Teens only really respect one thing. Want to know what it is?

At some point in their careers, just about every manager of teen employees comes home from an exhausting and frustrating day at work, plops down on the couch and comes to the big realization: These teen workers that I hire could not care less about what I think. And, they especially don’t value my opinion of their performance.

Now, at this point, if you haven’t yet had this realization, you’re probably asking the question, “Are you saying that my new employees that I hire don’t automatically respect me?” Yep. That’s exactly what I’m saying. At least not at first they don’t. The next question managers ask is, “Well, is there anything I can do about it?” Nope. There’s absolutely nothing you can to about it – not right now, anyway. The question that always follows next is the most important one of all, “How did such a drastic shift in teen culture occur?” The answer to that question sits in every home.

For their entire lives, this is a generation that has had around-the-clock access to 24 hour news on CNN, FOX, Court TV, and investigative journalism on just about every other channel. As a result of all that non-stop information, teens have seen their elders, authority figures, adults, and high-ranking people from just about every walk of life at their very worst moments. They have seen well-respected religious leaders go to jail for abusing young children in unimaginable ways. They have seen prominent CEOs and CFOs go to prison for lying, cheating, and stealing the retirement savings from little old ladies. They soaked in every detail as they witnessed their sports heroes and Hollywood stars being arrested, tried, and convicted for spousal abuse, drug offences, tax evasion, rape, and even murder. They have heard, read, and watched the stories of teachers having sexual relationships with students. They even saw firsthand how a United States President lied about, and then later admitted to, having cigar-laden sexual relations with a very young intern in the oval office. These salacious headline stories - the constant, everyday onslaught of the media showing people, many of whom are older, educated, and experienced, living far less than honorable lives - have had a tremendous, irreparable impact on today’s teens.

Now, I know all of that information is a lot of negativity to digest in one sitting. But, with that information fresh in your mind, let’s focus on one question:

Why should a teen employee under your charge pay attention to your every word; ask for clarification for what they don’t understand; immediately tackle the task at hand; do exactly what you ask of him; AND, do it all with a positive attitude that reflects pride in their performance and attention to detail?

If your answer is any form of the following . . .

Because I am older.
Because I am more experienced.
Because I am wiser.
Because I am the manager.
Because I am the most respected in my field.
Because I am a great person.
Because I am educated beyond belief.
Or, because I am nice.

. . . then, I have news flash for you. And, here it is: Teens of today do NOT respect any of the above.

You might think they do. They may act like they do. They might even tell you they do. But, the truth is, they don’t. All of the people and situations I outlined above, from religious leaders to the leader of the free world, at some point in their careers could have been described by any and all of those positive qualities – older, experienced, wiser, educated, respected, etc. And look where they ended up. Remember, teens have grown up immersed in these real-life, negative stories from the day they left womb. Just about every week of their lives they have witnessed a new prominent figure fall from grace. And, it’s always someone that was, at least, well thought of, if not respected.

It’s because of this daily, media-influenced, negative impact that teens only respond to and respect one thing: proven character. That’s it. Nothing else. They only truly respect “who” you are. When it comes to respect, they could not care less about your title, age, education, experience, or even history of success. All they care about is who you prove yourself to be day in and day out. They only care about one thing - your character.

If you are going to successfully work with teen employees, it’s essential that you understand the importance of “who” you prove yourself to be. Teen employees observe and make conscious and sub-conscious mental notes of your every move. They are constantly evaluating everything about you. Everything they ever observe you do and everything they ever hear you say is stored away in their minds. And, they are using this information to constantly judge the quality of your character. And, believe it or not, it’s those daily judgments of who you prove yourself to be that teens directly base the quality of their own performance. That is, the quality of a teen’s performance is equal to the quality of the leader’s character.

Don't miss that. Here it is again: The quality of a teen's performance is equal to the quality of the leader's character.

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