Don't complain, train young adult slackers who work in your office

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-06/uoic-dct060815.php

Public Release: 8-Jun-2015
University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences

Emerging adults aged 18 to 25 are often criticized for their poor interpersonal skills, sense of entitlement, and casual work ethic. But a new University of Illinois study suggests that fault-finding adult co-workers could make a big difference in young workers' leadership development by developing relationships with them, modeling the behaviors they wish to see, and providing leadership growth opportunities. [I think this sentence is misleading. The adults should not be fault-finding, they should be a good example instead of being fault-finding.]

"Young adults in our study had learned a lot from mentors who modeled initiative, drive, and persistence; demonstrated how to communicate with confidence and engage in active listening; and displayed reliability, tolerance, respect, and a positive attitude," said Jill Bowers, a researcher in the U of I's Department of Human and Community Development.

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"It's natural for some people to engage in positive communication and active listening or demonstrate initiative and perseverance. For others, those qualities aren't as instinctual, and establishing relationships and mentoring young adults is something they could learn if businesses made teaching those traits a priority," she said.

When adults prepare to take on a mentoring role, it's important that they evaluate their own work ethic and professional skills. They should modify their behavior and personal qualities that they wouldn't want to see replicated in the adolescents or young adults they are working with, she said.

"You have to demonstrate the skills you're trying to teach, not just preach about their importance. If you tell a student or a young co-worker to use good email etiquette, and then don't follow your own advice in communicating with them, you lose credibility," she said.