Generation Y

A movement to change America’s corporate culture may be on the way. Today’s college graduates have different ideas of success than previous generations, and will likely start demanding the changes many parents have quietly desired. Employers may soon realize they must create a more flexible work environment in order to recruit and retain young talent.

“Generation Y” born somewhere between the early 80’s and the late 90s, seems to have their work/life priorities in order. See the recent BusinessWeek article here, that points out that these workers are generally more motivated by personal self-fulfillment than success climbing the traditional career ladder.

I teach at a small college and I’ve seen the shift in the priorities of today’s college students. Every year my Introduction to Business class comprised mostly of freshman researches a career of interest. At first I was surprised by how many students chose to research starting a business. But then I figured out they don’t want to work for someone else. They watched their parents work under inflexible conditions and they want a different kind of lifestyle.

In addition to their own desire to have time in their lives for something more than work, Gen Y knows that you don’t have to be tucked into a sunless cubicle to work. They grew up in an era of rapidly advancing technology and they know how to work remotely. They worked on group projects without ever meeting in person, and worked on class assignments on laptops while sitting on the college green.

Maybe as parents we should embrace today’s youth and work with them to start making real change in the work world. The only way companies will start offering more flexible work options is if workers start demanding them.

Return-to-Work Interview

A friend who stayed at home for a while recently asked me about how to talk about her time at home in an interview. During my HR career, I have interviewed many women trying to re-enter the workforce and I can tell you, how you talk about your time at home is extremely important to your success in getting a job.

In general, most companies seek employees who are smart, responsible and conscientious about their work. You must make an effort in the interview process to demonstrate these qualities. To succeed in the return-to-work interview, you must:

• Be prepared to explain why you decided to leave the workforce and stay at home. If your decision is what you felt was best for your family, then state that! However, be careful that you don't say something that causes the employer to question your abilities. For example, don't share that you were over stressed and couldn't manage your time while working. The interviewer will question your ability to manage work and family now.
• Talk about things you did while at home that kept your skills sharp. Your volunteer work, online selling or networking with other professionals will show that you are a viable candidate for the job.
• Express clearly why you want to return to the work at this point and why you are the perfect candidate for the job at hand. This is not the time to share that your family is short on cash and you are returning to work against your better judgment.
  

Confidence is the key to successfully returning to work. Spending time preparing for the interview will build your confidence!

It Isn’t Always Easy

Today I was officially off work, but I am never really completely off work. As a consultant, there is always the possibility that a client might need me on a day that I am off. As a college instructor, there are always papers that need grading, or a next class to prepare.

Today was one of those days. I was home with my kids this morning when I received a call from a client with an issue that needed resolved immediately. I usually do not to answer the phone when I am with the kids, but I had already received one desperate message from the client so I knew it was important.

The kids were good for most f the call, but clicked on their CD player at one point and I did a frantic dance waving and silently threatening them trying to get them to turn it off and be quiet for just a few more minutes. The stress I felt by the end of the call left me wondering what I was doing. Why do I do work that could call me away from my kids? Wouldn’t it be easier to not even be working at all?

But then I realized that the stressful situation only lasted about 15 minutes. The rest of the day I spent hanging out around the pool with my kids. And while tomorrow I will be working all day, I truly love what I do. And I know that while I am working, my kids are in good hands, having a great time.

It is not easy to work when you have a family. But, it is not always easy for my stay-at-home friends either. Bottom line, it isn’t always easy to have a family. Whether you work or you don’t work, you face daily challenges. The fact that I do have work that I enjoy gives me one more reason to keep going at it!

American (Parent) Inventor

Last week I caught an episode of the reality TV show, The American Inventor. I was not surprised to find a few parents sharing their inventions. One dad with a hearing impaired child invented a special accessory for her hearing aid that held it in place while she was playing. A mom presented an idea for a disposable wrap grocery cart handles to help keep kids riding in the carts germ free. It is just like the old saying goes, “necessity is the mother of invention.” Parents come up with solutions to problems they have, and sometimes their solutions are something others can use.

A few parents have made it big with their ideas. Julie Aigner-Clark is now a millionaire after selling her Baby Einstein Company to The Walt Disney Company. Last year BusinessWeek posted a great video story on other parents, find it here.

If you have the next big invention for kids, check out http://www.mominventors.com/ for ideas and resources. This could be your path to family friendly work. Proceed with caution however, as starting something on your own can lead to work that is more time consuming than working for someone else. Set your time boundaries and stick to them.

Guilt

Every working parent experiences some kind of guilt. If you have young children, you might feel like you are abandoning them by going to work, or that a childcare provider will get to experience more precious moments with your child than you will. If you have school-aged children, there is a good chance that your work will cause you to miss an important event, or perhaps you won’t be able to volunteer at the school as other parents do.

If you don’t always feel guilty, you probably feel guilty about that too. I’ve determined that guilt goes hand in hand with working parenthood. That is, you will likely always feel guilty, unless you make the conscious decision not to let guilt overcome you.

And there is reason to let the guilt go. Working does not mean you do not care about your children. Your children are likely one of the reasons you want to be successful at work. Further, holding a job does not mean you do not spend time with your children. In fact, recent study by a University of Maryland researcher found that working moms today actually spend on average the same, or more time with their children than stay-at-home moms did in the 1970’s (See article here). The difference exists because the way we live has changed. We have many more shortcuts that allow us to spend more time with our children instead of doing domestic work. Further, parents now are more willing to sacrifice other things in their lives to find more time for children.

So if you are feeling guilty, take some time to seriously consider how you spend your time. If you are really unhappy with how much time you spend with your kids, then do something about it. Now is the time to change your work arrangement to meet the needs of your family and get past the guilt!