In a world where both the parents are pursuing their respective careers, Millennials learn to stand on their feet without any aid or 'au pair'. For them, every dawn ushers in an opportunity to learn something new, something valuable, and something by which they can contribute to the society.

“When you look in the mirror, you have to feel comfortable and confident with the image that you're carrying. Be okay with being yourself”. - Evin Robinson, New York on Tech

I rrespective of the fact of whether you call them Millennials or Generation Y, they shall continue to remain restless but audacious, and one, who shall always walk the talk. Born during the 80s or after, Millennials are most spoken about today; at the work place or elsewhere. For a moment, let us contemplate on what makes them the toast of many a discussion. The concept of 'work-life' balance which seems so daunting to us all is non-existent for this breed. For them, the mantra is a 'work-me balance', a term that best defines their outlook towards work and life.

There are many who consider Millennials as lazy, vocal, and having a care-a-damn attitude. The truth, however, is that they were taught to be independent since they were toddlers. In a world where both parents are pursuing their respective careers, Millennials learn to stand on their feet without any aid or 'au pair'. For them, every dawn ushers in an opportunity to learn something new, something valuable, and something by which they can contribute to the society. On many an occasion, spending time with their families tops their life priorities, and imbibing new knowledge follows suit, but they take great care to save enough time for leisure of their own private lives as well viz. friends, outdoors or simply exploring life.

The Millennials belong to the digital age, who work 'on-the-go', are ever eager to pursue new skills, multi-task, and prove to be a valuable asset, irrespective of where they are, and come with no expectations.

The balancing act of work and life

We studied our Millennial workforce and arrived at an understanding that the secret to their success lay in their very ideology of wanting to transform themselves every single day, for the betterment of society and self. They love to challenge themselves and willingly accept those challenges that are thrown to them. They accept them all, with a pinch of salt. They do so because they believe in themselves, their talent, and have faith in what they do. We were pleasantly surprised to know that this breed believes in global citizenship, and are extremely conscious about the ever-changing socio-economic environment, which inspires them to do things differently and produce better results. The word 'competition' is simply non-existent in their dictionary.

Amongst the several Millennials employed in our organisation, we comprehended that more than 70% of them consistently do a selfintrospection to understand where they err, and where they need to improvise at a professional and personal level. These are people who are totally free of judgment and bias, and believe in evolving and helping others grow. Interestingly, a majority of them want to learn and improve their leadership skills, and they do this online, participating in webinars while commuting, just before they can call it a day, or even during lunch break depending on their feasibility. Millennials, with age on their side, are constant seekers of new inventions, new concepts and the truth.

It has been a heartwarming experience to learn that these millennials have a passion unknown to us, a love that they communicate through building relationships across the rungs of hierarchy, to make a difference together. Call them bold if you may, but they are not rude, call them high-strung, but they are focused and goal oriented. These folks love to lead, but welcome decisions from everyone. They do not believe in layers of management and prefer to work in a collaborative manner that is respectful of all.

Millennials are fastidious in their preferred choice of work places; they prefer organisations that support their co-workers to the hilt. Their innate curiosity and vibrant nature makes them share their ideas with all - always with one thought in mind -in the interests of the organisation. They are anything but gender-biased, and would rather follow their dreams than a ten figure pay check, because they love to live by their rules.

We discovered that this breed of talent is time-bound and like to be happy. When it is time to shut shop, their focus veers towards family and leisure. In that space, they shut themselves from the rest of the world. After all, it is their time, and they would brook no interference to spoil that. They simply respect their lives outside of work.

Millennials choose to work flexibly - give them a 9-5 schedule, and you will see their faces change a million expressions. Over a period, we have understood that the more flexibility you offer them, the more productively they perform. Unlike the times of the bygone era, these guys look forward to starting a new week with high expectations and enthusiasm. They gear themselves up for bigger challenges; no cliché 'Monday morning blues' for them.

If for a moment, we forget their young age, we realize how inspiring their way of life is; they work together in complete harmony, are not competitive, believe in unison and growth, and happiness forms the core essence of their being. Character constitutes the crux of their lifestyles, and humanitarian work forms the basis of their living.

It may surprise you, but by the year 2020, the world will be richer by 86 million millennials in the global workplace, i.e. 40% of the total working population! Can you imagine the changing face of organisations with such numbers - more happiness, more harmony, more passion and more love. We cannot ask for anything more. We have started encouraging the millennial work force to the hilt- we welcome their thoughts, their disruptive ideas, and try to understand how best they could be implemented in the interests of the Group. Millennials are in fact the finest mentors in today's world who lead by example. Here is a toast to them- "May you keep making the world a happy place".