Cell Phones on airplanes? a generational divide

Whether or not to allow cell phone usage on airplanes was the focus of a recent survey. The survey revealed that the tech-challenged Traditionalists and the Baby Boomer generation clearly want to keep the devices turned off and stowed during flights. However the Instant Messaging Generations X and Y are ready to end this ban.

Cell phones are banned on airplanes in flight due to the impact they would have on cell towers. With a high altitude plane a single cell phone could hit bounce it’s signal off hundreds of towers. However once a plane is in the final stages of landing their is no danger for their use according to many expert. The major pilot unions have continued to ask government authorities to ban there use anytime the plane’s door is closed is related to safety, not cell tower impact. They provide a distraction to the flight crew preventing the passengers, who are always riveted to any announcements being made, from clearly hearing them.

Generation X and Y, according to industry sources, will continue to have to sneak the IMs when the flight attendants are looking the other way.

Gen Y buying homes at a younger age

Generation Y is buying homes at a younger age than their predecessors in Generation X and the Baby Boomers. This, according to McClatchy Newspapers, is a result of the influences that have created an attitude among the generation that they deserve life’s rewards without paying their dues.

The generation is looking for modern, open space homes that are generally smaller than their parents’ homes, according to the newspaper.

The article failed to mention the fact that it is a buyer’s market with low home prices as potentially being a contributing factor.

Wearing Pajamas at Starbucks

Believe it or not, wearing suits, or even business casual, may be overdressing for some coffee shops in New York City. In an article by Patrick Huguenin of the New York Daily News, I read about how pajamas is totally accepted in the Big Apple’s culture. He tells about how he donned pajamas and slippers at 3:00 in the afternoon and visited the Starbucks in Harlem.

Nobody cared!

To ensure it was not an anomaly he also visited Dunkin’ Donuts and T & J’s where people were equally accepting of his sleepwear.

Teamwork falling victim to generational conflict

Teamwork in multi-generational workplaces is suffering from a lack of understanding how to communicate inter-generationally. According to Randstad, 66% of Traditionalists and 51% of Baby Boomers have little or no interaction with Gen X or Gen Y.

The Baby Boomers categorize younger workers as having less competence and work ethic while the Gen X and Yers feel the older folks are too set in their ways and cannot think outside of the box.

Companies not responding to this lack of communication risk a brain-drain as Baby Boomers head onto the retirement roles.

Many programs are successful at bridging the gap. One such program is Managing Builders, Boomers, Xs, and Ys without losing your Zs. It helps each generation understand how their culture was formed and how other generations view them. Mentoring programs are also generally successful when the mentor presents him or herself as an equal to the protégé, not a superior.

Employers believing the brain drain will not occur need only look to the struggle to get skilled workers as an example of what happens when tomorrow’s employees are not cultivated today.

Green Culture builds momentum

Thinking and acting green have been important to environmentalist culture for decades. Several other cultures are gaining strong green elements, including the Gen X and Millennial generations, the outdoor recreational culture, and the health conscious culture.

GlobeScan has just released their findings of a 14 country survey. In order from greenest to brownest are: Brazil, India, China, Mexico, Hungary, Russia, Great Britain, Germany, Australia, Spain, Japan, France, Canada, and USA.

The survey offset country size by randomly selecting 1,000 respondents from each. The survey considered only residents and looked at transportation, housing, and food purchasing habits.

Brazil and India gained high ratings because of small home size leading critics to claim that population crowding, a leading cause of housing size per capita, gave an unfair advantage instead of counting urban congestion against a country.

Communicating with Generation X

Generational issues continue to distract managers from core competencies. However a survey from Robert Half International is providing some excellent connection tips when working with Xers.

According to generation members involved in the survey the key is to have frequent contact. Sixty percent want to hear from their boss daily while 35% want contact several times a day.

They believe that through constant contact they are able to better understand roles and expectations thereby miscommunication is less likely.

Love of job related to culture

A recent Harris Interactive poll has uncovered some cultural connections to one's feeling about their job.

