How Millennials Are Redefining Leadership
Millennials want to become strong, people-focused leaders
Posted on 02-04-2020, Read Time: - Min
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Once upon a time, being a leader at an organization was limited to being a manager or a member of the C-suite. These leadership roles tended to be well defined and earned through company loyalty; they served as a badge of tenure within the workplace. As the structure of workplaces change, Millennials are starting to redefine the concept of leadership. Instead of seeing leadership as limited to managerial roles and job titles, many Millennials see it as a state of being and a mindset, rather than a career destination or promotion.
As an International Coaching Federation (ICF)-credentialed leadership coach at the Professional Certified Coach (PCC) level, I spend many hours a day talking to young women Millennials about what it would take for them to step into their next level of leadership. Along the way, I’ve learned a thing or two about how the millennial generation’s perceptions of leadership are changing—including my own, as a Millennial myself.
What Millennials Bring to the Workplace
What gets me out of bed excited to hop on the phone every morning is the fact that Millennials care a lot about leadership and redefining what that means in their life. They want to become better communicators, they have an urge to learn, and they seek collaboration with their peers. Millennials desire a more democratized workplace. Intentionally practicing leadership at every level and within every role grants them that participatory experience in their own career.
These are some of the most prominent themes I’m seeing in my work with millennial clients:
We’re not just talking about the workplace anymore. For me and many of my clients, our lives are more closely entwined than ever with our work. We often work from home or remotely, at odd hours, and we are constantly available for Slack messages. The lines are blurred between work and life. Because of that, Millennials are paying more attention than ever to who they are holistically. It’s not enough to show up to the office, have a leadership level job title, and then go home to a disorganized and uncertain homelife. In fact, it feels inauthentic and can trigger the dreaded impostor syndrome.
It’s inspiring to see many new millennial leaders are instead looking to live a life full of leadership intentionality both in the workplace and during their off-hours. Rather than work-life balance, many coaching goals center on work-life cohesion and consistency. I’m asking my clients questions like: What does it mean to lead in the workplace? What does it mean to lead within your own life? And how do these two answers work together to enable you to take more responsibility and ownership for your experience?
Anyone can lead. In the mind of many Millennials, “leadership” isn’t limited to job positions. Instead, many see leadership as a practice of cultivating their personal power and influence over others. They want to understand themselves, their strengths and limitations, and how to use all of that to better understand the individuals around them. I’m not alone in believing that anyone, at any level, in any role can lead—it’s simply a matter of taking ownership and responsibility over your realm. We should be excited that Millennials want to lead at all levels, because it demonstrates their desire to grow within the business.
Transparency and inclusion are important to millennials. We know that the workplace is always changing, and that our bosses may not always have the answers. Nothing makes a millennial leader feel shut out more quickly, however, than lack of information or obvious withholding. My own anecdotal evidence from clients is reinforced by research from ICF and the Human Capital Institute’s (HCI) “Building a Coaching Culture with Millennial Leaders” study, which demonstrated that for millennials in the workplace, “the preferred management style is moving from command and control to a new style based on inclusion, involvement, and participation.”
For many millennials, myself included, true leadership is about levelling the playing field, not reinforcing hierarchies. This is one reason many Millennials are turning to coaching methods—in fact, ICF’s 2016 Global Coaching Study found as many as 60 percent of coaching clients are under the age of 45. The exploratory nature of coaching helps them puzzle out their own answers and gives them techniques to use with their coworkers to encourage that very inclusion and participation they’re craving.
They’re afraid of burnout—so energy management is key. Many Millennials I’ve spoken with have been hesitant to go further with their work because they’re afraid of overcommitting and burning themselves out. This isn’t an unrealistic fear. They have seen their coworkers, bosses and family members tire themselves out in their dream roles to the point where they begin to resent their work. They also often feel unsure about what types of support their workplace offers, or how to take advantage of those resources.
Energy management is all about understanding how much time, attention and focus one has to offer on a daily basis at work and at home, and prioritizing the contributions that make the biggest impact. In my coaching conversations with Millennials, we discuss identifying sources of power leaks, creating a clear process for where their energy and intellect are best focused, and how to set and enforce boundaries that prevent burnout.
They want to change the world. There’s a desire among many Millennials to be part of the global conversation, and to contribute to changing the world on issues they care about. They want to see a connection between the work they’re doing daily, and the bigger issues impacting their lives. Help your employees to connect the day to day aspects of their role to the bigger picture. For example, how does your employee’s job serving your customers and keeping them happy reflect their values? Perhaps they value connection and communication. The clearer we can make those value-based connections, the more they will be motivated in their role. This isn’t about hand holding, but about investing in the millennial employee’s long-term motivation and drive. In fact, recent research published by the Journal of Applied Psychology suggests that the more connected individual workers are to their values and goals, the less likely they are to suffer burnout.
These are some of the most prominent themes I’m seeing in my work with millennial clients:
We’re not just talking about the workplace anymore. For me and many of my clients, our lives are more closely entwined than ever with our work. We often work from home or remotely, at odd hours, and we are constantly available for Slack messages. The lines are blurred between work and life. Because of that, Millennials are paying more attention than ever to who they are holistically. It’s not enough to show up to the office, have a leadership level job title, and then go home to a disorganized and uncertain homelife. In fact, it feels inauthentic and can trigger the dreaded impostor syndrome.
It’s inspiring to see many new millennial leaders are instead looking to live a life full of leadership intentionality both in the workplace and during their off-hours. Rather than work-life balance, many coaching goals center on work-life cohesion and consistency. I’m asking my clients questions like: What does it mean to lead in the workplace? What does it mean to lead within your own life? And how do these two answers work together to enable you to take more responsibility and ownership for your experience?
