We all know that Millennials are different. It's evident in the amount of information that is out there (both good and bad) about how they work, live, and play. Although we hear many horror stories about them, what we are seeing is just how successful they are as entrepreneurs. I recently read an article that talked about some of the most successful Gen Yer's and I have to admit I found myself a little jealous. Why am I not doing some of the things they are? Why am I not utilizing all this social media to promote my message or my brand? It made me start to wonder if part of the negative attention that Millennials receive is simply the rest of us being a little upset at the fact that we aren't doing these things. I mean, let's be serious, are there any of us who would say we wouldn't want to have a better balance between work and life? (although I have to admit I have a pretty good balance right now). We've talked about this before, the difference between us and Millennials, they expect it and get it. So we say, well they're lazy; they don't value work; they don't understand the work environment and how it's supposed to be. Well, let's think about it, what is it supposed to be like? Honestly, every generation that enters the workplace, changes it in some way. So they are only doing what every other generation before them has done.
So, to honor their potential greatness, I'd like to highlight a few Millennials who I think work hard, but more importantly work very smart. I think this is the defining element for Millennials. They use tools that help them work smarter (not that the rest of us don't but I have seen countless employers underestimate how quickly Millennials can accomplish tasks). Here are a few of my favorites...
Lauren Berger, The Intern Queen
http://www.internqueen.com/
I talk about this young lady all the time when I discuss internships with students. She has such an amazing success story. She turned her experience in 15 different internships during college into a highly successful consulting business. You can follow her on twitter at http://twitter.com/InternQueen. What I love about her is she has great advise for both students and employers about internship success.
Dan Schawbel, Author of the book “Me 2.0”
http://www.personalbrandingblog.com/
Here is another very successful Millennial who has written a book about the importance of developing a personal brand. In a world that is driven by social media and having an online presence, I am reminded just how important it is to manage your identity and the brand that you (or others) will develop. His blog has some really great ideas and information about personal branding!
Need more convincing about just how innovative and successful this generation is? This article discusses 13 of the more successful Millennials out there http://www.lifewithoutpants.com/generation-y/13-generation-y-rockstars/
The key behind this months blog is just to celebrate and recognize that Millennials have a lot to offer and we need to look for ways to engage them and connect them to the mission in our companies. I'll talk more about that next month as we discuss strategies for keeping this generation involved.
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