The Work/Life Balancing Act

Millennials think being an entrepreneur is the path to work life balance

Millennials, people in their 20s, are used to being overscheduled. They don't mind working hard, they just want to do it where and when they want to do it. Today, I wrote about how Millennials view entrepreneurship and how it will change the workplace for the rest of us. 

Young entrepreneurs redefining work world

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(Anthony Summerlin, 26,  sends out a daily sports report to his customers via email. )

WALTER MICHOT / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

BY CINDY KRISCHER GOODMAN

On a recent college tour with my teenage son, a professor at a Florida university gave him pointed advice. “Don’t expect to get a job at a company. You’re going to need to be an entrepreneur.” My son didn’t react. While it caught me off guard, he took it as a given.

As college graduates don their robes and caps, they are a generation headed into the real world with a different mindset than my generation or the one before me. They know they may need to forge their own path, and they aren’t intimidated by it.

Today, Millennials, the generation in their 20s, view entrepreneurship as a way to get the freedom to work when and where they choose. They are optimistic and idealistic — and at 80 million strong, they’re going to change the way we all work and think. Empowered by technology, many already have their own side gigs going, biding their time until they can leap out on their own and create the lifestyle and work/life fit they want, according to a new study, “Millennials and the Future of Work.’’

“Even though Millennials view entrepreneurship as presenting obstacles, most of them believe the benefits outweigh downside,” said Dan Schawbel, whose Millennial Branding firm commissioned the survey with oDesk, an online workplace. “They want to be in charge of their own destiny.”

This new Millennial mindset is being stoked by the Internet and encouraged by universities. It will force employers to create entrepreneurial opportunities within their companies.

Out of college just a few years, Anthony Summerlin, 26, already is an entrepreneur. After graduating from the University of Miami, he first went to work in his father’s business, a wholesale auto dealership. But he recently saw an opportunity to go out on his own. Summerlin had been analyzing teams and offering his advice in a public forum on a sports website. He built up more than 2,000 online followers and decided to turn his hobby into an income stream, publishing a website, SweetJones55.com, and a daily sports update, that he delivers electronically to customers’ inboxes. He has more than 1,000 subscribers paying $400 to $1,000 each, and works from his Miami home on his own schedule.

“All I need is a computer with Internet access and I can run my business from anywhere,” Summerlin says. “I love that if something were to come up and I don’t want to work one day, I don’t have to. I love the freedom of being my own boss.”

With the exception of health insurance provided by his parents, Summerlin is making it mostly on his own, earning six figures. For others his age, getting a business going that can sustain them doesn’t come quickly and often requires parental support. Many Millennials are still living at home, are on a parent’s insurance plan and have funded their businesses with start-up money from family.

This generation that grew up involved in after-school activities and told to follow their passion may have student loans, but they want to make money doing things that interest them. And, there never has been a better time to chase a dream. Today there are plenty of young role models and little need to plunk down cash for equipment and real estate. The only thing you need is a computer or smartphone, a connection to the web and a good idea.

It’s no wonder that 54 percent of Millennials say they either want to start a business within the next five years, or have already started one, according to a study funded by the Kauffman Foundation.

Chris DelPrete, 22, tried the traditional route, working for Capital Grille as a chef. Seven months ago, DelPrete says he “wanted to see what else the business world had to offer” and struck out on his own with a food truck, Miami Press Gourmet Sandwiches. “I wanted to do things my way, the way I thought was the right way.” DelPrete quickly discovered the power of the Internet, using social media to broadcast his truck’s whereabouts to customers. He already has more than 700 Facebook followers. DelPrete said he’s paying back his dad, who loaned him money to buy the truck, and is on target to make a profit by the end of his first year in business.

However, DelPrete discovered independence comes with long hours; 10-hour days are not unusual. “It’s been fun and rewarding and, at times, hectic.” He encourages his peers to take the same leap he took.

Like DelPrete Millennials are seizing opportunity, wherever, whenever they see it, and that may be while they’re still in school or working a full-time job.

