My job search is hampered by too many Baby Boomers in positions of power who are reacting to too many Gen Yers in the marketplace.
- When I talk to Baby Boomer executives, they assume that I’ll never work hard enough to earn my salary. They also assume that I’m going to be a pain in the ass.
- When I talk to Gen X middle managers, they covet positions of authority and are worn down by political infighting. They don’t want to hire anyone their age or younger who will threaten the little space of power they’ve built in the Baby Boomer kingdom.
Christ. Corporate America is like a dysfunctional Thanksgiving dinner. Parents are mad at the kids. Kids are mad at the parents. The grandkids have opted out of the family drama and are hanging out in the basement — playing video games.
Let me clarify a few things about myself:
- Unlike Gen Y, I don’t feel entitled to a job. I will show up, work, and earn my paycheck without a ton of problems.
- Unlike Gen Y, I’m not going to bother you with lots of questions or ask for team meetings. I’m comfortable being an individual contributor and managing a team of individual contributors. It doesn’t take a village to review a powerpoint presentation.
- Unlike Gen Y, I have common sense. I’ll hire other people with common sense and take time out of my schedule — if necessary — to train for the technical skills.
- Just like Gen Y, I’m not desperate for your crappy job. I know it’s just a job, and I can live without stuff. Do I look like a woman who needs cheap, Chinese imports? I’m willing to wait to find a job that gives me a good paycheck + peace of mind.
Now where the hell is my perfect job?
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Positively brilliant. I’m printing this off and using it as my cover letter.
Can I put that on my resume? Seriously, I see this coming when it is my time to look for a new job.
Yes, it is just like Thanksgiving dinner.
re: the boomers … we’ll have to pry the blackberries out of their cold dead hands. or just start our own companies and put their self-aggrandizing asses out of business.
actually, i think we can all get along if the boomers as a whole weren’t such slaves to convention. i find that many boomers over-value experience and tradition. in a world where the old tricks don’t work anymore, and we now know that those traditions were bogus, who needs the old dog and his old tricks?
30 years of old-school command and control management experience is not necessarily more valuable than 10 years of cross-functional, high-tech collaboration and influencing skills. it’s a new world.
Are HR people really all ethical & totally beyond doing what everyone else does in this situation? Which is:
* Tell each generation exactly what they want to hear in your interview.
* If you get the job, ignore all of that and behave exactly as you describe in your clarification above.
The baby boomers won’t care because you’ll amaze them by actually working, and the Gen Xs… Well, they’re right to worry, you’re going to get one of their jobs
>HR WENCH — please use this on your cover letter as Repo Wench.
>Scarlett — I hate the job search. I’m with you in spirit.
>Rhea — I hate Thanksgiving dinner.
>Col — Maybe we should kill the boomers with their own blackberries??! Despite lackluster stock performance and poor shareholder value, they’re not retiring soon enough. Bastards.
>Neil — HR people are the *worst* interviewers. They somehow feel that they have magical, intuitive powers. They feel that their opinions are more important than facts. HR people shouldn’t be allowed to hire for themselves. I might blog about this, actually.