Who invented work/life balance?

We all know the Boomers are known for their fierce commitment to their jobs. And one of the few nice things to be repeatedly written about Gen Xers is their commitment to a work/life balance, family, and friends. However, I saw a post recently by a Millenial who says that it's actually her generation who really has taken a stand for balance.

I'm not sure what to think. I hate to be one of those angry Gen Xers, but come on, isn't it the Gen X dads who have really taken advantage of paternity leave (including my own husband whose career probably took a hit because of it)? Isn't it the Gen X moms who made very deliberate, thoughtful decision regarding full-time or part-time jobs - or staying home full time? Isn't it the Gen Xers who took the grief in the late 90s and early 21st Century for their unwillingness to give all to their employer?

It all makes me long for the good old days when only the Boomers didn't understand us.

Boomers in Xer Bodies

I watched the show Cashmere Mafia with great anticipation yesterday - followed by extreme disappointment. The 30-something Xer women portrayed in the show aren't Xers at all -they are acting like Boomerettes.

What was I hoping for? Frankly, a tamed-down Sex and the City. Both shows have the same producer. The difference is that although at times over-the-top, the Sex and the City gals did focus on what was important - their lives. These Cashmere Mafia women are career above all else. Yuck.

It's common for Boomers to think ALL women want the ultimate career success and are willing to pay the ultimate price. An article from Newsweek represents the successful woman as all work and no play. But in response, blogger Penelope Trunk says that Gen X women don't want that life.

I agree. And for that matter, I think Gen X men don't want to be slaves to their jobs, either. Quality of life is what's important.

The thing about Cashmere Mafia is that if the show were about four SINGLE working women, I probably wouldn't have had such a problem with it. However, as a working mother and wife I am offended that the Mafia women would sacrifice their families for some job - no matter what that job is.

The 1980s are over. Someone should tell that to ABC-TV.

Shout Out

When I find a blog that is especially amusing, I like to let everyone know about it. Check out Team Building is for Suckers. The blogger is an HR professional in her early 30s. What I like about it is you can really get a sense of the Gen X perspective on things from it - especially it's biting humor.

Obama's Victory in Iowa

By now, it's common knowledge that Barrack Obama was the big winner in Iowa. What I find interesting is that the criticism AGAINST him is his so-called lack of experience. Yet as a Gen Xer who is very skeptical of the political system, I find the fact that he hasn't spent the last 20 years kissing Democratic booty kind of refreshing. If we keep electing the same kind of politicos over and over, how would we ever see change in America?

At the same time, as someone who lived in Iowa for two years (two years of my life I'll never get back), I'm not sure that the vote there is indicative of what the entire country wants. I covered the 1996 caucuses as a journalist. What happens at them is that whoever wants to show up to the caucus in their district does, they have a meeting, and then they take an ad-hoc vote on what recommendations they will send to Des Moines. People who vote don't necessary want to sit around and talk issues with their neighbors, though. Gen Xers, in particular, often don't feel they can change someone else's opinion, while Boomers often feel that a well-crafted argument can persuade anyone. Therefore, the attendance at the caucuses, from a generational perspective, is probably not representative of the actual voting population.

Politics and Generation X

I read the most fascinating article in The Atlantic recently about Barack Obama and how he's the man who can pull the American political system out of the grips of the Babyboomers. I posted it to this site, because this article was the first that I have ever read that actually changed my mind about a presidential race.

While Obama is a Boomer, he's actually a trailing-edge Boomer (born 1958-1964), which really makes him more of an Xer. 1958 was the first year of declining birth rates in the U.S. and those born in the last years of the boom had a very similar formative cohort experience to Generation X ) - they don't really remember that pre-Kennedy assassination era when "girls were girls and men were men."

The Boomer Calling

Recently, I was reading Penelope Trunk's blog and she talked about not choosing a career based on the often recited professorial advice "Do what you love" and it really got me thinking. Where did this idea of your career being your "calling" come from?

When I was in high school and college - and even for the first five or so years of my career - I subscribed to the notion that you are meant to do a specific job - a divine calling, if you will. Although I did not realize it at the time, this idea made me miserable, because at the end of the day, a job is a job, because they pay you to do the work.

So where did I get this idea from? The "follow your bliss" career advice? Teachers, mostly. Babyboomer teachers to be more specific. The same Babyboomers who are the self-proclaimed workaholics (just google "boomer" and "workaholic" and see how many sites pop up).