Of course, entrepreneurship is risky. About a third of new businesses fail within the first two years, according to the Small Business Administration. But it helps that Millennials are easing into their ventures. Odesk, a marketplace to match freelancers with work opportunities, found 21 percent of its users are making money on its platform while still in college, some making as much as $40 an hour for tech work and $30 an hour for non-tech projects.

And 72 percent of its freelancers — who consider themselves entrepreneurs — are making money while at regular jobs and want to quit within two years to work for themselves. “They are willing to trade traditional work experience for something that provides more freedom and flexibility,” said Gary Swart, CEO of oDesk. “They don’t want to be confined to a cubicle.”

Erik Bortzfield, 24, considers himself in the pre-stages of entrepreneurship. Bortzfield left a job with stability and benefits to work for a Boca Raton start-up, an ecommerce optimization software company where he was given equity. He says he has seen an advantage in working first for other employers — mostly figuring out what mistakes not to make and where his strengths lie.

“I would love to be on the beachfront running my company, but I know it’s a long road to get to that point. My plan is to see this company through to end, walk away with money and a means to start my own company.”

The Millennials’ bend toward entrepreneurship isn’t completely by choice. Unemployment is high for this age group and those that do have jobs aren’t loving them. Millennials report low levels of satisfaction with their careers at the stage they are at and are expected to have 10 jobs by the time they are 40, according to Schawbel’s Millennial Branding.

Across the country, universities are reacting. More now offer entrepreneurship programs and hands on assistance. Florida International University even has considered making an entrepreneurship course mandatory for all graduates. “We see that it’s very appealing to them control their own future,” says Seema Pissaris, a Professor of Entrepreneurship with the College of Business Administration at Florida International University. “The technology is available, and innovative ideas are coming their way. Every week something else catching on and it spurs their ideas.”

If traditional employers want to attract this innovative group, they will need to react, too. “They’re competing with a student’s dream to have their own venture,” Pissaris notes. To compete for this innovative talent, both Schawbel and Pissaris say employers will have to create ways for the entrepreneurial mindset to exist in corporations — give a project to a team and let them run with it, or change policies to promote independence.. A PWC survey of Millennials found they want the option to shift their work hours or work in locations outside the office.

“Some organizations have started to react to this trend,” Pissaris says. “The more successful organization absolutely will react.”

 

 

Why Gen Y Doesn't Understand Face Time

When I talked with Amanda DelPrete a few days ago, I had an "aha moment." I finally understood the viewpoint of Gen Y and how crazy it seems to them that managers want young workers to put in face time. Amanda explained to me that in college, she could watch lectures from her dorm room via the Internet. She could turn in assignments via email. She could communicate with just about anyone, anywhere from her college library or the nearby Starbucks.

She came into the workplace with the notion she could do her job anytime, anywhere as long as she could connect to the Internet. So, when a 40-something boss insists she come to the office every day, even when she could work from home and be more creative, Amanda wonders "what's with the insistence on face time?"

That's a question young workers are asking every day in workplaces of all sizes, in all industries and in all cities. At the same time, their bosses don't understand why these young workers don't see the incredible value of bouncing an idea off co-workers, chatting up a boss in the hallway or eating in the employee lunchroom.

Today, I explored the topic of face time in my Miami Herald column. What's your take on the face off over face time? Are bosses going too far in insisting that their staff be in the office all the time? Are young workers overdoing it by feeling entitled to work remotely?

 

