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Join the Nerds!
Welcome to the funtastic world of the Fabulous Learning Nerds! Scott Schuette and Daniel Coonrod and Zeta Gardner are Learning Executives with over 50 years’ experience between them. Together they share new ideas, learning tools, approaches and technology that increase learner engagement and impact. All while having FUN! To participate in the show and community please contact them at learningnerdscast@gmail.com
The nerds are all about creating a community of learning, innovation and growth amongst educational professionals: Instructors, facilitators, instructional designers, learning and development professionals, trainers, leadership development professionals, learning metric gurus, sales enablement wizards and more. So, if you want to learn, connect, grow and have a good time doing it, The Fabulous Learning Nerds Podcast is for YOU!
Scott (00:02.108)
Hey everybody, welcome to another Marvelous episode of your fantastic learning nerds. I'm Scott Schuette, your host and with us today, you love him, Dan Coonrod.
Scott (00:16.114)
Dan!
Daniel (00:17.386)
Scott! So we're fantastic this week. I like that. I like that. Marvelous and fantastic.
Scott (00:21.138)
Marvelous, marvelous is what I will be fantastic. We could do, we could be whatever. You know what? We.
Daniel (00:26.196)
So like, is fantastic and marvelous, is that how you get fabulous?
Scott (00:31.676)
You know what happens when you put Marvelous and Fantastic together? Do you know what you get?
Daniel (00:35.956)
I'm excited, tell me.
Daniel (00:41.086)
I feel like that's maybe not entirely true. It was, it was great!
Scott (00:46.128)
No, but it was funny. So I'll give you that, which is so awesome. So how you been,
Daniel (00:53.908)
compared to Midland? Which, as I've learned just today, means marvelous and fantastic, which is the definition I'm going to go with moving forward.
Scott (00:55.26)
Yeah.
Scott (01:04.35)
I love it, I love it, I love it. think that's awesome. So we're gonna keep that up. Real quick short story that I gotta tell, I'll tell ya. So was out last week, dad passed away, so that's cool. he was a vet. Have you ever been to a military funeral?
Daniel (01:28.05)
No, no I haven't.
Scott (01:28.798)
Now, super powerful stuff. You know, they have a 21 gun salute and an honor guard and, you know, my brother got the flag and all that other good stuff. And I'm just going to say this. I'm not just super proud that I live in a country that celebrates that. So I just wanted to take a quick moment to thank all of our veterans and those out there who have served. We appreciate you. So there it is. There's my quick little snippet for our veteran friends.
Daniel (01:55.934)
That's awesome.
Scott (01:56.486)
You're important. Yeah, we appreciate you, which is great. Speaking of appreciating people, she's also with us today, the Duchess of Design. Zeta's in the house.
Scott (02:14.696)
Zeta!
Zeta (02:15.913)
Hey, hey, Scott. How are you? I'm fine. I'm fine. I've had a pretty good week. How are you?
Scott (02:18.59)
How are you doing?
Zeta (02:31.221)
This
Scott (02:33.758)
Now we know that that's a standard response for you and how you're doing, we'll get the hang of it, right? No, I'm doing Groovy. It's a good week. It's a good week to be together with my friends, and we've got a really exciting show coming up, and that's fantastic. But before we do that, we've got to dive into our new segment for the show. The Nerdy 30, everybody!
Scott (03:02.214)
Yeah, this time of the week, Zeta is going to share with us something new in tech when it comes to what we do in learning development. So hit us up, Zeta.
Zeta (03:12.897)
This is a little bit different of learning and development. It's of the robot kind. So just a little tidbit of tech news that might have missed your newsfeed. BMW is testing humanoid robots at its South Carolina plant. The world's first commercially viable, 100 % autonomous humanoid learns and self -corrects. It's called the Figure 02. Now, Figure is an AI robotics company behind the creation of this new robot.
Anna Hislop (03:38.081)
you
Zeta (03:42.793)
and they've partnered with OpenAI and Microsoft for their advanced AI development. Pretty cool stuff. So you know guys, the robot uprising is nigh.
Daniel (03:54.25)
Thanks
Scott (03:54.322)
that the Terminators are right around the corner, right? That's the deal. I. my gosh, do I have to? I do hold on.