I was in church a couple weeks ago and our pastor, who is a feminist nun, talked about how our job is not our calling. Our calling is about the people in our life and our relationships with them.

So if that's true (and I believe it is), then what's up with this "job as calling" thing?

First off, boomers love to work. And by work, I mean work at their jobs. The more hours you put in, the better worker you are. My friend, Julie, who is a boomer herself, even says that boomers love Saturdays because there's no one in the office and they can get more work done.

For many Xers, while our boomer parents were off at their jobs (think the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off), we were forging friendships. We were laying the ground work for what I believe is a new mindset - something Xers do not get the credit we deserve for. It's the idea that my job is important, but my life is more important.

Now that I understand that my job is just my job, I can enjoy it a lot more. I'm not expecting it to be a cosmic experience. And I can focus on doing things I really love (like blogging) without make it "work."

Office holiday party - teambuilding or torture?

Last month I was speaking in Orlando to a group of Gen Xers and Millenials and the topic of office holiday parties came up. Basically, there was no one in the audience who wanted to attend them and no one who could figure out how to get out of them. It's a pretty common complaint among the under-40 crowd.

I, myself, spent nine years working at a college and trying to avoid potlucks, cookie exchanges, and the dreaded Christmas party at the boss' house. The Babyboomer women I worked with would get so annoyed with me - I wasn't a team player. And yet, the Babyboomer men just had to show up for such events (no casserole required if you had a Y chromosome.)

The whole thing was so frustrating, because these people were not my friends - they were my co-workers.

Getting back to the presentation in Orlando, we brainstormed for solutions to avoiding the office party, and the best we could come up with is "I'm going to be out of town." And as I researched the topic a bit more, it turns out that "suck it up" is about the only thing you can do without hindering your career.

Earlier this year, I was talking to a meeting planner in Michigan who said he is having trouble getting certain company events off the ground. Specifically, for years there has been a three-day "retreat" at a northern Michigan resort that included some work, and a lot of dinners and activities. The planner said the Xers did not want to come. They wanted to do it in one concentrated day - all work and no play.

I think these situations are both part of the same issue. Generation Xers are looking for a work-life balance. That means work being something separate from life. Not having your life be your work, your colleagues, your company.

So what is the solution? Do we go along with the festivities and hope the Boomers retire soon? Or do we revolt?

The Unsexiest Generation

If you are a Gen Xer - or just wish you were - here is a fantastic article from Marie Claire magazine that declares our generation unsexy. And I do believe they are correct!

http://www.marieclaire.com/life/sex/advice/generationx

Gen Xers redefine fatherhood

Although not a fan of the automobile - and a staunch advocate of light rail - I find it ironic that a car company can seem to get a grasp on what Gen X men are like.

Gen Xers - men and women alike - are often misread, misinterpreted, and misrepresented in the media. However, this article out of Ontario offers some great insight - from the perspective of an automotive company.

Here's an excerpt from the article which was posted to: wellandtribune.ca

"Insecurity at youth spawned a need for security and strong relationships as the men in the group enter marriage and fatherhood, said Amy Casey in Nissan's planning group.

Not quite ready to grow up as they grow older and certainly not ready for a minivan, Casey learned that some of these men don't want to be seen as just a dad or just a husband.

"They are the stealth dad," she said. They are youthful and edgy to the world, nurturing and caring at home. And he likes his flat-screen TV, communication devices, quality athletic gear, gadgets and cooking utensils, all of which he embraced before fatherhood.

What I find really interesting here is that Gen X dads seem to be a lot like Gen X moms. We're holding on to our identities, while still focusing on parenting. Parenting is our most important job, but not our only one.

Click here for the entire article: http://www.wellandtribune.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=767597&auth=Mark+Maynard

What does it mean to be nice?

I had a great conversation this week with a 30-year-old Gen Xer who says she's annoyed with her Boomer colleagues saying she needs to be nicer. At the start of the conversation, she didn't realize that she is not alone in this challenge and it is a common complaint among Gen Xers.

To Boomers, being nice often means small talk. That's nice. However, this same chit-chat often seems insincere to Xers. So when the Boomer colleague inquires about the Xer's kids, the Xer will be polite, but may feel the Boomer is faking interest. When the Xer does not reciprocate the family question, it can obviously offend the Boomer.

Another scenario is when giving criticism. Often Boomers will give you the criticism sandwich - a good comment, the criticism, a bad comment. This can be affective with Xers, yet, the critical point (the criticism) may be lost in the sea of compliments. Conversely, when a Xer just spills it, the Boomer can be offended, because they only got the meat - not the bread and the condiments.

