Generation X - Harvard Business

Ok, I admit it - I like "10's lists". I also like articles that delve into the impact of culture on the work place. Tammy Erickson's article "10 Reasons Gen X'ers Are Unhappy at Work" in Harvard Business added to my understanding of generational differences and the impact of those differences on the work place.

As a "boomer" and son of a life long GE employee I came into my career with no other expectation than a job in corporate America. Since then I've moved around but remained attached to the idea of corporate job or close ties (consulting) to Corporate America. The article made me think through what many of my younger colleagues have experienced. It also made me think about perceptions - specifically what my own children think about the careers that lie ahead of them in light of what they have seen of my career and the careers of their friends parents. Note: I am the father of a high school freshman and a 6th grader.

Below are Ms. Erickson's 10 Reasons - but please read the full article because each reason has much more to it than the headings supplied below.

1. X’ers corporate careers got off to a slow start;

2. When you were teens, X’ers witnessed adults in your lives being laid off from large corporations;

3. Most corporate career paths “narrow” at the top;

4. Just your luck – the economy was slow when you entered the workforce;

5. And then there are those pesky Gen Y’s;

6. X’ers are, in fact, surrounded by a love fest – and not feeling the love;

7. X’ers are the most conservative cohort in today’s workforce;

8. Many X’ers’ are guarding a closely held secret;

9. Boomer colleagues are annoying;

10. Finally, your own parenting pressures are at a peak.

There are two items that resonated - #2 and #4. Many Gen X'ers would have been entering the workforce during the "corporate re engineering" efforts of the 1980's and the downsizing / economic downdraft of the late 1990's and early 2000's. They watched as parents, relatives and friends were laid off. I did not experience anything like that in my teenage years or during the middle years of my career. But the economy was very slow in the late 1970's when I entered the workforce and I did experience, first hand, tech bust in 2002 while on the verge of moving into the VP / C-level ranks. So I can relate.

My own children have watched as I have moved between jobs and while I have never really struggled financially, because I was able to move into consulting, those changes must have had an impact (note to self: discuss careers with children)..