Zeta (03:58.129)
Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun,
Scott (04:11.326)
That's, yeah, all right. Thank you. So do they talk? Do they talk yet or are they just lifting boxes? Because I've seen the robots that lift the boxes and stuff.
Zeta (04:14.741)
Good stuff.
Zeta (04:21.619)
No, they're not talking. They'd have bimanual, which is this fancy word for using both hands, doing detrimental, hazardous, repetitive tasks that usually humans aren't able to do, but they can self -correct, which is really cool.
Scott (04:38.61)
And they're not aware that they're doing hazardous stuff yet. Because when they're aware that they're doing the hazardous stuff, we may have problem. Is that maybe the deal?
Zeta (04:44.577)
Yeah, that's where it might be a little bit sticky.
Scott (04:48.702)
Okay, maybe maybe sticky well, thanks for sharing that nerdy 30 stuff. That's cool I mean we're before the show where you're talking a little bit about AI the genies out of the bottle folks That's great. Now we can put it into the robots. That's cool, too Hopefully we get Rosie because I love me some Rosie from the Jetsons. That's what I want in my robot Not so much Arnold. That's that's my deal. So anyway, thanks for sharing that Hey folks, we're gonna have it. We're gonna have a fantastic show today. We've got a great guest
Zeta (04:53.993)
No problem.
Zeta (05:13.098)
Anytime.
Scott (05:18.162)
really awesome topic and we're going to learn all about her in a segment that we call What's Your Deal?
Scott (05:29.72)
Anna! What's your deal, my friend?
Anna Hislop (05:30.806)
Hey!
My deal, Scott. Good question. It's all about helping leaders challenge their perspective. So today we're in a workforce with five different generations and some of the older senior leaders, believe their way is the right way and it doesn't have to be. So it's all about supporting Gen Z in the workplace and getting their voices heard and getting their ideas in the decision making room.
Scott (06:04.05)
That's great. how did you come from, tell us a little bit about where you started and how you got to where you are today when it comes to Generation Z.
Anna Hislop (06:14.956)
So my journey with Gen Z started in the classroom actually as a teacher in Sweden. So I met this generation and I instantly knew that this was different and I needed to change to be able to meet them where they were and to get the best out of this group of people. And when I did, it was amazing. It was magic in the classroom and the engagement levels were through the roof. But when I didn't get their buy -in,
the energy completely dropped and yeah I started realizing they were working against me rather than with me if I didn't check in with them properly.
Scott (06:56.594)
Really important stuff and I can't wait to hear more about it. know our audience are primarily are people putting learnings together that includes this audience. if you think that you can go ahead and do a status quo kind of design and leadership approaches with this generation, you may find that it doesn't work so well. So this is going to be a fantastic, fantastic time together. With that, let's go ahead and dive into our topic of the week.
Scott (07:32.106)
All right, this week we're talking about Generation Z Workplace Engagement and advocating for and introducing the idea of generational intelligence in the world of work. So, Anna, listen up. Hey, we've got a question for you.
Scott (07:54.514)
Hey, why is this important? Why are we gonna spend the time learning about this today?
Anna Hislop (07:58.914)
Well, one good reason is by 2025 Gen Z will make up about 30 % of the global workforce and the engagement levels of people today are at an all -time low. So we need to change our way to adapt to this generation to be able to be more productive, more innovative and getting better results basically at work.
Daniel (08:17.633)
you
Scott (08:24.178)
So hop, go ahead, Zeru.
Zeta (08:26.431)
Definitely agree with that. There's also a lot that we can learn from this generation as well. They bring a unique kind of skill set to the table. If you could maybe highlight or explain maybe what kind of shaped that and what made them a little bit different from maybe what the rest of our audience might be.
Anna Hislop (08:31.008)
Yes.
Anna Hislop (08:45.398)
Yeah, absolutely. I'd love to do that. Thank you, Sita. So there were loads of different things that was going on when Gen Z grew up and they were kind of experienced their formative years. And it was a time characterized by uncertainty in many ways. And it's not about comparing generation and generations and you know, who had the worst time, etc. It's more about understanding what was happening in the world that shaped them. So
Economic instability during the Great Recession was happening. Their parents were losing their jobs, banks, markets were collapsing around them. And as kids, they saw and heard their kind of adults in their surroundings talking about how there was no trust in their employers. They felt like they were just a number. They sacrificed quite a lot to the detriment of their health often. And this is what this young generation was seeing as they were growing up.
