Working with “Zoomers”: Reflections from the Old Guy in the Room
Close your eyes. Imagine the stereotypical “old person”. Think of their opinions on the younger generations. We all know the cliches: “Kids these days have no respect”, “This generation does not understand hard work”, “Spoiled and lazy”, and “Back in my day”. And yet, you need not be geriatric to have these thoughts. At some point, we are no longer the young ones in the workplace. We crossover. At this point, we can be prone to employ the same mindset as the stereotypical oldie.
I have news for those of you (us) who employ these cliches after the dreaded “crossover”: You are not original. The previous generation said it about you (us) and the generation before that said it about them. And so on, until you get back to creation itself. There seems to be a built-in animosity between the generations. Are these generalizations helpful? I had a couple experiences recently which would suggest they are not.
Before getting to those, let me give you a bit of background. I am a nearly 40-year-old Air Force Major working on Capitol Hill as a Defense Legislative Fellow. Before being assigned to the Hill, various entities in the Pentagon, and in academia were charged to prepare us for our year working in Congress. One common warning to all of us mid-level military officers was, “Be prepared, congressional staffers are young. Really young.” To most Majors, that gap may be 6-8 years in age. For a prior enlisted guy like myself, the gap is almost 14-16 years in some cases.
I have been on the Hill for two weeks now and I have had two experiences which got me thinking differently about the Gen Z of “zoomer” staffers I am surrounded by. In one meeting, a room full of fresh-faced congressional staffers and I watched a slide presentation on the votes coming up this week. As I took notes in my green notebook, the rest of the room full of young professionals were phones up and snapping shots of each slide. Apparently, taking notes is antiquated. Brilliant, I thought. Especially for a guy that cannot read his own handwriting. I joined them and learned a new technique for those fast-paced meetings.
My second experience was even more constructive. Congress was out of session and a young staffer and I were working in the office. Everyone else was teleworking that day. This legislative assistant is 25 years old and graduated college in 2019. He was fresh-faced for sure. I took the opportunity to talk to the young staffer to get to know him. We discussed a range of pertinent national issues from finance to foreign policy. I was blown away by his intelligence, his grasp of a diverse array of policies and issues, and his ability to articulate his thoughts. He is brilliant. What started as (in my mind) a target of opportunity to get to know and potentially start a mentoring relationship with the young man ended with me on the receiving end of some mentorship as it pertained to Congress.
If you stay in the service or in a company long enough, you will hit that often-imperceptible line of demarcation where you become the “old guy or gal”. The crossover happens to all of us. When I first entered the service in 2000, there was a host of Gulf War veterans and beyond, still around. They were the “older guys”. The guys we would make wisecracks to. I was the guy they made similar wise cracks against for being a young idiot. At some point, I can’t pinpoint when I crossed that line of demarcation. I crossed over. I became the “old guy”.
Being an “old guy” or an experienced leader, often comes with a bit of hubris, does it not? I mean, why would generation after generation talk down to the generations which succeed it? This may be more inherent in human psychology than we think. However, when we recognize ourselves going down that path, we need to resist it. Don't get me wrong, I am in full support of banter and shenanigans between the crusty old guys/gals and the new kids. However, when it’s time to get to work, we need to set those preconceived notions aside.
I was warned that I was entering into a young professional world. That I would automatically be the older guy (I am the same age as the Congressman I work for). Admittedly, there was a bit of hubris that welled up in me. I am thankful for my conversation with the young staffer. I am thankful I found myself in a meeting with hundreds of young staffers. They brought me down to earth, and with a brief experience and exchange, they showed me I have a lot to learn from them, even if they are whippersnappers.
-Brandon