The generation gap, being sabotaged by your managers or just being surrounded by morons are all situations that create conflict and stress. But there are ways to deal with them. So let's tackle these issues one by one:A. There is a generation gap where I work.
People write that their managers are often half their age and show little or no respect for the experience and expertise the older workers have nurtured for so long.
This problem may be more style than substance. Even if they do really admire you, they do not want to seem like fans. And they sure as heck don't want to remind themselves of how green some of them are.
Because they are not likely to treat you as a superior (which would be contrary to their status as your manager), you should not try to switch roles on them no matter what; try taking the role of their helpful mentor. You know, just do what is expected of you, and give some value-added insight along the way. Stoop to conquer!
B. I could swear that my manager sets me up to fail.
Even if you are a certified paranoid, this situation may still be real. Get this: In an article in an issue of the Harvard Business Review, Jean-Francois Manzoni and Jean-Louis Barsoux report on their study which showed that as many as nine out of 10 managers are practicing sabotage by "treating some workers as an in-crowd and others as an out-crowd."
If you think that is what is happening to you, try to get a meeting with your boss at a neutral time and place. The authors recommend that once you sit down, make the meeting a dialogue, not a feedback session. Then review your performance and be candid about your mutual responsibilities.
Set performance targets and express your mutual desire to improve communications. There is much more, and the article, "The Set-Up-to-Fail Syndrome," is well worth looking up if you think you are being set up to fail.
C. There may be no way out but out!When you feel surrounded by morons and upstarts, perhaps it is time to strike out on your own and become your own boss! Of course, freelance and independent professionals can shape their own hours and set their own production quotas, yet they soon discover that they have perhaps more bosses than ever before who are their clients or customers.
In the old days, you had to wait until you retired to go solo, but today, many young pros and trades people are opting to live the "open collar" lifestyle, where every day is casual day. The income is erratic, but potentially infinite. Perhaps now is the right time to explore an exit path that will not upset your mortgage payments or your marriage or primary relationship.
In fact, if you are one member of a committed couple, check out Azriela Jaffe's book Honey, I Want to Start My Own Business. Jaffe interviewed more than 100 couples who faced this potentially life-wrecking or life-saving decision.Source:
- http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/money/3-ways-to-survive-the-generation-gap-at-work-294682
- by succestelevision.com
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