| Take a test on work-life generations
By JENNY DOLAN of the Tribune staff
Which generation buys exercise equipment and never uses it?
Which inhales essential oils to relax? Which values family above all?
Each generation tends to view work, life and the balance between them in its own way, according to Mary Lu Gerke, who is vice president of clinical operations for Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center and stu-dies generational differences.
Take this quiz, developed with Gerke’s help, to see how your take on work-life issues matches those inside — and outside — your age group.
1. How do you view work-life balance?
A. I want balance between work and family. Family is the first priority for me.
B. You work until the work is done.
C. I want balance, and I want to do work that means something to me.
2. What does work mean to you?
A. Money and moving up the ladder.
B. I work because I need to have money, but work isn’t my whole life.
C. I want my work to make a difference.
3. When will you retire?
A. After I’m 70 years old. I’ll have 30 years to do whatever I want.
B. I’ll most likely work to the age of 65, but then I’ll keep working. What else am I going to do with my time? I might even start my own business.
C. I’ll most likely retire between the ages of 67 and 70. I’ll have the wealth and the health to spend time with my grandchildren and just enjoy life.
4. How many hours do you work on average?
A. I work no more than 8 hours a day, or 40 hours a week.
B. I work 45 hours.
C. I work 9 to 10 hours a day or 50 to 60 hours a week.
5. Where do you do your work?
A. Most of it I do in the office.
B. Eighty percent of my work is done in the office.
C. I do half my work from home.
6. How will you fund retirement?
A. I’ll use stock options.
B. I will have a portfolio and do my own trading.
C. I expect my employer to create a pension and retirement fund for me.
7. What do you do to relax?
A. I go home and meditate.
B. I go home and have a cocktail.
C. I go home and run.
8. What do you do for exercise?
A. I buy the equipment and it sits in the garage and looks at me.
B. I exercise on my breaks.
C. I belong to a gym and exercise five times a week.
9. What might you use to help yourself fall asleep?
A. Sleeping pills
B. Aromatherapy
C. Alcohol
10. What will life have been like for your children?
A. My kids went to day care. They came home after school to an empty house.
B. My kids were raised by both their parents. I was creative about how I took care of them. Perhaps I worked nights, and my husband/wife worked days.
C. My kids went to a day-care center inside my place of work so I could eat lunch with them and visit throughout the day.
11. How often do you take breaks throughout the day?
A. I’m encouraged to take a nap at work.
B. When I take a break, my boss says I’m slacking. But I do it anyway.
C. When I’m at work, I don’t take breaks.
12. How do you get in touch with the divine?
A. I go to church each week.
B. It’s not necessary to go to church to get spiritual fulfillment.
C. I make my own religion.
QUIZ ANSWERS
1. A = Gen X. B = Boomer. C = Gen Y.
2. A = Boomer. B = Gen X. C = Gen Y.
3. A = Gen Y. B = Boomer. C = Gen X.
4. A = Gen X. B = Gen Y. C = Boomer.
5. A = Boomer. B = Gen X. C = Gen Y.
6. A = Gen X. B = Gen Y. C = Boomer.
7. A = Gen Y. B = Boomer. C = Gen X.
8. A = Boomer. B = Gen Y. C = Gen X.
9. A = Gen X. B = Gen Y. C = Boomer.
10. A = Boomer. B = Gen X. C = Gen Y.
11. A = Gen Y. B = Gen X. C = Boomer.
12. A = Boomer. B = Gen X. C = Gen Y.
ABOUT THE GENERATIONS
Baby boomers
Born: 1943-60
Age: 47-64
Number: 76.2 million
Core values: Optimism, team orientation, personal gratification, health and wellness
Work-life balance: Many boomers feel they don’t have it, but they are beginning to see that they need it. In the past, boomers may have felt they didn’t have an option other than working all the time because that was the way to get ahead. Boomers came of age during a transitional time when men ceased to be the sole bread winners and women entered the work force in professional roles. Many female boomers worked double shifts, as full-time employees and moms.
Generation X
Born: 1960-80
Age: 27-47
Number: 51 million
Core values: Diversity, thinking globally, balance, techno literacy, fun.
Work-life balance: This is very important to Xers, who value family first. Xers look at their boomer parents and think, “I don’t know if I want to live my life that way.” Xers, who grew up with parents who weren’t home a lot, try to set their own work hours and be flexible with child care. Xers don’t want to be judged by the hours they work, but by their output and the quality of their work. Boomers might think their work ethic is poor — it’s not.
Generation Y
Born: 1980-2000
Age: 7-27
Numbers: 72.9 million
Core values: Optimism, civic duty, confidence, achievement
Work-life balance: This is important to Generation Y, also known as the Millenials, who want a work-life blend. Their work will blend with other parts of their lives — they’ll work from home, enroll their kids in their company’s in-house day care and enjoy portable careers. Millenials, like Xers, are multitaskers. They’ll do what it takes to get the job done, and they’ll probably do it in less time than the boomers, but not at the expense of balance.
SOURCES: Lisa Radtke, who works in leadership and staff development at Franciscan Skemp Health Care; Mary Lu Gerke, vice president of clinical operations at Gundersen Lutheran Medical Center
SURVEY
A survey of 435 La Crosse County residents conducted by the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Political Science Department between Feb. 27 and March 1 showed that job satisfaction increases with age, but so does stress.
<li> More than half of the respondents reported being very satisfied with their jobs. Here’s how that response breaks down by age:
18-25: 32.6 percent
26-34: 40.4 percent
35-54: 54.5 percent
55-64: 60 percent
65 and older: 81.8 percent
<li> More than a quarter reported experiencing a lot of stress related to their job. Here’s how that response breaks down by age:
18-25: 13 percent
26-34: 23.1 percent
35-54: 31.8 percent
55-64: 31.3 percent
65 and older: 0 percent |