Posted on Wed, Jul. 25, 2012 Working at home vs. the office: The face time faceoff By Cindy Krischer Goodman balancegal@gmail.com   Erik Bortzfield is a 23-year-old software marketing manager who believes that workers should be able to work remotely. It’s a blue sky day in South Florida and Erik Bortzfield, a software marketing manager, would love to be ocean side on a beach chair connected to the Internet via laptop and aircard. A year out of college, Bortzfield, 23, has discovered the rules of the workplace typically don’t allow remote working, but he is convinced his generation will make it happen. “When people my age start to own and manage companies, I think you’ll start to see a noticeable change,” he says. The desire to work wherever, whenever has heated once again during the summer months as younger workers want to kick back a bit but find their boomer bosses clinging to an old-fashioned obsession with face time. It’s not that Bortzfield and his young counterparts across the country don’t see value in coming to the office some of the time. But because they are networked, they believe reporting to an office from 9 to 5 every day in order to call and send emails to people in other places makes absolutely no sense. Many are asking: “Why are bosses insisting on face time?” — and planning for the day when they will make the office rules. Millennials will be change makers, says Dan Schawbel, managing partner of Millennial Branding. By 2025, Generation Y will make up roughly 75 percent of the world’s workforce, a Business and Professional Women’s Foundation study shows. With such a large presence, expect them to put pressure on companies to shift how people work, Schawbel says: “Gen Y wants to rip apart work styles and create new relationships with the office that are more flexible.” Amanda DelPrete, a 24-year-old PR account executive, says her generation wants to use the technology advantage. In college, she and her friends took one or more courses online or sat in their dorms watching the live stream. “It was not mandatory for us to be physically in class,” she says. “Now, we come into the workplace and there’s an insistence on face time and we don’t get it. We’re more creative in our own space than in an office with no windows.” Leadership consultant Jane Goldner says “overwork” also has fueled this generational conflict. When workers are expected to finish a project from home at midnight, they wonder why they aren’t permitted to complete other assignments from home during daylight hours. But older managers still put a high value on being seen in the office. They not only expect face time, they reward those who hang out in the office. Goldner says boomer bosses trying to lead this new chaotic environment and still keep a handle on things will need to find a middle ground acceptable to all. Rather than just insist on face time, they will need to explain why it is important. “Without it, you might not be building the alliances you need to get ahead.” Even more, she adds: “When you work virtually, you don’t development face-to-face interpersonal skills. That’s a huge skill set missing in the workplace.” Lizanne Thomas, partner in charge of Jones Day’s Atlanta office, says she’s made a specific effort this summer to work with law school interns and young associates on communication skills honed from personal interaction with partners. “I don’t want them to hide behind email or the written word. I want them to interact with me.” Thomas said she has made a clear case for face time and doesn’t want lawyers to habitually work from home. “Work product is enriched by collaboration. You have to noodle it and discuss it face to face.” While the firm does offer flexibility for certain circumstances, Thomas says, “I would not expect the lawyer who wants to advance successfully to routinely choose to work from home or the local Starbucks.” Richard Fleites, an information technology professional, believes the generational conflict over face time remains a trust issue. There remains a belief that if you’re not in the office, you’re napping or downing martinis during business hours, he says. His department at a healthcare organization has just revised its flexibility policy — allowing remote working one day a week rather than three. “It was disappointing because I think they got scared that employees were going to slack off. But at least I still have that one day and that’s a big perk.” Sorraya M. Solages, a 34-year-old attorney with Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith in Fort Lauderdale, says some new to the legal profession believe the insistence on face time is all about older lawyers who don’t want to give younger lawyers a break. She’s discovered getting the flexibility is possible — but it has to be earned. She’s worked from libraries, hotel rooms, court rooms rather than return to her office. But she’s proved her value. “You’re not going to start day one and work from home one morning a week. If you become trusted, you get more flexibility.” By understanding Gen Y-ers’ need for workplace flexibility, companies are better able to recruit and grow young talent for the future, workplace experts say. Adam Shapiro, a Miami attorney, says he’s much happier as a lawyer at United Auto Insurance Company where he can work from the courthouse or home at times rather than at a big law firm where the emphasis on face time at the office during and after hours was much greater. Meanwhile, Bortzfield, the software marketing manager, looks forward to the day when he’s the boss: “If it’s the nicest day of all time, I’m going to say, ‘Everyone work from home or wherever today. Let me know if you need anything.’”

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Are You Ready for Generation Z in the workplace?

You think your work life juggle is tough? Try being a teen who works, goes to school, participates in sports and community service and gets good grades. I talked to some who are doing that quite successfully. They're proving that the iGeneration may be the most impressive generation.

