Whether baby boomers like it or not, a changing of the guard is taking place and millennials are leading the charge.
They are not thinking or behaving the way they are expected to. Perhaps it's because the "old way" of doing things doesn't work for them. Most baby boomers had traditions and values passed down to them from their parents. Not true with millennials because a lot of their baby boomer parents were too busy focusing on careers, keeping up with the Joneses, and being helicopter parents.
So now we have a generation who is rising up to make their own mark in the world. And they're doing just that. It shouldn't surprise us that social media and social media campaigns have inspired them in ways their older parents and grandparents can't seem to understand or appreciate.
For instance, according to an article written by NerdWallet, when a number of young activists learned that Wells Fargo was among those providing financing towards the construction of the South Dakota Access pipeline at Standing Rock, they immediately withdrew their money and deposited it elsewhere. The same goes for Justin Garrett Moore who transferred all of his savings to a black owned bank and spear-headed a #BankBlack campaign.
Soon television executives, sports owners and venues may feel the brunt of this new millennial power. A recent report released by L.E.K. Consulting indicates millennial sports fans are bypassing cable television and totally abandoning traditional sports for online video game tournaments and other "eSports." These changes are
likely to have implications on viewership for professional sports leagues like
the NFL, MLB and NASCAR, and networks like ESPN, Fox Sports and individual
teams.
"The old model is under pressure," says Alex Evans, Managing Director in L.E.K.'s Sports practice and a co-author of the
study. "Traditional sports organizations rely on TV, especially cable TV,
to attract new fans and to generate revenue now through ownership of regional
sports networks. But they will likely come under increasing pressure to change
their model, especially 5 to 10 years down the road.
So it looks like OLD habits may not be so hard to break.
Senator Thom Tillis decided to come out of hiding this week and meet with his constituents. On Monday, he held a ticket-only event for his "political base." These were the so-called good republicans who will sit very quietly in their seats and allow the politician to tell them all kinds of half-truths and alternative facts without demonstrating any anger.
The angry crowd was outside begging to be heard but because they had no tickets, their concerns fell on deaf ears.
Senator Tillis and Senator Richard Burr must've thought they would have it relatively easy over the next four years with a republican controlled Senate and House. But then Donald Trump became President and everybody's world got turned upside down. Their staunchest supporters are now starting to question their party loyalty.
The fact that Tillis has been unwilling to meet his constituents face-to-face until now and the fact that he made his Town Hall Meeting a ticket only event is very telling. Either he and Senator Burr know they are in a world of trouble and don't want to face the music or they are going to see how long they can ride the storm with their good, ol' southern republican base.
Speaking of Senator Burr, it is obvious that he is not and has not willing to listen to the voice of the North Carolina voters. I was among hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people who called his office to ask him to vote AGAINST the confirmation of Betsy DeVoss as Secretary of Education. But what he do? Read his statement below which he posted on Facebook:
Betsy DeVos has dedicated her life to improving education, so I am glad she will continue to fight for all children as Secretary of Education. Attempts by Senate Democrats to stall the President’s nominees only distract from the very real struggles of North Carolina’s families seeking the best education for their children.
Maybe Tills and Burr will come to their sense before long and act like true representatives of their voters. If not, we will do the same thing #45 says he is committed to doing: We will drain the swamp to make sure they don't return to Washington.
It's 5:00 pm, my work is done and I just realized that my Supervisor didn't take time out today to say, "Thank you Beverly. We really appreciate the work you do for the Company. We are grateful to have someone with your dedication and commitment and, yes, your maturity."
No, not one of the managers I work for bothered to acknowledge that today is EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION DAY. Instead they sent out emails telling us we should have "no excuses" for not giving the customer the best customer experience EVER!
Yes, the first Friday of the month of March has been declared Employee Appreciation Day with a purpose of strengthening the bond between employee and employer by having employers recognize and thank their workers. Not acknowledging it is truly a sad commentary on the state of the work environment I'm in and perhaps in many companies around the country today. Employers are so caught up in the bottom line of "profit" that they forget those who help them achieve their financial goals.
Why is Employee Recognition important? According to a article by Justin Reynolds on the TinyPulseBlog: "Employee recognition is strongly correlated with
productivity. According to a recent study,
69% of employees say they’d work harder if they felt as though their
contributions were valued. Even so, our 2017 Employee Engagement Report found that only 26% of
workers feel strongly valued at their jobs. That’s a problem. Planning a
special event should help your workers feel like they are appreciated at
least a little more."
Because I work from home, I feel more isolated than others who go into the office daily. That's why it's even more important that Managers do what they can to make everyone feel like they belong--rather than to make us feel like we're on a plantation for the "Massah."
I'm a baby boomer on my way to retirement so I probably have a thicker skin than my younger peers. Imagine how Millennials must feel knowing their work goes unnoticed day in and day out---especially since statistics show they do crave recognition for what they do.
Employers must find ways to do a better job in keeping their employees happy and appreciated. Sometimes all it takes is a personal email, phone call or "stop by my desk" visit to show you care.