• Generations: 53% of Baby Boomers love their job while only 37% of Generation X said they love their job. On the other hand, 19% of Generation X hate their job while only 7% of Baby Boomers claimed to hate their job.


• Marital: only 29% of those that have never been married love the job while 50% of those that are married love their job. When asked if they would like to immediately let, 24% of never-married employees said, “yes” as compared to only 9% of married employees.


• Regional: loyalty seems to increase as one moves to the west. In the Northeast only 39% love or like their job while 48% of those in Western states either love or like the job.


• Economic: 49% of employees paid at affluent levels ($75,000 in the survey) love their job while only 36% of those earning less than $35,000 love where they are working.

Libraries try to reach a new generation

The good news for libraries is that Generation Y and Millennials are frequenting libraries in every increasing numbers. The bad news – they aren’t going for the books.

Progressive libraries understand their youngest visitors are more interested in the computers and social capabilities that a library presents. They know that if they keep the young people coming, they will be building on tomorrow like McDonald’s did when they introduced Happy Meals.

To capitalize on and increase the frequency of youthful visits, many libraries are turning to video games. It is becoming common-place for libraries to have competitions for Dance Dance Revolution and Guitar Hero. An individual event may attract more than 100 students to the library for an evening of fun and socializing.

The reason these competitions are so successful is cultural:

• Socializing: Gen Y and Millennials both are extremely social generations. This can be credited to rearranging elementary schoolrooms to a study group or pod design, which promotes teamwork.


• Parental Comfort: Generation X, which parents Gen Y, and parents in Gen Y that parented Millennials, both are easy to sell when their children ask to spend an evening at the library. In many cases, permission is given only if the child agrees to check out a book.


• Literary: Okay, the literary culture has to deal with breaking the tradition of “quiet” at a library, however they are smart enough to know that libraries cannot survive if they cannot get people through the front door. Taxpayers must have a reason to vote “yes” when library funding is on the ballot and having activity of any type seems to decrease any voter hesitancy at passing dollars into library coffers.

Generations cope with writers strike

As with many other aspects of life, each generation is hoping with the writers strike in their own way:

• Builders/Traditionalists (born 1925-1944): watching network reruns.


• Baby Boomers (1943-1964): discovering cable alternatives.


• Gen X (1961-1980): still enjoying first run shows on cable.


• Gen Y (1977-2000): with MTV, MTV2, and VH1 they haven’t even noticed the strike.


• Millennials (1998-2012): Hannah Montana and other Disney and Nickelodeon hits are filmed a year in advance and You Tube doesn’t have reruns—therefore not effected.

Face it Baby Boomers, X and Y have arrived

For the first time in their generation Baby Boomers are seeing their power waning. The generation that first experienced television was catapulted into power before most of the generation’s age had reached double digits. They did so on the strength of simple things like the Hula Hoop and Frisbee. Marketers like McDonald's learn they could move much more product by taking their message directly to the children, bypassing parents.

Baby Boomers were influential in ending the Vietnam War, beginning the suburban sprawl, and expanding individual homeownership. Through it all they assumed leadership in the business, educational, religious, and political arenas.

The Baby Boomer reign is over.

Last year several surveys showed that Baby Boomers were ready to hand over the reins of the business world. The results indicated the boomers want relief from the stress of business leadership, preferring to let the younger Generation X have a chance to fully develop the new contemporary management style. This is not just an American trend, it is happening throughout Europe and Asia as well.

The worldwide political scene is also experiencing this age shift in leadership. In December, Fidel Castro, who has been leader of Cuba for almost the entirety of the Baby Boomer's lifespan, was ready to turn over leadership to the younger generation.

In the United States, the recent Iowa caucus saw record numbers of Generations X and Y turning out to support candidate most exemplifying the desires and wishes of their generation. Most specifically, they desire to do away with the partisan battles that have stalemated our government. Other candidates are quickly redefining themselves to show they can also deliver what Generations X and Y are looking for: a fresh approach.