I hope everyone had the opportunity to take the “Generations Test” that was posted in my June 4th blog. I’ve been receiving really great feedback with regards to your scores and feelings about being more “tech savy” than you initially thought you were. Go ahead and give yourself a pat on the back if you scored higher than your “Born Into” Generation!

The test was to prove to you that you have more in common than you think with The Gen Y’s. It shouldn’t be too hard to market to those younger entrepreneurs, right? So you are all ready to get out there and start “tweeting” away to the Trophy Kids, right?

Ummm, not quite ready for that yet? Ok, lol… Today let’s talk about the mindset of Gen Y’s so you know exactly what you will be up against when trying to get them into your Leads Club Chapter or even gain them as a loyal customer for your goods or services.

Last time I blogged about Gen Y social exposure in terms of micromanaged Trophy kids or lack there of in cases of the latch key Millenials. Either way, many grew up without proper in person social skills and may not even know (gasp!) what business networking or 30 second promotional (elevator pitch) is.

For Gen Y’s the thought of going to a 7:30 am breakfast meeting, standing up in front of your networking group, talking about themselves might be a scary thought. . Even though they are actively talking about their personal and professional lives to thousands of people a day on a social networking site, they are doing it in a virtual reality world. Being present at a weekly chapter meeting and doing this in person in the real world is an entirely different experience to your Gen Y counterpart.

In order to communicate and mentor the young Gen Y professional, we must get learn about them, what makes them tick. Here are some good things to know about a Gen Y:
Gen Y Values
- Authenticity
- Balance
- Challenge
- Diversity
- Flexibility
- Freedom
- Friendship
- Sustainability
- To be heard and valued
- World Peace
Gen Y Goals
- Achieve recognition and respect for their efforts
- An interesting, eclectic and diverse network of support
- Authenticity and bold self expression (Let me be more of me)
- Balance
- Engage people in their conversations about what’s meaningful
- Fabulous career
- Flexibility in life and career
- Freedom to work for a company and own an own a small business
- Instant gratification
- Live first, work second
- Make a contribution to the workplace, community and the world
- Meaningful work
- Rich and rewarding life experiences
- To be in control of their choices, career and lifestyle
Gen Y Entrepreneurs
- They challenge the status quo
- They cherish creativity and imagination more than rule-following
- They are not afraid to take risks
- They are relentlessly optimistic
- They are non-stop experimenters. They like having side projects
- They love "building stuff"
- They accept — sometimes enjoy — uncertainty, chaos, and randomness
Gen Y Challenges:
- Anxiety and stress to perform/achieve
- Choosing a great place to live first and work second
- Difficulty speaking in public
- Helicopter parents (hovering to closely) are preventing independence
- Isolation and loneliness
- Managing unrealistic expectations (I can do it all, be it all!)
- Networking face to face
- Overwhelmed
- To see what’s possible
By understanding Gen Y and their technologies, we are starting to bridge that generation gap. I will be putting this information to good use with real life examples in my future blogs, as well as incorporating social networking and the Eight Principles of 21st Century Marketing that Lisa Bentson writes about in her book “Focused Networking” (click the link on this site).

Ok, I have to go Tweet about this blog, my Twitter Follower’s are waiting, LOL!

Traci Smith
Young Professional Liaison & Chapter Consultant Los Angeles
traci@traciwithatoolbelt.com