{"id":41,"date":"2010-04-15T10:59:16","date_gmt":"2010-04-15T14:59:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.steeringtheelephant.com\/?p=41"},"modified":"2013-04-01T18:41:33","modified_gmt":"2013-04-01T22:41:33","slug":"expectations-and-the-young-work-force","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.steeringtheelephant.com\/?p=41","title":{"rendered":"Expectations and the young work force"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>A friend told me about a recent volleyball tournament that he attended with his daughter.<\/p>\n

During the multiple-day tournament, his very excited 15-year-old daughter ran up to him and exclaimed, \u201cDaddy, we won a bronze medal, and we\u2019re going to get our picture taken in the medal ceremony.\u201d<\/p>\n

Somewhat bewildered, the Dad gave his daughter a hug of congratulations and then asked, \u201cYou guys finished third overall for your age class?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, we were third in the bronze division for our age group, isn\u2019t that great? Oh, they are starting the ceremony, come on, let\u2019s get over there.\u201d<\/p>\n

As she ran ahead, Dad was doing the math.\u00a0 Out of twelve teams in her division, her team finished ninth\u20143rd<\/sup> place in the 3rd<\/sup> tier. They were going to get a medal, and they were very excited about \u201cwinning.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not wanting to be a \u201cbuzz killer\u201d, Dad told me that he decided to enjoy the enthusiasm of the moment, \u00a0but realized that he would need to have a conversation with his daughter about the meaning of rewards and what her expectations should be for other, more competitive activities that she might be involved in down the road.<\/p>\n

There are two sets of expectations occurring here: The father\u2019s, who had never encountered a situation where finishing ninth out of twelve garnered praise, and the daughter\u2019s, who found it perfectly acceptable that she\u2019d be given an award for participation<\/em>. Neither could wait for the next tournament, but for completely different reasons.<\/p>\n

In an organization, where you are responsible for yourself and a group of people, understanding your expectations and theirs is critical to get things done effectively and efficiently.\u00a0 If there is close to a generational difference in age between you and your young (under 30) reports, it is really important to understand your expectations of them and their expectation of the organization.\u00a0 Part of the self diagnosis is recognizing that your expectations about work, getting ahead in the organization, and recognition may be fundamentally different from theirs. From your perspective you may think that:<\/p>\n