patients the information they need.  Concerned about the complexities of computer based charting?  Let the members of your workforce who have been running their lives on computers since they were ten, help structure software that's user friendly.  When you combine technology and experience, you've got a powerful team.  And by the way, building on the strengths of all members of the workforce is the key to success.  It's grand that everyone brings a different perspective to the table.  And baby boomers, please don't be offended.  The wealth of experience you bring to the table is being overlooked and frankly, I'm not sure how our health care system or economy can survive with the willy, nilly rush to completion that seems to dominate organizations today.  Experience matters.  And so does innovation.   

BABY BOOMERS AND SENIORITY

Gaining the support of gen xer's can be accomplished by designing fair policies.  Boomers this speaks to the belief system you cherished in your younger days...remember wanting to be treated fairly by "the establishment."  It may be a tough pill to swallow, but baby boomers in 2008, you are "the establishment" and a younger generation of workers longs to be treated fairly by you.  Policies that exact a greater toll on "the new kid on the block" are not fair.  Who works the night shift?  Who works weekends?  Who works holidays?  Who is considered for committee membership and decision making?  When I make this comment in workshops, baby boomers usually shout:  "We paid our dues."  And so you did, while complaining dues paying wasn't fair.  Isn't it time we used our wisdom to design policies that work for the greater good of the majority, instead of maintaining outdated systems that are causing us to lose a generation of health care workers we desperately need?      

BABY BOOMERS VS. GEN X

The number one concern of participants in my workshops is the battle between baby boomers and gen xer's.  There are a multitude of reasons for this conflict with the main one being these generations are more like people from different cultures than people from the identical culture.  They did not learn the same skill set, they do not have the same attitudes and they do not respond to the same leadership style.  I'm launching a series to address this conflict with the hope of building better health care organizations through reducing conflict and increasing collaboration between these two groups. 

I'll begin by offering baby boomers advice for working well with their younger colleagues.  Stop lowering your standards in order to accommodate the younger workforce.  I'm paraphrasing what I hear from baby boomers, but the content of their conversation goes something like this:  "We let standards slide because we need the help and we cannot get the younger folks to perform."  To which I reply:  "If you think you've got troubles now, wait until you see the conflict you're cultivating by sowing the seeds of ignoring inappropriate behaviors."  SOLUTION:  Stop expecting the younger workforce to come to the table with the same skill set more experienced workers brought to the table.  That's an unrealistic expectation because the world changed significantly during the growth and development years of these two generations.  Instead, define performance standards.  Design rewards for accomplishing those standards.  Design educational programming that describes and explains those standards.  Design coaching protocol for use when those standards aren't met.  Apply all of the above to new and current employees.