And then we had the growing concerns about the climate change and the environment, obviously. There was a heightened mental health awareness at school and they had struggling parents or siblings around them. So that also had quite a big impact on them as children in the households.
Huge focus on social injustice, protests around the world demanding change. We had the Arabic Spring, had the Black Lives Matter, Me Too campaigns, etc. And it really shaped their perception of the establishment of the government, the police, know, those big institutions in our societies, just to name a few things. And then the education system was just obviously my background and where
Daniel (10:26.122)
Okay.
Anna Hislop (10:26.282)
where I was introduced to this generation was very different as well compared to earlier generations. So at school, their opinions really, really mattered. There were teacher surveys, were committees, student councils, evaluations, co -creations, etc. So they were asked to share their opinion and then suddenly they move into the place or the world of work and their opinions aren't necessarily regarded as important anymore.
because they're junior. And then the diversity, equity, inclusion is also something that is very much considered as a hygiene factor for this generation. It was really important in their day to day and they were talking lots about it at school, anti -bullying, respect, sex and relationships, education, etc. And then one thing that also really kind of had a big impact on this generation was the individual support, the fact that they
Daniel (11:19.991)
you
Anna Hislop (11:26.112)
They experienced bespoke solutions. were learning adjustments based on their needs, their learning needs. Teachers were trained how to deal with kids with dyslexia, different diagnoses to really support them in the best possible way. So it was very bespoke and it was very kind of supportive in their education growing up.
Daniel (11:41.448)
you
Daniel (11:51.55)
You you talk about the foundation, kind of like where they come from and like, kind of like, what makes this generation, Generation Z, as they enter into the workplace, like, what are the differences we're seeing in the workplace based on like, just how they've come up?
Anna Hislop (11:55.574)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (12:00.737)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (12:09.866)
Yeah, I'd say so. we talk a lot about Gen Z in the media and the narrative that's kind of being presented is that they are entitled, they've got unrealistic expectations, they're impatient and quite difficult to manage. You recognize that from reading articles and listening to the news, etc. And this generation
they experience something completely different. They speak of uninspiring leadership. They speak of poor development opportunities and a lack of trust. They speak of not getting enough feedback and not getting enough support. They feel questioned quite often when they ask for, you know, being able to set healthy boundaries. yeah, and then also obviously the big question around fair compensation and feeling.
truly valued at work. So the way that they experience the workplace is often a result of how they were brought up and what they experienced during their foundational years.
Scott (13:19.774)
So let's say I'm a leader and I'm gonna see more more Gen Z people underneath me. So I'm already seeing that in my workplace and I'm probably, you you're seeing that as well. What are some of the ways that I as a leader can help support this generation so that they can ultimately be more productive and show leadership within the space that I have?
Anna Hislop (13:24.269)
Mm.
Mmm.
Anna Hislop (13:45.103)
Good question. So I think generally I'm a massive advocate for communication. I think when it comes to Gen Z, we need to get back to basics and start to communicate and really start to appreciate this generation and what they bring. And that starts with getting to know them first of all, know, checking in with them, how they're doing, what they're experiencing, asking the questions around what they would like to change if they could.
change anything in the workplace, what they're noticing, how the ways of working are reflecting the values of the business. Because that's one of the things Gen Z really wants to see, that we actually start to behave based on our company's values, that they're not just words on a wall somewhere, they're being lived and we can see them in our behaviors and our attitudes at work.
Daniel (14:42.858)
You know, we talk about kind of like what Gen Z like once and Scott, you know, we're talking about like preparing leadership. I had an opportunity a little while ago where I got to lead a team and most of them were Gen Z and most of the leadership were older. And, you know, one of the things I loved about leading that team was the focus on why. And like, they'd be like, hey, why are we doing this?
Anna Hislop (14:56.598)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (15:07.318)
Mm.