I think once Xer and Boomers are conscious of this different, the conflict goes away, because they then interpret the messages as they are meant to be.

Gen Xers achieve balance

Generation X may be the first generation to actually find a work/life balance. This fabulous column explains:

http://blog.penelopetrunk.com/2007/09/06/generation-x-updates-outdated-work-and-family-goals/

Do Gen Xers struggle to find music?

The Baltimore Sun recently reported that Gen Xers are being overlooked by the music industry.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/bal-al.eye02sep02,0,7894274.story

I would argue that we're not overlooked at all. While the article claims music of the 1980s and 1990s was disposable and did not unite Gen Xers, I would say just the opposite is true. Metallica, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Public Enemy, and even groups like Motley Crue all presented the Gen X point of view. We were kind of angry, but we also liked to party. Songs like the Beastie Boys' "You got to fight for your right (to party)" poked fun at the Boomers shift from serious protesters to even more serious Yuppies ("greed is good.") However, Boomers didn't get the joke and labeled us as unfocused.

Xers see middle management as a trap

Generation Xers are saying "No" to clawing their way to middle management. The main reason? A desire for work/life balance. Read more in this article from USA Today.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/workplace/2007-08-12-no-manage_N.htm?csp=34

Who is out of touch?

A recent post to the Ypulse blog discusses the pros and cons of accessing networking sites such as FaceBook while at work:

http://ypulse.com/archives/2007/07/myspacing_faceb.php

Last week I spoke with a group of association executives. There was a lot of frustration over the work habits of Generation Y. The group, made up mostly of Gen Xers and Boomers, said it was a challenge to get Gen Y workers to do what was expected. The fact of the matter is, Gen Y is less likely to have the same assumptions as older workers and they often do need things spelled out for them (i.e. casual Friday means something a lot different to Gen Y and if you don't want them wearing flip flops to work you need to let them know).

But here's the question - who really is out of touch? My theory is that Gen Y is leading the workforce changes. However, they still are very young. For Gen Y, I believe the bravado of being 25 will be replaced by the humility of being 35. And yet, they will still have the technical savvy they do now. Gen Y will make a huge contribution once they do what all of us had to - grow up a little.

Gen Xers get nostalgic

A recent article on cnn.com heralded music from the 1980s and 1990s as the "new classics." The story gives some good insight into what Gen Xers (who came of age in the 80s and 90s) see as their music.

Anyone who has seen the film "The Big Chill" and heard its soundtrack has probably given some thought to what their own Big Chill soundtrack would be. However, while Baby boomers were willing to accept the anthems of their youth as advertising jiggles, skeptical Gen Xers may not be so kind to marketers who try to sell them sneakers using Gen X classic tunes.

Below is the cnn story. By the way, the class albums referred to in the article are most likely being purchased by Gen Xers, because if Gen Yers were interested in these tunes, they'd download them (and it's unlikely Boomers would be interested in Gen X music).

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Music/07/17/music.newclassics.ap/index.html

GenerationXpert to keynote conference

"Rocking the Ages: Marketing to Four Different Generations" will be the keynote address by GenerationXpert Suzanne Kart Wednesday, July 18, at the state conference of the Michigan Society of Association Executives in Frankenmuth, MI.

For more information: http://www.orgpro.info

Generation X Gender Roles

In 1972 Title IX guaranteed equal educational rights for American males and females. The result is that Gen Xers did not grow up with same strict gender roles as previous generations. Boys took home economics class and girls took wood shop class.

As adults, Gen Xers are also less likely to adhere to strict rules about what tasks are done by women and what are done by men. This is especially true for Gen X parents. Read more in this article from insidebayarea.com:

http://origin.insidebayarea.com/timesstar/localnews/ci_6163778

Gen Xers disgusted with hierarchy

A recent research study shows that companies that don't start hiring - and retaining - Gen X workers soon will be in trouble now that the Babyboomers are starting to retire.

Why can't companies hold onto Gen X workers? An article posted to reliableplant.com has the answer: "According to exit polls and research studies, Gen-Xers are disgusted with the mismanagement of top corporate officials, hierarchical politics, corporate ladders, and the lack of job satisfaction and job fulfillment."

http://www.reliableplant.com/article.asp?articleid=6735

And what does this have to do with marketing? If you can't keep Gen X employees, you certainly won't be able to keep Gen X customers.