Instead of writing the traditional Take Your Child to Work Day story, I wanted to talk to teens for my Miami Herald column who actually had jobs. When I did, every teen I spoke with told me having a job has matured them. Whether they need the money or like the money they earn - or both- these teens are getting much more than a paycheck. I always have wanted my kids to think of school and good grades as a priority. What I discovered is work experience can be just as valuable.

These teens are teaching their employers a thing or two about what the next generation of workers expect. If want want happy employees, workplaces are going to have to accommodate the iGeneration -- and that could mean some drastic changes in how we do business.

Posted on Tue, Apr. 24, 2012 A new generation in the workplace By Cindy Krischer Goodman balancegal@gmail.com Patrick Farrell/ The Miami Herald Tiffany Fernandez is a teen who works for clothing designer Alexis Barbara in her Miami design shop. Overwhelmed with school exams, Tiffany Fernandez picked up her cellphone and did what any teen might do to let her boss know she can’t make it to work — she sent a text message. Tiffany, 17, has held her job for two years as an assistant in Miami clothing designer Alexis Barbara’s office and brings her generation’s mind-set to the workplace. Tiffany considers the tiny touch screen in her hand, her cellphone, crucial to business communication. She will use it to discuss scheduling with her supervisor, receive receipts from vendors and negotiate a pickup time with her mom. “In business, you have to be on top of everything,” she says. This week, as the nation celebrates Take Your Child to Work Day, some teens are going beyond a daylong glimpse into the working world. Members of the iGeneration, born after 1990, are landing their first jobs, and bringing their obsession with online connectivity and multitasking into the workplace. There probably isn’t a company in America that isn’t wrestling with managing different generations. Baby boomers, Gen X, millennials: they all seem to want something different. Now, here comes the iGeneration, also known as Generation Z, with its own distinct way of walking, talking and working. Generational expert Cam Marston predicts a need to manage expectations on both sides. “They will have to get used to email and, God forbid, picking up the phone and calling,” says Marston of Generational Insights. “But at the same time, employers will have to get used to the fact that they may choose to text message even if they’re standing next to you.” Most of the teens I spoke with who have jobs know they are fortunate. Many of their peers want part-time or hourly work but are being turned away. The increase in minimum wage and higher unemployment among adults has caused experienced workers to claim entry-level positions, leaving fewer jobs open for teens. Indeed, about 4.2 million 16- to 19-year-olds hold jobs today, compared with 5.8 million five years ago. The majority of those jobs remain part-time positions. It is that realization that has affected how teens approach work. Even so, they want the workplace to accommodate them — their schedules, opinions and style of interaction — just as their technology does. Yet most are open to the lessons the business world may offer. “I learned that when they give me something to do I have to make sure it’s completely right or someone will attack you for it,” Tiffany said. “I hate being reprimanded. When I do something, I’ve learned to double-check it, that a mistake is not a joke. It has matured me a lot.” Lee Orlinsky, 17, took a part-time job at Einstein’s in Plantation about a year ago, and says he, too, has learned from real-world business experience. “It’s very different to go from being the customer to helping the customer.” Lee said. He has also discovered that having hundreds of Facebook friends doesn’t teach you interpersonal skills and sometimes you have to interact with co-workers and customers “whether you like them or not.” Yet, Lee realizes he brings something to the workplace even the millennial generation doesn’t always offer: “I can relate to the teens that come in.” Even more, Lee has helped move supervisors toward the style of communication the iGeneration expects. Much like Tiffany, he will text message his supervisor to learn his work schedule for the week or express a conflict or interest in extra hours. “It’s easier for her, she doesn’t have to stop what she’s doing to talk to me,” he said. “She can text me back on her own time.” Like the generations before them, teens are grappling with balancing work and their personal lives. Kalif Fletcher, 17, plays basketball for Piper High in Sunrise, maintains a full-time class schedule, has a girlfriend and works as a sales specialist at Levi’s outlet in Sawgrass Mills mall. Kalif said school is his priority, but he feels more independent and more mature since he started earning a paycheck a year ago. “I learned that if you work hard, you stand out,” he said. With dreams of being a chemist, Kalif also learned he wants fulfillment from work, which was not necessarily a priority for prior generations like the boomers. “Whatever job I have, I’ve got to be happy.” Read more...

