Quick announcement: I’m hiring a Chief of Staff!
If you know a very sharp young person in the US or Canada (or you are one yourself), this is a high-leverage, high-agency position that works closely with me on a daily basis. Think of it as a launchpad that will let you move into a senior position earlier in your career.
Read the full job description and how to apply right here.
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A while back, economists surveyed nearly 1,000 hiring managers.
Six in ten had fired a recent college grad that year. The top reason: no motivation.
I’m Gen X. I’m a manager. I’ve made that complaint myself.
But the story starts way before these kids ever applied for a job.
In the late 1970s, almost 58% of Gen X teenagers worked, doing whatever the boss said: bus the tables, mop the floors, clock in, clock out.
By 2018, summer teenage employment was down to about 35%.
It wasn’t about fewer jobs existing. IT was parents like me, swapping it for SAT prep, enrichment camps, and internships, all chasing college spots that weren’t getting any bigger.
But after all this enrichment, Gen Z then sees:
The 2008 crisis, which to a kid looks like a parent losing a job or losing their house
Everyone (them included) captured by infinite-doomscroll smartphones
COVID, where they do a year-plus of school on a crappy loaned Chromebook
And now AI is thinning out entry-level hiring.
My Depression-era relatives kept drawers full of paperclips. You never know when you might need one.
Same idea here. When a group of adults confuses you, look at what happened to them as kids.
So when a 23-year-old shows up and seems checked out, there’s a decent chance you’re the first real boss they’ve ever had.
Somebody has to teach it. Right now, that’s you.
Free talk this Thursday: How to pay your operators.
A conversation and Q&A with Michael Girdley and Tighe Burke
You hired someone to run your business. Now you have to decide what to pay them — and every option feels like a trap.
Pay conservatively and you scare off the people who could actually grow the thing.
Load it all into base and six months later they're comfortable, you're stuck, and the results are mediocre.
Pay up and you lie awake wondering if you just wildly overpaid compared to what everyone else is doing.
Tighe Burke places operators, GMs, and CEOs for holdcos, PE firms, and bootstrapped companies. He's seen the comp structures that work, and the ones that don’t.
RSVP and bring your questions.
Thursday, Oct 22 - 12 CT / 1 ET RSVP now to attend live (or sign up for the recording).
How to get the most out of Gen Z
Don’t get me wrong. I have a lot of faith in Gen Z’s abilities. But working with them is different.
Here are my top 10 suggestions for getting the most out of them.
Never tell Gen Z “that’s how it’s always been done”
Expect them to be demanding
Make sure they understand the “why”
Show them a path forward for their future
Expect anything you do to get shared online
Compensate them for their results and provide them autonomy
Avoid unnecessary bureaucracy
Be authentic with them
Expect them not to be so adult in their 20s
Be compassionate
(I expand on all of these points in my article here.)
Again, I’m not saying you need to coddle them. But when you really understand someone, it’s a lot easier to get incredible results.
Have you hired Gen Z? What’s your experience been?
Michael
P.S. I did a deep dive video on this, just this week. It’s one of my members-only videos, where I put some of the more niche topics I like to cover — murder, supermodels, fentanyl… you know, the fun stuff.
You can join on YouTube here or on Facebook here.
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FREE EVENTS COMING UP
Thu Oct 22 • 12 CT / 1 ET
How to pay your operator: a talk for business owners
with Michael Girdley and Tighe Burke
Thu Nov 12 • 12 CT / 1 ET
From 1 to 100 Acquisitions: People, Processes, and Financing
with Michael Girdley and Logan Leslie
Other ways I can help…
The Low-Risk Business → 30 years of building, turned into one playbook
Hire With Near → Build high-performing remote teams for 70% less
Bedrock → Validate the numbers before you buy a business
Compound Conference → where business owners figure out their next move