Even Outstanding College and NFL Millennial’s Want to Know Why

I read a great article in the April 6 issue of USA Today talking about the characteristics of highly talented Millennial college and NFL football players and the mindset necessary to engage them.

The message of this article is the same message that is applicable in today?s workplaces, Millennial’s want to know why. Wanting to know why is not the only characteristic of Millennial’s but it is one that appears to be universal.

The article started with former UCLA coach Jim Mora talking about former quarterback Josh Rosen and his need to know why. He said, ?once Millennial’s know why they are good?. They have a wide variety of interests and want to be certain that they are focusing on the right things for them. Sean Mc Vay the 32-year-old coach of the Rams told USA Today in an interview. ?The challenge as a coach is to be intentional and provide a why you?re doing it for your players. Because if your guys understand the why, they then can at least understand everything has a purpose and it opens up the lines of communication?. McVay is not the only coach with this understanding. Both Bill Belichick 65 and Pete Carroll 66 understand the need to communicate in a manner that Millennial’s can relate to. Titans coach Mike Vrabel said ?They learn differently. It?s not always sitting in a classroom at a desk. So, you have a lot of teaching that takes place in the walk-throughs and up on the board?.

So, whats the point about all this talk about college and professional football players? The point is to continue to emphasize that our workforce today is made up of people who are more assertively curious, they want to know why. They also have more opportunities and flexibility in finding the kind of work environment that they are comfortable with and the best of the best have the most flexibility. The Millennial generation also has the strongest skill set for what is required today.

As business owners and leaders, we must have the right mindset if we want to optimize our businesses by engaging the rapidly growing Millennial workforce. There is no going back we must have a growth mindset.