Unfairly Labeled

Chapter 10

Roadmap to Changing Your Organization's Culture

People want to stop using generational labels. They want to drop the stereotypes. Every time I speak with someone about generational stereotypes, they agree with me. When I present the pitfalls associated with generational labels, it resonates. Our society is drawing ever closer to the tipping point on generational issues. Malcolm Gladwell describes “the tipping point” as the moment of critical mass when sociological change happens and ideas or behaviors spread like viruses (2000). I believe it is only a matter of time before the word millennial becomes commonly resisted. We are not at the tipping point yet, but we are getting close.

Be a Maven

In order to reach the tipping point, we need a few more mavens to pave the way. Mavens, Gladwell argued, are the people who connect us with new information. They start word-of-mouth epidemics. You might also call them change agents.

If you are interested in becoming a maven, calling attention to the perils of generational hype, this chapter will provide you with a roadmap. Change starts with you; there are ways to influence change within your organization. Everyone can have influence through action.

There are six steps toward creating awareness and changing the vocabulary at your organization:

1. Be a role model.
2. Spread the word.
3. Create a coalition of change agents.
4. Review your collateral.
5. Organize a campaign.
6. Evaluate your success.

Six Steps to Change

Step One: Be a Role ...