By Ellen Himelfarb
Generation X guru Barbara Moses has been peddling her self-empowerment techniques across Canada in the form of multi-media lectures. She gave one last week at the Getting to the Future First conference at the Toronto Convention Centre.
Moses is the author and publisher of the Career Planning Workbook, a motivational handbook used by more than 1,000 organizations around the world. She specializes in igniting the overworked and undervalued employees, those who have lost all enthusiasm for work, and those who have run into the “crisis of confidence” imposed by new economic challenges like rising taxes, free trade, the recession.
And what better audience to target than the twenty-somethings, the so-called “lost generation.”
Moses doesn’t concentrate solely on motivating the “post-boomers” (as she prefers to call them) but she devotes a portion of her lectures, and her handbook, to their plight.
Moses places the “new boomers” in two categories: The “haves” and the “have-nots.”
The “haves,” according to Moses, don’t want to work in an organization. They are enterprising, resourceful, “high impact.” They want success, they know how to get it, and they won’t let grim economic times or warnings from higher-ups get in the way. They’ve seen their parents “squashed and diced by corporate life” and want to do things differently.
The “have-nots,” on the other hand, are “desperate to work in an organization.”
“The have-nots are in fact jealous of people who have jobs and those who are entrepreneurial,” Moses said. “They need security and predictability.”
“A (have-not) would just as soon give me the finger than work an extra hour over-time,” one of Moses’ clients once said. She finds the have-nots’ attitude disturbing. “They act cool and detached, not in the least engaging or charming.” The most valuable asset one has, she says, is the capacity to promote the self-esteem of others. “It’s the cheapest thing to dispense. Schmoozing is good.”
Moses worries about the fate of the post-boomers and has doubts about the ability of the have-nots to become haves. “We keep raising the (standard) in terms of what kinds of skills they need. Everything they’ve been told their entire lives is no longer true. They know their efforts won’t necessarily lead to a reward. They live in a post-modern world where everything is impossible and nothing is certain.”
Moses also blames the school system for failing to harvest a healthy crop of graduates. “Guidance counselors are pathetic,” she said, accusing them of producing have-nots instead of training people to deal with ambiguity and risk and encouraging people to be flexible. Moses says the success of the post-boomers is dependent on their ability to revise expectations of the job-market. She encourages her clients to “re-configure” their skills in order to create their own “employee-ability.”
Moses gives the example of a 25-year-old man who, lacking steady employment, began pursuing pregnant women. He shadowed them until they were ready to give birth. Then he took over their jobs until they returned to work. “The new post-boomers,” says Moses, “are building blocks, leg and hopscotch. They hop from one opportunity to another.”
Although the post-boomers will likely never achieve the tremendous financial success of their boomer counterparts, Moses believes they have extended financial resources. “For the most part, they’re unmarried, they live at home and they’re saving more because they know of the unpredictability of the future.”
Her advice to the new boomers? “Take initiative, but be prudent. Take risks, but know what things to fight for. Be clear of your skills and your ability. Smile and be charming.” Most importantly, she adds, “Stay on good terms with your parents—and tidy up your room.”
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