EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE: Managing the Generation Gaps

IT TAKES A LOT OF EQ TO MANAGE THE GENERATION CHASM

The differences among different age groups in the US reflect the major societal transformation of the past 40 years.

According to "Voices of Diversity: Real People Talk about Problems and Solutions in a Workplace Where Everyone is Not Alike," by Renee Bland and Sandra Slipp, published by the American Management Association:

FOR OLDER WORKERS:
Rules and regulations told them where they stood.
The environment was safe, government was a friend, employers were loyal to workers and workers to them.
Ethical structures were clearly defined.
Men made up the workforce.
Work was proof of mastery, competence and moral character.
A job was central to one's life; conscientiouness and respect for work and the workplace were givens.

FOR YOUNGER WORKERS:
Rules and regulations have no meaning in themselves; they are to be continually questioned.
The environment is not safe; the government is not a friend; employers, even nonprofits, will not necessarily be loyal to workers.
Morality is situational.
Work has no intrinsic value in itself; it has meaning only if it provides self-fulfillment and/or monetary reward.
They feel "entitled."
Now having to reconcile from "have it all" to the uncertainties of a downwardly mobile society.
See no intrinsic value in boundaries established by hierarchy, position and authority.
Do not defer to "authority" and are not intimindated by status.

NOW TAKE A LOOK AT "FOR THIS YEAR'S [US] COLLEGE FRESHMAN CLASS":

1. Andy Warhol, Liberace, Jackie Gleason, and Lee Marvin have always been dead.
2. They don't remember when "cut and paste" involved scissors.
3. Heart-lung transplants have always been possible.
4. Wayne Gretzky never played for Edmonton.
5. Boston has been working on "The Big Dig" all their lives.
6. With little need to practice, most of them do not know how to tie a tie.
7. Pay-Per-View television has always been an option.
8. They are more familiar with Greg Gumbel than with Bryant Gumbel.
9. Voice mail has always been available.
10. "Whatever" is not part of a question but an expression of sullen rebuke.
11. The federal budget has always been more than a trillion dollars.
12. Condoms have always been advertised on television.
13. For daily caffeine emergencies, Starbucks has always been around the corner.
14. Money put in their savings account the year they were born earned almost 7% interest.
15. Bill Gates has always been worth at least a billion dollars.
16. The Starship Enterprise has always looked dated.
17. Pixar has always existed.
18. Judicial appointments routinely have been "Borked."
19. It has always been possible to walk from England to mainland Europe on dry land.
20. American Motors has never existed.
21. Les Miserables has always been on stage.
22. Libraries have always been the best centers for computer technology and access to good software.
23. They never saw the shuttle Challenger fly.
24. The TV networks have always had cable partners.
25. Black Americans have always been known as African-Americans.
26. They never saw Pat Sajak or Arsenio Hall host a late night television show.
27. Tom Landry never coached the Cowboys.
28. CNBC has always been on the air.
29. Jimmy Carter has always been an elder statesman.
30. Miss Piggy and Kermit have always dwelt in Disneyland.
31. They have always been challenged to distinguish between news and entertainment on cable TV.

ASK ABOUT OUR DIVERSITY / EQ PROGRAM FOR BUSINESSES LIKE YOURS.
EQ is the key to being able to manage in today's multicultural climate.

p.s. 25% of those now aged 65 are expected to live to be 90 years old.