Daniel (15:11.912)
and I could feel and see the frustration from leadership, it would often come like, because I told you to, like, because this is what needs to be done. And it's one of the things that I've absolutely loved about working with that group in particular. I don't want to make broad generalizations, but so far from, know, Gen Z, that drive and you bring it up on why, you know, like why are we doing this? Like back to basics. And it's awesome. I love it.
Anna Hislop (15:36.886)
Yeah, exactly. And if they don't know the why, and if they don't know why they are the right person to do the job, they also start losing some of their energy. They want to know why they were chosen for that particular role or that particular project and what skills of theirs are important and how can they kind of use them and how can they help shape the outcome of that particular project.
So knowing their strengths and being able to use them on a daily basis is super important for Gen Z. And being supported and being able to grow as well is something that's really close to their hearts. And I think it's also a consequence of the world that they're living in. So they're expected to have something like ridiculous, like 18 different roles in their work.
They are expected to have five different careers, know, not just jobs, but different careers in their working life and their retirement age is something like 80 at the moment. So for them, this need and drive to constantly be educated and challenged and having opportunities for growth and development is so important because they don't see themselves in one particular job for a long period of time. They want to...
Yeah, they want to move on. They want to explore and experience different things. So many of them identify as job hoppers and it's not negative for them. It's positive.
Zeta (17:14.549)
I think it's also kind of the climate as well. A lot of people don't stay in the same job for more than two to three years or they start to stagnate and their wages do as well. Not only that, but there's something to be said for having a challenge, having your purpose, and then also seeing how you can shape where you're at. And I think having that new job hopping helps them do that.
Scott (17:15.005)
I'm glad.
Anna Hislop (17:17.611)
Mmm.
Anna Hislop (17:22.636)
Boom.
Yeah.
Anna Hislop (17:35.082)
Yeah, absolutely.
Anna Hislop (17:40.467)
Yeah, for sure. And that's a really important point, Ceto, that they want to feel aligned with the mission of the business. And if they don't, then that's a big problem. They won't be able to give everything they want to give if they don't believe in the mission or the purpose of the business. So including them in that, not just why we're doing it, but also what do we want to achieve with our work? And if they feel aligned with that.
you know, they'll do a fabulous job.
Scott (18:13.608)
Really great stuff. Love you brought up strength based leadership. I'm a big fan of that, right? And that really does, from a leadership perspective, put a lot of onus on me as a leader to try to really figure out what my people are good at, but also have those conversations of, hey, what do you want to do? Right? So hopefully the Gen Z people are coming in with this, hey, you hired me to be an analyst, but man, I would love to give up.
Anna Hislop (18:32.198)
Mmm.
Scott (18:41.522)
get up in front of people and make some presentations and all this other good stuff. Like understanding those things to help people grow. mean, it's a good rule of thumb, regardless of what generation you're in, but it sounds to me like this is equally or probably more important to the Gen Z that's out
Anna Hislop (18:50.38)
Mmm. Mmm.
Anna Hislop (18:57.9)
Yeah, and I think you're pointing on something important here. All generations have needs and expectations and desires and wants with, you know, where their career is going and what they choose to do. But the big difference with Gen Z is that they're ready to leave if they don't see it. Other generations might stay and feel unhappy, but Gen Z has a different approach to that. And they would rather pack up and leave and choose to do something different if they don't.
see the right kind of development for them.
Scott (19:30.354)
Yeah, so the sense of value, right? So if I'm not contributing in a way where people appreciate me, well, somebody else might, right? So I'll go find that because that's going to be really important to me.
Anna Hislop (19:32.225)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (19:36.726)
Mmm. Yeah.
Yeah, for sure.
Scott (19:45.183)
Let's transition real quick. Think about the classroom, right? So let's take corporate American. We could also talk a little bit about K through 12 or even upper education as well. What are those Gen people need in the learning environment that our instructional designers need to be aware
Anna Hislop (20:06.158)
They need guidance and support. They need really clear briefs and that's leaders can definitely, you know, explore and improve in. So giving really clear briefs and again as Dan was saying, understanding the why is really important as well. having that kind of feeling of I can ask questions if I need to because if I get stuck,
then that's a problem and they can sit and procrastinate for quite a while if they don't know the next sort of steps. So helping them and supporting them and asking them what could be a natural next step with this project and having those kind of discussion, more of a coaching approach to the leadership style rather than just telling because involving them in the next steps and the decision making is something that they appreciate.
