This week, the Mode/Switch team welcomes Gen Z author and TEDx speaker Sophie Riegel to help us map the maze of American working community.
The maze of unspoken but rigid rules. The maze of what it means to be “normal” and “professional.” The maze of unacknowledged organizational trauma and intergenerational contempt.
Our question is, who builds the maze?
Actually, that was Ken’s question. He’s our Boomer at the table, joined by Emily (reppin’ for the Millennials) and me (the Gen Xer). I love how Ken framed his question: Who decides what’s normal in the workplace? Because whoever decides “what’s normal” makes the maze that the rest of us get lost in.
So, hit “play” on the pod while you work today, and you’ll hear us asking each other questions across generational lines. The talk’s encouraging, honestly. Chatting with Sophie made me hope that we don’t have to haze others for the hazing we ourselves have received. The cycle of intergenerational contempt doesn’t have to continue.
We can exit the maze together.
-craig
Need some generational coaching in your org?
Get acquainted with Sophie Riegel’s work by listening to her TEDxTalk, “The Enigma of Stigma: Redefining The Way We Talk About Mental Health.” Then you may want to hire her as a personal coach, whether you’re a parent needing help with your Gen Z or a Gen Z needing help with your manager. You can browse her three books and find her contact info on her website.
Is digital health a challenge for you and your team?
Sophie talked quite a lot about social media’s role in intergenerational confusion this week. In a similar vein, my weekly newsletter’s been exploring themes of digital flexibility in working community. And this spring, on other people’s podcasts, I’m finding a lot of folks who want to talk about digital wellbeing. (Check out Life’s Essential Ingredients, Speaking and Communicating, 9 to 5 Wellness, and Neuroconversant Leadership.)
Look, finding digital wellbeing doesn’t mean becoming a god of calm and productivity. Instead it means finding your stride with others in a dynamic environment. “Finding your stride with others” is another way of putting the project of becoming the generous human you yearn to be. My new book draws you into conversation with dozens of working professionals asking the questions that you and your team are pondering about digital health and wellbeing.
Check out the audio book here, and let’s go for a walk and talk these things through.
Share this post