Then + Now

"We need to replace now versus then with now plus then. That's the magic formula." 

This was my response to an audience question at a recent keynote. The participant, a 40-something Gen Xer, had asked what to do when they felt stuck mediating between their younger and older colleagues when it came down to upholding past processes or inventing new ones.  Our five-generation workforce spans more of an age range than we've ever seen before, and those of us in the middle of our careers (currently most Gen X and Millennials) often find ourselves wedged between The Way We've Always Done It and The New Way to Think About It.

Gentelligence calls this Expanding the Pie (practice #4). It's a mindset shift to help us change the narrative we have about working across generations. Too often, we think we are in a tug of war with those who have started their careers significantly before or after we have, and when we frame it this way, someone will always appear to be on the losing side. Any gain on our end means a corresponding loss on yours, leading us to operate from a sense of scarcity and threat. We become defensive, digging in our heels and protecting our positions, and no progress is made in either direction.

But let's re-imagine this tug of war. Rather than Gen Zs squaring off against Boomers (with Gen X and Millennials playing referee) move everyone to the same side of that rope. The opponent is the problem we are trying to solve, not each other. Now our different perspectives and ideas can be seen as things that can all potentially help us win, and this reframing opens up an entirely new set of possibilities for innovation and collaboration. 

The way we've always done it likely contains some important wisdom and value. Is it possible that value could be amplified or better understood by integrating a new element or refreshing the way we use it? That new approach being advocated by younger employees may be a total game changer, but might lack organizational relevance without input from those who've been around a long time and better understand the broader context of the organization and its' systems.

It's just a nudge: suggest replacing the "vs" with an "and". Let me know what happens.