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/24/v-print/2766056/new-generation-in-workplace.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/24/v-print/2766056/new-generation-in-workplace.html#storylink=cpy

Should Peyton Manning Expect Loyalty?

The media is abuzz in South Florida, tracking every move Peyton Manning makes and speculating whether he will join the Miami Dolphins. The guy must be used to media attention but still looks a little shocked at the circus scene that's playing out.

Just a few days ago, the  NFL’s star quarterbacks was cut loose by the Indianapolis Colts after 14 seasons of  brilliance.  I watched the awkward press conference and monitored the reaction as many Colts fans took to social media to direct anger and frustration at team owner Jim Irsay for letting the franchise icon go.

But should anyone be angry anymore about the lack of employer loyalty?

Both Manning and Irsay suggested that this outcome was forced by circumstance -- Manning's injury and the contract that both parties had agreed to -- and stated that their relationship remains strong. After Irsay spoke, Manning addressed the media as well as Colts fans in Indianapolis. "I do love it here," Manning said, holding back tears. "I love the fans and I will always enjoy having played for such a great team."

To me, the message this emotional parting sent to the public is that no one -- not even the great Peyton Manning -- can expect job security.

Sports is a business.Colts fans, like the rest of us, would like to believe that businesses value their employees. But CEOs do what they need to do for the business.

If there's one thing this current recession showed us, it's that superstars can lose their jobs, too. Over the last few years, I've received tons of email from shocked and devastated employees, who gave their blood, sweat and tears for businesses that closed or restructured or downsized. Suddenly, they found themselves out of work and having a hard time coming to grips with the lack of loyalty.

This new generation of workers watches the Peyton Manning press conference through different eyes. It understands that a job is temporary. The Millenials are always on the lookout for something better and who can blame them!

Can the rest of us come to grips with the new reality? Loyalty is dead on both sides. Job security is last century and very soon Peyton Manning will put on another team's jersey and go to work.

Readers, do you think this new reality has changed the way we work and live? Are we less willing to give a job our all, or more eager than ever to prove ourselves the best so opportunities will come our way? 

 

Has Google usurped our parenting? Ask Google Dad

Yesterday, my 10-year-old  son wanted to know what triumph meant. I immediately pulled out my pocket dictionary and tossed it to him. He looked at me like I was from another planet and said: "Really mom?" He then marched over to the computer and put the word into Google.

I felt so old school!!!

Face it parents, our kids will do everything in their lives differently than we did. They will work differently, learn differently, play differently and it will be sooooo hard for us to come to grips with this new reality as we try to fit becoming more tech-savvy into our work life balance.

Today, my guest blogger is an old friend, Miami super attorney Spencer Silverglate. He shares his wise take and personal experience raising kids in the digital age.

 

            Blood red.  Marbled to perfection.  Two 12-ounce slabs of New York’s finest, grass-fed, prime-grade, cut-it-with-a-fork, melt-in-your-mouth, beef fillets. Steak.  It’s what’s for dinner—at least it was last Wednesday. Except it wasn’t just another meal. 

        As I explained that morning to my 16-year-old son Cameron, it would be the night I pass on the manly pursuit of grilling dead animal flesh.  Just like my father passed it on to me and his, undoubtedly, to him.  Yes, that night I would hand over the apron and tongs to my son and reveal the family recipe for grilling steak.  He may have started the day a boy, but by nightfall, he would be a man. Barbecue Man!

         Imagine my shock when I rolled into the driveway at 6:45 that evening, accosted by the unmistakable aroma of sizzling meat.  Impossible, I thought to myself. I hadn’t even begun the lesson.  I stared in disbelief as I entered the house and saw my son on the back patio, hovering over the open flames that caressed the tender underbelly of the New York Strips.

