I’m a millennial but have insight. Think about the 90s. Didn’t even have MapQuest yet. No cell phones.

Okay, now you’re at work, and your sister miscarries her pregnancy. When do you discover this? 6pm? 8pm? Later that week?

Gen Z finds out between customers. Or emails.

In the idle time you used to spend daydreaming about your girlfriend or lackthereof, gen Z is learning about wildfires that will reduce their air quality. They’re googling rent worldwide to figure out if it’s time to seriously consider moving somewhere cheaper and colder.

What am I getting at?

We as a society get ever more connected. We are therefore ever less present from our 9-5. There is so much going on that is relevant to us, and an 8 hour chunk of my day is really asking too much to sacrifice.

If your employees are at a computer, let tell them outright it’s totally okay to watch Netflix or YouTube, or reddit, or lemmy, whatever as long as the work is getting done on time.

If your employees are serving customers, let them take frequent 10 minute breaks to use their phone or be away from humans.

Let them know you understand they have WAY more going on in their lives than your job which barely pays bills. Then, act that way.

But also, gen Z knows that no one gives raises like new bosses. So, don’t expect them to stick around long.