The Generation Gap Is What You Make Of It - Continued
Published: September 05, 2008
Trust and Respect (Jason Berry)
These two never seem to go out of style. The greater the trust and respect for each other, the smaller the gap. Appreciating and leveraging what different generations bring to the table is a powerful dynamic. It has been said this way. (Please forgive the generalizations, but I found this person's thoughts to be stirring.) At times the younger generation feels like they are right because they are highly passionate about their cause. They are even ready to die for their cause, so the cause must be right.
The older generation feels they are right because they have actually 'done it' and therefore have figured out through experience the 'right' answer to the issue at hand. The younger generation sees the older as a people who don't seem so eager to die for the cause. The older sees the younger as idealistic and lacking wisdom. But the reality is that we need each other. Wisdom without passion is a dry river bed. Passion without wisdom is a swamp. But when wisdom and passion are combined you get a river that's full of life and moving forward.
Shared Power
I believe shared power and authority is at the heart of the matter. I personally invest tremendous energy into giving authority away. I'm leery about using the word 'empower' because it has been tossed around so loosely. True empowerment is not a top down prospect. Empowerment is not only the current leadership transferring authority and responsibility to others who are younger; the younger generation can also empower up by engaging the established leaders in their dreams, visions, energy and passion rather than creating separation and desiring to do their own thing. The synergy created by a dynamic process is amazingly powerful.
The Truth About Change (Charlie Wetzel)
Change is difficult. One of the reasons is that the leaders who decide upon the changes and the leaders who must implement the changes are not always one and the same. Giving room for another generalization, let's extract wisdom from the idea. The older generation tends to overvalue experience (the previous success factor) and undervalue innovation. The younger generation tends to overvalue innovation (the cool/cutting edge factor) and under value experience. The downside of the older generation is resisting change, and the downside of the younger generation is changing for the sake of change. In balance, younger people bring innovation, which older people can temper and guide with wisdom. If both have a 'yes and' mindset, they get the best of both worlds.
A Learning Community
Few environments are more invigorating than a true learning environment. I do not believe these can be achieved with only one generation in the room. Different generations have too much to offer and bring to the table in what becomes a powerful collaborative effort. Strong communication and intentional collaboration will greatly reduce the gap between generations. I love learning with young leaders because I love receiving what they contribute and learning how they think. Young leaders tell me they love learning with me because I'm still thinking. I don't know it all: I'm still learning. Drop that mix in a room and you just might capture some leadership magic.
I've listed four ideas to shorten the gap. You can probably think up a few more. But more importantly, what are you actually doing to make the gap smaller?
Dr. Dan Reiland serves as Executive Pastor at 12Stone Church (formerly Crossroads Community Church) in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Each year he "coaches" many pastors and speaks to several thousand people, impacting lives and strengthening the local church. His semimonthly e-newsletter, The Pastor's Coach is distributed to over 60,000 subscribers.
Copyright © 2008 Dan Rieland. All rights reserved.
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The Generation Gap Is What You Make Of It
Published: September 05, 2008
Discover why we make the generation gaps more complicated than they really are.
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