           “What do you think you’re doing?!” I barked.  “You were supposed to wait for me.  And be careful, you’ll burn the steaks.  You need to cut ‘em open and check to see if they’re done.”

            “No, Dad,” he objected.  “If you do that, the juice will leak out.”

            “What are you talking about?” I snapped.  “I’ve always done it that way.”

            “Chef Ramsey says cutting the steak will dry it out like beef jerky,” he responded.  “You’re supposed to press the meat and feel for the same firmness as the fleshy part of your nose.”

            “The fleshy part of . . . who the heck is Chef Ramsey?!” I snarled.

            “Really, Dad?  Gordon Ramsey—quite possibly themost famous chef on TV.  I just watched him on YouTube.  According to Gordon, this is an 8 ½ minute steak.”

            I stood there slack-jawed for a moment and then walked away with the remnants of my male ego.  Probably just as well.  My son was putting the final grate marks on the best cooked steaks the old grill ever produced.

            The Steak Incident, and others like it, has caused me to question whether our role of parents has been usurped by computers.  There’s very little we can teach our kids that they can’t find on the Internet.  Only the computer generated lesson is “better.”  If you’re a kid, why ask a parent for help with homework when you can have a Stanford professor explain it online?  Why ask dad how to swing a baseball bat when Albert Pujols can teach you on YouTube?   Why ask mom for decorating advice when you can watch Martha Stewart on your smart phone? 

            What’s the capital of Iceland?  Wikipedia it.  How do you spell “chrysanthemum?”  Spell check it (I just did). How do you build a tree-house?  Google it.  How do you get to the mall?  GPS it. Who sings this song?  There’s an app for that. Where do babies come from?  You get the point.

             We were at dinner the other night and a disagreement broke out over the ways in which one may become a U.S. citizen.  My son, who recently studied the issue, explained the process to my wife and me.  Poor lad, he left out the one about marrying a U.S. citizen. I figured I’d impress him with my mental superiority, so I laid it on him.  He respectfully disagreed, explaining that marrying a citizen would yield a green card, not necessarily citizenship.  As my blood pressure began to rise, I figured I’d play the dad card.  You know the one: “I’m right because I’m dad.”  Before I could utter the words, my son already pulled up the facts on his iPhone. 

             The computer was right, of course.  The darn thing is always right.

             When I was a kid, what my father said was final.  These days what Google says is final.

            But have we moved forward or backward? We seem to be floating around in our own, ear-bud wearing bubbles streaming only preferred content.  Why listen to top 40 hits when I can live in the land of perpetual Bruce Springsteen?  For that matter, why bother interacting at all?  I may be sitting next to you at lunch, but I’m texting someone 300 miles away.  Today our personal relationships are not centered around work or school or church, but Facebook.  So what if we never leave the couch—we can still have thousands of “friends.”

           I take comfort in knowing that not everythingcan be replaced by machines.  Some things still need to be experienced, especially by our children.  They may be able to go online and learn about riding a bike, but they need a parents’ firm grip on the seat to steady the ride.  And maybe that’s the best metaphor for what parents provide their kids—a firm grip on the ride of life.   

            I realize of course that we won’t be getting rid of machines anytime soon, nor would I want to. Although technology has the potential to supplant relationships, it can also enhance them.  Anyone who has connected online to a forgotten high school friend can attest to that.

             Like anything in life, there must be a balance.  A harmony between man and machine that enriches rather than detracts from the human experience. Which brings me back to my son...

            Just the other day I was getting ready for a formal party and decided on a whim to sport a white pocket square to offset my black tuxedo.  Not being a hanky-in-the-top-pocket kind of guy, I had no idea how to fold the silken Rubik’s Cube.  Cameron happened to notice my struggle and casually suggested I go online.   Even though it wasn’t my first instinct, I had to admit it was a good idea.  A few minutes later I had a perfectly folded pocket square.

            So there you have it.  My family, just like my ebony suit and ivory handkerchief, now lives together in perfect harmony—with a little help from Google.

