I have such gratitude for the people who moved alongside me and guided me in a variety of ways when I entered the workforce during difficult and challenging economic and political times. There were so many unknowns – what was the future looking like? How do I budget? Who can I trust? Who do I approach for guidance? Am I really up for this job?
Can you remember the people who influenced you the most when you joined the work force? How has the work place today differed from when you entered it for the first time? How would you motivate and encourage a young adult joining your team in their first career move?
These are interesting questions to consider. They are questions I have been reflecting upon as I think about how the pandemic is impacting economic development.
Neuroscience research continually reminds us that the brains of youth are only fully developed when they are in their mid-twenties. This highlights how important it is for empathetic employers to guide and navigate new young employees entering the work force for the first time. Here is what I learned.
Research
I spent some time researching employer and employee relationships, exploring what social researchers say and reading general articles in which employers share their experiences working with youth. I saw over the years how the advent of technology seemed to change the mindset of young employees.
In some cases I saw youth unafraid to be creative and innovative. In other situations I observed young people unable to empathize with others, severely lacking teamwork and often with questionable management of time skills.
I saw others who took life so seriously, were unable to laugh at themselves, and whose perfectionist attitude led to heightened stress levels.
I observed others who lacked a healthy and balanced lifestyle which had a negative effect on their output.
And, I noted others who had no idea how to cope with the challenges of the workplace and either left the workforce voluntarily or were asked to move on.
14 Top motivators
Here are fourteen of the top motivators employers can reflect on as they employ today’s youth, always remembering that every employee is unique, different and brings their personal life story to the work place.
- They value flexibility in terms of hours of work.
- Offer access to state-of-the art training opportunities which are preferably experiential rather than totally online learning. They often require ‘soft skills’ learning to build meaningful relationships with other employees, customers or clients – presentation skills, management skills, management of time skills, communication skills, and team-building skills.
- Encourage mentoring opportunities, whereby a wise guide moves alongside them, is non-judgmental and empathetic, and encourages them to chase their dreams and reach their potential.
- Mentoring is a great vehicle for values sharing and knowledge transfer. Young people are listening and observing everything going on around them, even when one thinks this is not the case.
- They respond positively to inspiring and motivational leadership from authentic and trustworthy leaders.
- Recognition and reward – genuinely affirm these young people when they complete a task well, most especially commenting on their efforts.
- Most enjoy the challenge of understanding cutting-edge technology. Explore ways you can use their skills to coach other colleagues, as this will create a wonderful collaborative team.
- They genuinely appreciate honest, regular and constructive feedback, though the timing of this feedback is also important in their personal development journey.
- Make sure that they have a clear understanding of their role in the big picture. They want to have meaning and purpose in their lives.
- Share messages of hope and coach them how to envision the future. Discuss with them how ‘instant gratification’ and ‘entitlement’ attitudes will not assist their personal growth; that failure occurs and the key is how they learn from failure.
- Make sure you offer an inclusive, participative, non-threatening team environment where they feel able to contribute and their ideas and opinions are valued.
- Develop an environment which acknowledges their preferred style of learning: social, collaborative, interactive and fun.
- Encourage them to live a healthy and balanced lifestyle
- Encourage them to stay informed about the dangers of substance abuse, even to connect with others who are finding their way.
As the global community recovers from the impact of COVID-19, the creative, innovative and entrepreneurial spirits of our youth can be encouraged and rewarded.
Employers can play a significant role in transforming many of these young lives who have been battered by the negative impact of lockdowns, the knocks to their self-confidence and opportunities they dream of unable to be pursued because of the pandemic’s impact on their lives, perhaps also on their family’s life and circumstances.
Is there a young person you can reach out to and guide during an important season of their lives?