Scott (21:08.222)
Quick question. I'm a Gen Z and I'm in this learning environment, webinar, instructional ed class, whatever. What's gonna make me check out faster than I can count? What's gonna make me check out?
Anna Hislop (21:09.344)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (21:24.591)
Yeah, lack of variety, I'd say. this generation, they're to, well, they're kind of the TED Talk generation, aren't they? They're used to really high quality, great presenters, they're used to different types of medium. And if they don't see that in the training they're experiencing, then they will check out faster than you could say the word for sure.
Daniel (21:49.202)
You know, you bring that up and I can't tell you how many times I've had conversations with leaders and stuff. like our generation, you know, video equals good content because we grew up like with TV where everything was refined and even the effort to film was seen as like, hey, good job. But you're right, this new generation, they've grown up with like YouTube and where everybody has a camera and anybody can go off and make high quality like
Anna Hislop (22:14.486)
Mmm.
Daniel (22:19.516)
infotainment, so to speak. And I can't tell you how many times I've spoken with leaders and said, Hey, unless you can really, really, really give it your all really, really dive in and like up the production values and make a really good professional video. Sometimes it's not even worth it. Sometimes it's okay just to make a boring training because the checkout rate will be lower. So yeah, I'm a hundred percent agree with what you're saying.
Anna Hislop (22:20.694)
Yeah, yeah.
Anna Hislop (22:29.12)
Mm. Mm.
Anna Hislop (22:36.32)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (22:45.408)
Yeah. And then the other thing is the catering for the different diagnoses that we have as well. There's a higher percentage with workers now who either have dyslexia or they have, you know, concentration challenges, et cetera. So being able to cater for those needs is really important as well. And again, this generation, they're used to it from their education and they're expecting it.
And if it's not being delivered that way, in a way that's accessible to them, then they'll see it as a way that they're not valued or respected.
Scott (23:27.368)
How important is authenticity both in the work environment but also in the classroom?
Anna Hislop (23:32.162)
think it's really important. you know, that speaks to another one of Gen Z's characteristics, and that's transparency and, you know, really wanting to get the truth from people, whether it's regarding the pay increases in the office, whether it's regarding the, you know, the job design and what their, you know, the
promotions that's around the corner, et cetera. So if there's no transparency, then they will start to get suspicious and they will start to kind of check out and the level of trust will go down quite significantly. And don't forget this generation is used to...
comparing employers using Glassdoor or other kind of websites to explore and to read reviews of employers and companies. Is this company good to work for? So transparency and authenticity goes hand in hand in some way, I think.
Zeta (24:42.495)
Yeah, I think more often than not, they'll see through whatever facade if they are like, hey, we're a great company to work for, but they're actually not. Gen Z, they have the special skill Google Fu, where they can look it up for themselves. And if they don't get those next steps from their leaders, they'll usually try to find a way to do it for themselves.
Anna Hislop (24:46.347)
Mmm.
Anna Hislop (24:51.529)
Yeah.
Anna Hislop (24:55.808)
Mm. Yeah.
Anna Hislop (25:03.938)
Yeah, absolutely. 100%. They grew up trying to scrutinise, you know, adverts on telly or online as well to see what products are actually really good quality. And it's the same sort of idea with work employers. What employer actually provides me with the best possible deal for myself and what's what, who's just talking.
Zeta (25:31.541)
Yeah, definitely.
Scott (25:34.428)
Really great stuff. I want to see if we can't focus in on what the Gen Z needs are, right? So if I want them to thrive at work or in the classroom, what are some of the things that they need in order for us to get the best results?
Anna Hislop (25:43.521)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (25:52.958)
I think one important thing is that they need to know who cares. So they need to know that someone really cares about them, that they're not just a number. They are someone who's important to the business and someone cares about them and how they're feeling and how they're performing. So that's something quite different to other generations.
and it's a leadership skill that we that I think we that we can all improve and that the world the work need to acknowledge. So caring is important to to support them. The other thing is trust. So they they want to feel trusted and they want to trust their manager or their peer or whoever whoever they're interacting with and with you know with trust it's
It's trusting the intent, it's trusting the integrity of the individual, it's trusting the track record and it's trusting the competencies. So there's so many levels to that trust, isn't it? So that's important as well.
