To successfully launch and maintain a career, it’s important to showcase a variety of skills: expertise in your chosen industry, strong communication skills, time management, and last but not least, self-awareness. Although maybe considered a “soft skill,” demonstrating awareness of yourself, your impact on those around you, and your own strength and growth points is a major asset in workplace success (let’s be real: we know this to be true because we’ve all worked with or known someone who needs improvement in this area!). Without it, the “hard skills” are limited in their ability to reach their full potential.
As a business leader, self awareness is even more important, considering the need to guide a team of people from a wide variety of generations and backgrounds to reach common goals. In this context, a more specific kind of awareness is needed: generational awareness. Each member of your team is—at least in part—shaped by the time and generation in which they have lived, and the values and tendencies of each group impact their workplace preferences, goals, and communication styles. With this in mind, the generational awareness of business leaders is the foundation to attracting and retaining top talent, and as we continue to meet business leaders across the country, we see just how much leaders are craving guidance in their Generational Intelligence, or their “GQ”, as we like to call it here at YoPro Know.
The term “GQ” may be new to you, but it’s a term we developed throughout our work with leaders filling the gaps in their abilities to reach all generations. This gap is where YoPro Know comes alive—we love helping organizations take their cross-generational teams from disjointed and frustrated to understood, valued, and motivated. Without GQ, the strengths and preferences of each generation are left unexamined and under-appreciated, which means that the potential to leverage those strengths is left untapped.
We’ve found this skill—harnessing generational awareness—to be so vital to cross-generational team transformations that we made it the foundational first step of our Talent Impact Process. Once leaders gain GQ and open up communication with their teams about generational identities, they can truly understand and value the unique assets of each team member, and real transformation can begin. Our team has put together a few tips + resources to get your started on your GQ Journey:
- Utilize Trainings and Workshops. Leadership training is an excellent way to get started learning the basics about GQ, gaining insights into the differences—and similarities—between generations, understanding the nuances in the conversation around experienced and rising talent, and avoiding the common pitfalls of other leaders in their GQ Journeys. Joining workshops allows you to not only increase your GQ, but it also gives you the opportunity to talk with like-minded professionals and gain perspective on the different successes and challenges of cultivating generational awareness in the workplace. Learn about our training and workshop resources here.
- Make a Plan. Like all other forms of intelligence, GQ isn’t a one-time acquisition—it’s a muscle that you have to continue to exercise, especially as the workforce continues to change (here comes Generation Alpha!). Stay up-to-date on the latest generational trends and values in the workplace, and look for mentors and experts who have had success developing dynamic cross-generational teams. Continuing to learn about the fruitful efforts of other business leaders can aid you in forming a custom plan for your own team. Need help finding insightful conversations? Visit our blog and listen to our podcast to stay on top of your GQ and to learn about industry-specific strategies.
- Measure Your Success. Training and research will take you far in gaining GQ, but perhaps the most important people to learn from are those on your own team. Your success depends upon results in your office, which means that true generational awareness takes continued conversations. Make sure that your implementation of cross-generational transformation strategies isn’t a private, singular affair—involve your colleagues and invite them on the journey as well! When everyone develops GQ, your team’s shared ability to work together will skyrocket—and that will have massive impacts on your profitability, productivity, and purpose.
One last thing: remember that developing Generational Intelligence takes time. Nobody becomes an expert at anything overnight (if you crack the code on this, let us know!)—and even once they do, the bottom line is always shifting and changing. However, your commitment to leading with generational awareness is one that will be seen and felt by your colleagues, resulting in insightful conversations, new connections, increased productivity, and long-term talent retention. And if you ever need help along the way, that’s what we’re here for.
Did you like this week’s post? Then you might like these posts below.
Transforming Your Talent Strategy: How We Help Companies Thrive Across Generations
A Key to Recruiting and Retaining Talent Across All Generations
What’s Next?
Ready to help all generations thrive in your workplace? Contact YoPro Know today! We can help you develop a thoughtful strategy to create a future where all generations thrive in your workplace. To learn more about how our services can help you demystify generational differences in the workplace, schedule your free Planning Session today!