 

( Google dad, Spencer, and son, Cameron)

Why Millennial Women Are Burning Out At Work By 30

I just hung up with my 26-year-old friend, Lisa, and let out a big sigh. She's sounds headed for burnout. She can't foresee having kids anytime soon because her boss is so demanding. She feels like she's in constant overdrive and she's barely spending any time with her husband. I could hear the frustration and unhappiness over the fact that her life wasn’t supposed to turn out this way.

Larissa Faw at Forbes.com has intrigued me with her take on why the Millennial generation of women who seem to “have it all” are burning out at work before they reach 30. She writes: one reason that women are burning out early in their careers is that they have simply reached their breaking point after spending their childhoods developing well-rounded resumes. They work like crazy in school and enter the workforce exhausted. Faw points out: No other generation was reared to excel at the same level as Millennials.

Faw also notes another reason for their frustration: Many also didn’t think of their lives beyond landing the initial first job. “They need to learn life is a marathon, not a sprint,” says Kelly Cutrone, president of People’s Revolution PR and author of Go Outside If You Need To Cry.

 Even those who did plot out their lives past the initial first career have unrealistic expectations about full-time employment -- underestimating the actual day-to-day drudgery.

Then they encounter what my friend is experiencing. They struggle over their next move. "Simply quitting or changing careers isn’t an option because the education for their professional jobs has burdened them with substantial student debt. Also, while earlier generations may have opted out of the workforce through marriage or motherhood, these paths aren’t viable for these self-sufficient women, who either are still single or unwilling to be fully supported by men," Faw points out.

Faw includes some findings: Millennials are less likely than Gen Xers, Boomers, and Seniors to say they are doing a good job managing their stress. Some 53 percent of entry-level jobs are held by women, but that drops to 37 percent for mid-management roles and 26 percent for vice presidents and senior managers. And,  men are more likely than women to do things that help their personal well being at work such as going to lunch or taking breaks, thus negating burnout

As a first step, these women are requesting more flexible schedules or seeking different work responsibilities. Some employers are compliant. I just attended the Work-Life Focus: 2020 and Beyond Conference by SHRM and FWI, where we heard lots of speakers talk about big changes in workplaces where Millennials dominate.

The flip side of this trend toward burnout is that Millennial women are highly educated  and they've been trained to lead from a young age. They may have debt but they are more nimble than other generations and determined. They know how to negotiate to get their needs met. I think they're the ones who are going to convince businesses to operate differently -- maybe even get them to rethink how and where work gets done.

Readers, what do you think? Do you think Millennial women are burning out faster than previous generations? Do you think Millennial women have the ability and desire to change workplace attitudes and reverse the trend toward fewer women in the higher ranks?  

Is there loyalty in business?

This morning I received an interesting email from L. Semplice. Just reading it, I could feel her frustration. Her husband put 40 years into working for his company and at age 64, his company let him go.

In her letter, she writes:"This is so typical of so many companies these days as people get closer to retirement age, and are on a higher pay scale." 

On one hand, I believe Ms. Semplice has a point. Companies aren't loyal to their employees and the longer you work at a company, the more you make, the more at risk you become of losing your job. That stinks! Employers do what's best for business because the recession has been all about survival.

But at the same time, I feel as if employees aren't loyal anymore either. We do what's best for ourselves, too. The younger generation understands this -- they have no expectation of loyalty.

In today's workplace, I think there is recognition on both ends that loyalty is dead. Unfortunately, there's still a generation in the workforce over 60 that knew it to be different, to be better.

Semplice believes long-term employment is going to be the exception as we go forward. She has lots of others who agree with her, such as this blogger who writes: "I've talked to my grandfather and he talks of companies that cared about their employees and employees that cared about the company and the goods they make...I don't see that any more... in either direction... just everyone treating everyone else like cogs in their own personal ideas... just to get to the next level, with no real care for the level they are at now."

I just don't think it's going to change. I think most of us have accepted the new way of doing business and are adjusting how much we're willing to give to our employer during the recession and after it. 

What are your thoughts on employer and employee loyalty? Are you convinced it's dead?