TheGenerationGapatWorkAsofficesgo,theeditorialsuitesatTimeInc.areprettylaidback.T-shirtsarefine.Shaveifyoulike.Slides,sneakersorheels-yourchoice.Yetthere'salimittowhatpassesforacceptableappearance,andIwassurearecentbunchofcollegeinternshadbreacheditspectacularlywiththeirnoserings,tattoosandlow-risepants.Thesewerebright,ambitiouskids.Whytheblatantshowofdisrespect?Myyoungercolleagueswonderedtoo.Buttheyweremoreamusedthanaghast,anditoccurredtomethatthereisawideninggenerationgapwhenitcomestointerpretingcasualFridays.Andthat'snotall:Youngfolksareputtingtheirstampontheworkplaceinwaysfarmorereachingthantheirwardrobe.Andweboomersdon'tnecessarilylikeit.We'reallpartofanew-ageexperiment:fourgenerationsworkingsidebysideyetoftenspeakingadifferentlanguage.Thinkthat'sanexaggeration?Goahead.Trytodecipherthistwentysomethingtextmessage:WUCMIWthatwasCLMormaybeCS.(What'sup?CorrectmeifI'mwrong.Thatwasacareer-limitingmoveormaybecareersuicide.)Boomers,theolder"silent"generation,andyoungeronesknownasXandYbringvastlydifferenthistories,valuesandworkhabitstothejob.Thesegapshaveledtostereotypesthathinderourabilitytogetthingsdone.Nearly60percentofHRmanagersatlargecompaniessaythey'veobservedofficeconflictsthatflowfromgenerationaldifferences,accordingtotheSocietyforHumanResourceManagement.Tensionstypicallystemfromperceptionsofloyaltyandrespect-asin,wethinkthekidsdon'thaveany.Yetthelatestresearchshowsthatwemaybecompatibleafterall.Debunkingsomekeymythsmayhelpyougetpastthetattoosandbellybuttonsinyouroffice.MythNo.1:YoungworkerslovechangeIt'scommonlythoughtthatyoungpeopleembracechangeasenthusiasticallyasolderworkersresistit.Notso.Inastudyof3,200workers,only12acrossthegenerationssaidtheylikedchangeattheoffice,reportstheCenterforCreativeLeadership."Resistancetochangeisn'taboutage,it'sabouthowmuchyoustandtogainorlose,"saystheCenter'sJenniferDeal,authorof"RetiringtheGenerationGap:HowEmployeesYoungandOldCanFindCommonGround."Ingeneral,olderworkershavemoretolose.Butmanyyoungerworkershaveidenticalanxieties.Don'tmakeassumptionsbasedonage,saysDeal.Askyouryoungcolleagueshowashiftwouldchangetheirlife.Ifit'sforthebetter,canyoublamethemforlovingit?Butitmightbeasupsettingtothemasitistoyou-anditcouldbeabondingmoment.MythNo.2:GenX-andY-erslackastrongworkethic(职业道德)Nottrue.Butcomingofageunderverydifferentcircumstanceshasaffectedourworkstyles.Boomershadtoscrapeandclawforjobsandworklonghourstokeepthemandgetaheadbecausethereweresomanyofus.Competitionwaskeen.Workbecamecentraltoouridentities,andwithtwo-earnerhouseholds,wedidmuchofoursocializinginprofessionalcircles.ButGenXismuchsmallerandhasneverknownjobscarcity.Theycandemandmoreormoveon.They'veseentheirparentsgetdownsized,seemingvictimsofcompanyloyalty,andwatchedthemstraintojugglecareerandfamily.Thatdifferenthistoryhasledtomarkeddifferencesinhowwework.Youngergenerationsarewillingtomoveeverytwoorthreeyearstogetthejobexperienceandwork-lifebalancetheywant.Askthemtocomeintotheofficeovertheweekendandtheyareapttoresist."Theirtimeoffistheirtimeoff,"saysGaryWesterman,aformeremploymentconsultant.Yetthatdoesn'tmeantheywon'tgetthejobdone.Iftheymust,they'llworkfromthebeachontheirlaptop.Andthey'remoreapttocomeinpromptlyandeschewthewater-coolerchatssopopularamongboomers.Theyfocus,finishandleave.Boomersneedtoappreciatethesestyledifferences.Lookattheresults,nottheprocess.MythNo.3:Theydisr...