Zeta (27:05.579)
So from their perspective, when they go to an employer, what are some of the ways that they can try to identify what would be a good fit for them?
Anna Hislop (27:16.64)
Well, speaking about trust, as an example, know, the whole conversation about working from home and flexible working, for Gen Z, it's always, the business is actually showing whether they trust their employees or not, if they are willing to let them work from home, for example. So that's the biggest.
hurdle to get over in a way. It's not about not wanting to be in the office, it's about knowing that my employer really trusts me and if they do they will allow me to do the work wherever I want to do the work. So that's an example of how this translates into the actual workplace.
Scott (28:07.836)
What time? Go ahead.
Zeta (28:10.699)
I'd say definitely. Instead of just punching in, punching out, they want to complete their projects and they want their managers to know, hey, they are getting things done and I don't have to be micromanaged. And I think the more global that we are becoming, the more that's an important factor, I think, for all employees. Yeah.
Anna Hislop (28:23.116)
Mm.
Anna Hislop (28:31.318)
Yeah, and the other thing is feedback. That's also something that Gen Z's, they're asking, well, they might not actually voice that they want more feedback, but if they're lacking feedback, that will be a big, big reason for them not to show up in their best possible way. So they will expect feedback and they will expect it regularly and almost like on a weekly basis. I read some survey.
that show that a Gen Z is expecting at least half an hour every three days with their manager. So that is, you know, an enormous amount of time if you consider you've got five or six employees that you need to look after, etc. So some of it might be unrealistic and that's where we need to have these conversations with our direct reports and say, I might not be able to deliver what you're hoping for or what you're expecting.
How can we find a way for you to feel really supported without me giving you an hour and a half a week?
Scott (29:35.826)
Wow. I think that a lot of people struggle with just the half hour a week with my boss to begin with, right? So that was one of the questions I wanted to ask you. I how important it sounds to me, like the one -on -one conversations that we have with our employees, if we're going to stick with traditional conversations in the one -on -one, which I'm not a fan of, which is, here's the work I need you to get done. What questions do you have, which is my experience in most of my one -on -ones?
Anna Hislop (29:40.556)
Mmm, mmm.
Scott (30:02.726)
transitioning to, how you feeling about stuff and what can I give to you? Like, how important are those conversations? What are some things we should keep in mind when we're having those conversations?
Anna Hislop (30:13.495)
I think they're really important and I think it's what we could do is to check in, know, what do you need from me right now? How can I support you? What would be a natural next step for you to take in, you know, whatever they're working on? Just to know that someone's there following them along, even if they are owning their work themselves, that it's being recognised and it's being seen.
using digital tools as well, just being able to write comments or give a thumbs up, whatever it might be. This generation is used to that kind of instant feedback from social media. what can we learn from those kind of platforms and bring that into work to just give us a little, yes, you're on the right track kind of thing.
and also using bite size chunks of work. If you give a junior or a Gen Z employee a task that will take them two and a half months and they'll be working on their own, I can almost guarantee you that they will struggle with that. So they need to break it down, smaller chunks and more regular check -ins to show progress rather than...
doing the work for them.
Daniel (31:36.503)
You spoke about communication and you know, something I found just when I would be leading teams is, you know, older folks after a meeting, we would maybe touch base real quick. Okay, this, this, that, and this. Like if we were all on the same meeting, but with my younger folks, when we would be on a meeting, the communication would be happening during the meeting. Like I would have like Slack open or...
or a Google suite or whatever. And it'd be boop, boop, boop, boop. You know, like they would be messaging me all during the meeting, asking clarification, asking questions. And we'd be on the same meeting. And it has become my bad habit now too. Like I'll be on a meeting with somebody else and I'll be messaging them during the meeting. And I've had older leaders be like, hey, let's just wait until after and talk after. they're like, yep, okay, absolutely. And it's just one of those things. like, it is. It's a difference I've noticed and have seen both sides of.
