Millennial leaders: unicorns or can we really exist in the workplace (that's not a sexy startup)?
A few days ago (at the time of writing), I sat down with psychologist and PhD candidate at Deakin University - Caroline Rosenberg - to talk about her main area of research; leadership.
She was particularly intrigued by how I have come to navigate the workplace; managing a team of young creatives that underpin Deakin disruptr (the University's research content marketing platform), while managing the expectations of our stakeholders, all of which who are vastly more experienced than us in the higher education sector.
Since our inception 18 months ago, the synergy in knowledge-exchange between my team and those around us has become increasingly more efficient. Deakin, to its credit, has always been very welcoming of new and fresh ideas.
However, I can understand what Caroline was asking, the millennial dilemma is very real in today's contemporary workforce, especially when it comes to hiring and building teams around young people:
"Millennials are lazy."
"Millennials are unreliable."
"Millennials only want to work from home."
I'm not even gonna front, working from home is pretty good.
In her study of leadership, Caroline noted that I was one of the younger "leaders" she had spoken to and asked how other millennial leaders could similarly establish a new norm in which to work under.
At the time of asking, I didn't really feel qualified to answer this - I'm by no means an expert in leadership or management or whatever. But upon reflection, my time leading a team of like-minded creatives has given me some insight into what being a leader means to me.
So to all my aspiring millennial leaders - this one goes out to you:
1) Your experience counts!
Proof is a big thing in the workplace:
How do we know this campaign is going to work?
What is the ROI on this ad set?
How many clicks did we get last month?
In the same way, sometimes we have to prove ourselves worthy for the roles we are given - and the obvious measure for this is years of experience. For millennials, this can often pose an issue.
Not only are we young, a Gallup research study revealed that we change jobs more than any other generation; with 21% of Millennials report switching jobs within the last year, and 60% are open to a different opportunity.
That's created a little bit of a stigma...
If you do happen to find yourself in an organization where you believe you can make lasting and positive change it is important to emphasise your experience - no matter how limited it may seem!
Case study - Me
Prior to my current role, I spent 5 years freelancing for brands: writing content and doing photography. At face value, that experience seems simply limited to content creation.
However, having spent time pitching brands, working closely with editors and seeing the dissemination of content across a variety of platforms - I gained great insight into the entire life cycle of content marketing and picked up invaluable skills in the process.
Oh, and my side hustle of 4 years (which I recently shut down) allowed to me practice and execute on those lessons in a live environment.
See - doesn't that sound better than just 5 years freelancing?
2) Lead for the right reasons
It is also important to ask yourself why you want to lead in the first place; is it for the sake of social status, or do you genuinely enjoy being responsible for others?
I've always thought that the President of the United States was a crazy position; imagine taking on that role and responsibility for social status.
You're better off buying a Tesla.
Personally, I have come to understand that leading translates to the service of others.
A leader listens, supports and shares.
A leader has the time of day.
A leader encourages.
In the workplace, this manifests into ensuring that everyone has everything they need to get their job done, adequate access to me so they can jump over any potential hurdles, and a culture that allows them to pursue their passions or other avenues for personal growth.
All the best leaders, those that I admire and those that I have had the pleasure of working with always carried themselves with great compassion and empathy.
I hope that I'm doing them justice in my day to day.
3) Respect: give it in spades, and earn it in teaspoons
"Just because you're in a leadership position doesn't mean everyone is going to respect you."
Derek Jeter
I couldn't have put it better myself baseball and New York Yankee legend, Derek Jeter.
If you're lucky enough to find yourself in a position where you can influence change as a young person in the workforce - don't assume everyone is going to respect that.
Why would we use social?
I hate digital.
This stuff makes no sense.
Change, especially cultural change - like a good soufflé - takes time to set.
In return, be respectful - give it out in spades; channel your inner Oprah - you get respect, you get respect, you get respect! Sometimes it will be hard, but I promise you, it's the best route to take.
Every interaction you have is an opportunity to not only change and challenge perceptions, but to learn. Remember, we have all had different experiences and you should pay heed to that - everyone has something to offer!
Overwhelm them with respect and slowly but surely, you'll begin to see the cultural landscape transform before your very eyes.
Spades for teaspoons - that might be my greatest thesis yet.