ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: AUGUST 2023
Raise your hands if you were raised by Baby Boomers? Can you remember the messages given about careers, employment, and longevity in the workplace? If you’re like me, you can remember being told to go to college, get a trade, pick a good career that’ll be lucrative in building wealth, and find a good job that you can retire from with good benefits. The messages not only came from our parents, but also from professors, mentors, and even internship programs such as INROADS, Incorporated in which I was a member.
I think back to my training often. There were many lessons learned that were valuable in my academic career and have sustained me in my entrepreneurial journey. Often, the Baby Boomer generation has gotten a bad rap in the media as a generation that is stagnant to change and stall progression in the workplace. I on the other hand would like to think of them as the ultimate survivors. In context, here’s why. They believed everything they taught us about work ethic, being loyal to your employer, and trusting that companies in turn would honor the commitment. However, many worked for companies such as Enron where their retirement accounts were swindled away in a securities fraud scandal. Many also worked for the Big 3 automotive companies when the shift from deindustrialization in the late 70’s and 80’s to automation in the 90’s and 2000’s took a toll on the workforce through mass layoffs, change in benefit and retirement structures. Then to add insult to injury, changes in the political landscape brought about changes in the age requirement of retirement to receive full benefits. Many of these folks were/are exceptional humans that believed in a work ethic philosophy that had one route to success. Not because of a blind sense of loyalty, but because for many years they’d seen abundance on this avenue of success.
What we have now is a multi-generational workforce that is grappling with the effects of bad decisions made by those in power. This is why the Baby Boomers are really my heroes. They’ve weathered the storm because they are my parents, my friends’ parents, family, mentors, and neighbors. In so much as we’ve witnessed locally and nationally what happens when all eggs are put into an employment basket, we’ve also seen ingenuity and creativity come from a place of extreme change.
I believe we are in a moment in time where employees are adding pressure on employers regarding workplace culture, inclusion, and equitable benefit structures that balance the commitment to an organization. COVID in so many ways helped us usher in a new way of thinking and being at work. Many left jobs where their contributions and expertise were not valued. I will include myself in that number. The mass exodus of folks leaving jobs was a way to pivot because history in so many ways was repeating itself with job loss and changes in benefit structures without warning. So, what we’re seeing is this generation of leaders, college graduates, and tradesmen delve into entrepreneurship to build and accumulate wealth. In essence, this is a lesson learned from our parents, colleagues, and mentors who are in the workforce longer than they’d originally planned.
I love talking to generations of elders. They have so much lived experience and wisdom to share. From conversations with some of my elders, I’ll pass on the nuggets they’ve given me in navigating decision making on whether to stay the course, jump into entrepreneurship, or go travel the world over the years. Our conversations are fruitful and filled with so many nuggets, so here’s a few:
• Make a list of goals you have not accomplished. Put the reason why they haven’t come to pass next to them.
• How does fear play a role in your decision making?
• Ask yourself, is your current job your dream job? If not, why are you still there? And what are you going to do to get your dream job?
• Ask yourself, if entrepreneurship is a goal, what problem will your business help solve?
These are just a few questions to get you started on your journey. There’s no time like the present and you’re never too late to learn something new. I learned to swim at 32 and started my own business at 42. Through my business, I activate leaders and transform organizational culture. I love what I do, and I want you to love what you do too. Be kind to yourself and be kind to others as you figure things out. Change is not easy, its complex, but it’s worth it.
Love y’all double time®