Anna Hislop (32:19.542)
Mm.
Daniel (32:31.466)
So, 100%.
Anna Hislop (32:31.65)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think it's important to acknowledge as well that it's something like 46 % of Gen Z feel stressed, anxious on a daily basis. Yeah. So that's to do with high intensity demands at work, the work environment, and sometimes the lack of support from their managers or managers who are just focusing on results, et cetera. So acknowledging that we experience work
in a very different way, all individuals do. And that my perception of what is an okay workload might not be the same for you, Scott, or for someone else. So having that conversation, how is your workload affecting you? And what do you feel really strong doing? And which areas of your work do you feel...
more anxious about or less confident about? And is there any sort of training that you'd need to be able to raise that level of confidence and to feel more secure doing those tasks? Or is it the process that's actually at fault? Do we need to change the process for you to be able to do your work in a more successful way? So having those conversations is really important. And then of course the...
The boundary between the private life and work life is kind of blending more and more now as well compared to in the past. Financial struggles, the constant connectivity, the of the informational overload is all contributing to this stress as well. caring for family members, et cetera. So we're bringing all of that into work.
which we used to leave at home back in the day.
Scott (34:26.034)
Fascinating stuff. I could spend hours talking about this, primarily not just because it's neat and relevant, but also because we're all living it. And the opportunity for us to all come together, super important. I try to keep that top of mind in my life these days. That being said, as we begin to wrap up and bring all this together, what are a couple of thoughts that you want to leave with our audience?
Anna Hislop (34:35.094)
Mmm, yeah, completely.
Anna Hislop (34:39.68)
Mmm. Yeah.
Anna Hislop (34:55.478)
Mm.
Scott (34:55.728)
as we begin to close this up.
Anna Hislop (34:58.614)
Yeah, I think it's really important to ask yourself that question, you know, how can I realize the full potential of my younger workforce? So, and with realize, I mean two things. First of all, it's actually realizing everything amazing that they can bring to the workplace, you know, their energy, their skills, their expertise, their drive, their passion. And the second kind of meaning to that word is how do I realize it? What do I need to do to help?
unlock all of this potential and what what how you know how can I change my management style to to really connect with this individual to make them feel seen and heard and recognized.
Yeah, so that's one thing.
Scott (35:54.748)
Awesome stuff. thank you so much for joining us today and bringing this important topic to not only us, but to our audience out there. Could you do me a favor? Could you let our audience know how they could connect with you and talk a little bit about your new book?
Anna Hislop (36:08.502)
Yeah, of course. So this book is a collaboration between myself and a gentleman called Peter Lightfoot. So we co -authored this book together and I brought my Gen Z kind of experience and he brought his experience from from performance coaching and leadership coaching as well. So it's a beautiful collaboration and it's called You Only Have to Ask and that is the essence of everything. I think we need to get back into communicating with each other and
we need to get back into fully appreciating what we all bring to the table and stop looking at the faults or the missing pieces, but what we actually bring into work. So appreciating each other and understanding each other. And this book is based around eight important questions that we all ask ourselves. And if we don't have the answers to them, we will leave our passion at home before we go to work.
So it's all around expectations and knowing the why, understanding how my own why is connected to my company's why and you know the care and the confidence and rewards that we get and whether they are in alignment with what I want from work. So those are the eight questions, that's the framework.
And the invitation is for leaders just to be curious, know, what can Gen Z offer them if they are nurtured and supported in the best possible way? And it's the future. So we can't really keep that door closed any longer. We need to invite them in. We need to have them around the table and to get them involved in shaping the business so that it can be future -proofed, I suppose.
Scott (37:59.486)
Where else can they get in touch with you?
Anna Hislop (38:02.346)
Through LinkedIn, so they'll find me if they look for Anna Hislop, Gen Z employee experience expert and also my website of course, with my business, that's Unfolding Success.
Scott (38:18.428)
Fantastic. Thanks so much. It's been a wonderful time chatting with you. Great book, everybody. Go ahead and check out her website and the link to the Amazon place where you can pick up the book. It's going to be in the show notes. Once again, Anna, thank you so much. Daniel San.
Anna Hislop (38:34.134)
Thank you.