Andrea’s Afternoon Delight: Three Things I'm Learning from Millennials

Delighted while over-caffeinate-ing at Corvus coffee.

On this topic: Totally generalizing here. It's an occupational hazard. Sometimes ya gotta. This is just what I’m noticing from a handful of youngins.

Take a lunch for Christ’s sake.
When I schedule a noon meeting, they decline. When I’m waiting on a document, they. . .go to lunch anyway and plan to contact me when they get back. And then, if it turns out to be tomorrow, they. . .don’t care.

They trust that I trust them to eventually get the job done. The sense of urgency is little lower. And this bugs the hell out of me. But it allows them to live a balanced life where they eat regularly and get more sleep. Life’s a marathon and they’re stopping for water. I’m typically dehydrated.

It’s not come if you’re cool. It’s come as you are.
Granted, they are less experienced. They haven’t sat through countless presentations or successfully managed multiple voices on a conference call. They’re less tainted. Few have suffered the cutting edge of mediocrity at a large corporation.

But they also don’t bring the hard candy shell of an image into a meeting. They are more open, more authentic. Unafraid to admit they don’t know. Dare I say, they are more human.

Enjoy the damn journey and embrace impermanence.
Hallmark has been talking about the joy of the journey (i.e. change!) for decades. But when I grew up, I was told to get a job and keep it. My parents bought a chip-n-dip as if they’d be giving parties for a very long time. They never got a notice about upgrading the VCR to Version 7.

Impermanence is practically a millennial birthright. They deal with change more effectively. Get less attached. They value rest—in spite of and because-- they know nothing is forever. Especially not a diamond.

That is all.