Navigating the Workplace as a Zillennial: Three Secrets to Corporate Life

As a zillenial myself, I have had a few years under my belt to better understand corporate life. Depending on your industry and your specific company, dynamics can be vastly different (even within the same company). I have found three skills to be essential as I navigate the workplace: professionalism, open communication, and self-initiation.

The skill I have advocated the most in my career has been professionalism. I think the definition of professional can change based on your industry or your background. The concept is fluid and changes based on group culture. For example, in the show Suits, the law firm emphasizes business formal as you can see by the characters expensive clothes and accessories. I’ve seen many startups adopt more laid-back attire in the workplace. My experience has been more business casual or casual attire.

My idea of professionalism is being reliable, accountable for my work, and maintaining cordial relationships with colleagues. I have seen how easy boundaries are crossed in the workplace when deeper relationships are perceived among colleagues. In my opinion, lines get blurred, and it can be difficult to not only overcome work obstacles but personal ones when they are mixed. Pleasant conversations and small talk are probably a necessity in corporate work, but you do not need to share all personal aspects of your life (even if they ask).

The next big skill is communication. Communication sounds easy but is extremely complex because of the various platforms (messages, emails, calls, etc.) and the people in which you need to communicate with. Technological literacy varies by generation and by person. From my experience, the best way to communicate specifically with one person is to ask them, “Which platform is your preference for communicating xyz?” The best way to get clarification is to ask the person directly instead of guessing. Trial and error works as well, but that takes a bit longer. I prefer to be efficient with my time and with others because time is valuable especially in our day and age.

Lastly, self-initiation is key to learning and growing. I’ve had managers who are completely hands off to the point of not speaking for months and not assigning tasks. Often times, managers and given their roles based on their time in the industry not their desire to actually manage people. I’ve heard stories of companies appointing managerial roles to employees who explicitly have said they are not interested. Yet, they do it anyway leading to bigger issues down the line. Only you truly care about your career and know where you want to be and where you want to grow. If I want to work on an upcoming, groundbreaking project, then I need to reach out and find the right people to connect. This can be true for interests outside of work too. You can wait for some else to do something for you which may take a lifetime, or you can make the move yourself. You know yourself best!

There are many more skills and situations to discuss, but I have found these to be extremely helpful as I grind through the corporate space for now…