Anyone can lead. In the mind of many Millennials, “leadership” isn’t limited to job positions. Instead, many see leadership as a practice of cultivating their personal power and influence over others. They want to understand themselves, their strengths and limitations, and how to use all of that to better understand the individuals around them. I’m not alone in believing that anyone, at any level, in any role can lead—it’s simply a matter of taking ownership and responsibility over your realm. We should be excited that Millennials want to lead at all levels, because it demonstrates their desire to grow within the business.
Transparency and inclusion are important to millennials. We know that the workplace is always changing, and that our bosses may not always have the answers. Nothing makes a millennial leader feel shut out more quickly, however, than lack of information or obvious withholding. My own anecdotal evidence from clients is reinforced by research from ICF and the Human Capital Institute’s (HCI) “Building a Coaching Culture with Millennial Leaders” study, which demonstrated that for millennials in the workplace, “the preferred management style is moving from command and control to a new style based on inclusion, involvement, and participation.”
For many millennials, myself included, true leadership is about levelling the playing field, not reinforcing hierarchies. This is one reason many Millennials are turning to coaching methods—in fact, ICF’s 2016 Global Coaching Study found as many as 60 percent of coaching clients are under the age of 45. The exploratory nature of coaching helps them puzzle out their own answers and gives them techniques to use with their coworkers to encourage that very inclusion and participation they’re craving.
They’re afraid of burnout—so energy management is key. Many Millennials I’ve spoken with have been hesitant to go further with their work because they’re afraid of overcommitting and burning themselves out. This isn’t an unrealistic fear. They have seen their coworkers, bosses and family members tire themselves out in their dream roles to the point where they begin to resent their work. They also often feel unsure about what types of support their workplace offers, or how to take advantage of those resources.
Energy management is all about understanding how much time, attention and focus one has to offer on a daily basis at work and at home, and prioritizing the contributions that make the biggest impact. In my coaching conversations with Millennials, we discuss identifying sources of power leaks, creating a clear process for where their energy and intellect are best focused, and how to set and enforce boundaries that prevent burnout.
They want to change the world. There’s a desire among many Millennials to be part of the global conversation, and to contribute to changing the world on issues they care about. They want to see a connection between the work they’re doing daily, and the bigger issues impacting their lives. Help your employees to connect the day to day aspects of their role to the bigger picture. For example, how does your employee’s job serving your customers and keeping them happy reflect their values? Perhaps they value connection and communication. The clearer we can make those value-based connections, the more they will be motivated in their role. This isn’t about hand holding, but about investing in the millennial employee’s long-term motivation and drive. In fact, recent research published by the Journal of Applied Psychology suggests that the more connected individual workers are to their values and goals, the less likely they are to suffer burnout.
How to Lead With a Coach Approach
The coaching approach to leadership and development is simple: Lead with questions, not with answers. In practice, that looks like allowing for more trial and error, trusting employees to learn through experimentation, and asking open-ended questions that allow for individuals to solve their own problems rather than seeking out a direct answer from a superior. This process may take more time than leadership is used to, but it creates an engaged workforce, especially with Millennials.
My top tips for those leading Millennials are:
My top tips for those leading Millennials are:
- When an employee has a problem, ask, don’t tell. Rather than giving them a quick answer and moving on, use some time to explore the problem with them. Ask them why it’s presenting a challenge, what they could do to resolve it, and what they think should be done differently the next time around.
- Diversity makes the workplace better. Instead of judging or shaming an employee for previous job-hopping and inconsistency, encourage them to embrace the intersection of their skill sets as a unique gift. Help them see how the nexus of knowledge they bring to the table can contribute to the team.
- Adopt a coaching mentality. See all employees as equally capable and start conversations of growth from a place of optimization, not from inadequacy.
- Invest in external coaching and/or in-person growth opportunities. Both of these resources were shown in the ICF/HCI study to provide support and cultivate great leadership from the inside of your company, impacting the bottom line and creating a more engaged workplace.
- Practice your communication skills. The more you can provide clear, concise context to your team, the more everyone will feel included. Communication skills aren’t something that comes naturally to everyone, especially now that much of our daily communication with coworkers is done through a screen.
At the end of the day, Millennials want to become strong, people-focused leaders. They value transparency and are highly motivated to make a global impact. As current leaders, and as those in charge of fostering the next wave of leadership, we can help our Millennial team members see the global impact of their daily contributions and provide support as they cultivate deeper levels of self-awareness. It’s time that everyone in the workplace embraces this whole-person focused leadership and start to practice it within our role—regardless of our title. These small shifts will help to make the workplace, and the world, more empowering for all.
Author Bio
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Laura Weldy is an ICF-credentialed Leadership Coach and holds her Professional Certified Coach credential. She is actively working toward her Master Certified Coach designation (the highest ICF credential for a professional coach). Laura has completed more than 600 hours of high-level one-on-one coaching with clients over the past three years in addition to numerous in-person events. Laura has spent the past six years speaking to thousands of audience members and creating massive growth within her own coaching business. She’s managed international teams and worked with top companies under immense pressure. These days, she is one of the most highly sought-after coaches in Nashville and across the US, partnering with both the International Coaching Federation and Inner Glow Circle as a face of the modern coaching industry. She also is an instructor with Inner Glow Circle, training new coaches to create powerful results for their clients. Visit https://lauraweldy.com/ Connect Laura Weldy |
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