How to Instill Work Ethic into Millennials
Learn how to define work ethic and how to instill it into your Millennial workforce.

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Ryan Jenkins is an internationally recognized Millennial and Generation Z speaker, generations expert, and Inc.com columnist who helps organizations better lead, engage, and sell to the emerging generations— Millennials and Generation Z. Ryan’s clients include Coca-Cola, John Deere, Delta Air Lines, Wells Fargo, and more. Find more of Ryan’s top-ranked generational and future of work insights at…

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VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
In this video you will learn how to define work ethic and how to instill it into your Millennial workforce.

Employers pursue it, leaders exude it, fulfillment is derived from it, customers expect it, success depends on it, and career progression is the result of it…what is it? 

A strong work ethic.
 
Eric Chester, the author of Reviving Work Ethic: A Leader’s Guide to Ending Entitlement and Restoring Pride in the Emerging Workforce, describes work ethic as, “positive, enthusiastic people who show up for work on time, who are dressed and prepared properly, who go out of their way to add value and do more than what’s required of them, who are honest, who will play by the rules, and who will give cheerful, friendly service regardless of the situation."
  
Workers who view the work they do—fun or not fun, menial or noble—as a critical part of the bigger picture and execute the work with excellence, derive higher levels of satisfaction from their work, unlock more opportunities, and become more promote-able than those content with the minimum effort required.

With those type of benefits, why wouldn’t someone want to cultivate a strong work ethic?

Work ethic is a value based on hard work and diligence. It’s the principle that hard work is intrinsically virtuous or worthy of reward. In other words, work ethic is not something we are born with, it’s a learned behavior.

Work ethic is part of an individual’s personal values and much like a company’s corporate values, they must be taught and modeled daily.

Previous generations have defined success at work by time and tenure, but Millennials measure it by impact. Millennials ask themselves, “What’s the biggest impact I can make with the limited time that I have?” This mindset is often interpreted by managers as “lazy” because it clashes with previous generations view of what hard work is and should be.

We must be careful when comparing a new generation of workers with previous generations when the way in which we work has changed so significantly over the generations.

Here are a few actions that can help instill a strong work ethic into Millennials...
• Clearly communicate the expected work ethic. Too many managers make assumptions that Millennials ought to know the expected work ethic. Stop assuming and tell them.
• Demonstrate the right work ethic daily. Not being innovative and working smart or not having a healthy work-life balance may deter Millennials from following your example.
• Create channels for work ethic. Ensure Millennials are equipped and have access to innovative tools where they can put their unique skill sets to work.
• Connect work ethic values to the big picture. The job of a leader is to paint a picture of the preferred future. Help Millennials connect their actions to the bigger picture.
Because of the shifting landscape of work and Millennials varied approach to work, one of the greatest challenges when instilling work ethic into Millennials is defining a baseline for strong work ethic. The best way to overcome this is...

Let the customer define the work ethic.

The behaviors that Millennial employees need to demonstrate should be defined by the needs of the customers or clients....

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