11 Actually Legit Reasons Millennials Are Having A Hard Time Making It Through A Full Day At Work
Melnikov Dmitriy | ShutterstockAs many young people are struggling with being overworked and underpaid, they're starting to lose motivation in the workplace. Not only are they stressed out about rising costs and economic turmoil, but the last thing they need is to come into work and feel overwhelmed.
Millennials, in particular, are having an increasingly more difficult time making it through a full work day, but it's not because they're lazy or don't want to put effort into their work. In fact, it's likely due to not feeling supported enough to take care of themselves, so they're less inclined to do their best at work.
Millennials are having a hard time making it through the work day for these reasons
1. Their boss micromanages them
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According to author and coach Victor Lipman, micromanagers don't just stifle productivity in the workplace, they also sabotage creativity and motivation. When millennials have micromanaging bosses, they become resentful. As a result, they're less productive and innovative with their time.
Many micromanagers weaponize a false sense of urgency amongst their employees, making everything seem like it's the most important task. It dampens trust in the workplace, where employees don't feel safe trusting their managers when something is truly important and timely.
2. They're underpaid
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Younger generations' are just not incentivized to do anything more than the bare minimum. Considering almost the majority of millennials are rent-burdened and paying more than 30% of their income on housing, it's clear they're not making enough in their jobs to sustain a comfortable life.
With rising costs and stagnant wages, they have much bigger things to worry about. Because they're underpaid, they're not thinking about doing more than they can handle, and put their well-being first.
3. They're immersed in an unhealthy work environment
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Toxic workplaces tend to leave employees feeling burnt out and oftentimes physically unwell. It's one of the many reasons millennials find it hard to make it through a full day, as they're too busy battling internal turmoil to overwork themselves.
In workplace cultures where mental health support is overlooked and bosses contribute to an unstable environment, employees feel isolated from work responsibilities and even their entire teams. How can you motivate yourself to work hard for an employer that is actively sabotaging your personal well-being?
4. They're held to unrealistic expectations
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According to executive coach Liz Kislik, many managers and bosses pull from previous experiences and workplace cultures to craft expectations for their teams. But they often ignore the new demands and support their employees need, which can give them misguided and unrealistic expectations.
With impossible standards and a lack of support, many employees struggle to get through the day, frequently stuck in this cycle of disappointment. They're discouraged from not meeting expectations and are often punished by employers.
5. They prefer to worry about personal things
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According to hybrid work expert Paulyne Sombret, over 95% of millennials view work-life balance as a strong priority when making career decisions. This generation is focused on finding balance between their professional and personal lives, with many even willing to give up added compensation for the sake of work-life balance.
However, when they're not able to find balance in the workplace due to overbearing bosses or long hours, they struggle to find motivation and urgency to support their employers. They'd much rather focus on their personal lives outside of the workplace.
6. They refuse to make their job their entire identity
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For people in high-paying or overbearing positions, it's common for employees to make their jobs their entire life and identity. They're sacrificing free time for the sake of their job, so they tend to enmesh their identity and personality with their work.
But this tendency has adverse effects on personal well-being. For some people, who find purpose and joy in their jobs, this overstep doesn't mean all that much, as they're finding value in professional work. But for those who don't, it's harder to overwork themselves when they're battling turmoil.
Millennials who can't work a full day have likely burnt themselves out from making their job their entire lives, or they've been punished by a toxic workplace who expects it. It fuels a cycle of pressure and resentment, which leads to chronic stress.
7. They don't feel heard or appreciated
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In the workplace relationships between employers and teams, it's important for people to feel heard and valued. However, despite being of fundamental importance to us all, we tend to subconsciously overlook it, especially where stress and resentment tend to take over.
Millennials usually don't feel appreciated or valued enough by their employers to do anything but their basic tasks. They don't feel incentivized to give up their personal time or motivated to overwork themselves. They can hardly afford their rent and groceries as it is.
8. Their bosses make everything feel 'urgent'
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According to psychiatrist Dimitrios Tsatiris, employees suffering from chronic stress or anxiety tend to work with employers who make everything urgent and important, even when it doesn't need to be. They're always expecting their demands to be fulfilled immediately, making employees drop everything to cater to their needs.
When things pile up and everything is top priority, employees take on the burden of stress. For some, the lack of urgency they ironically feel as a result of this anxiety is the way they cope, procrastinating or avoiding any tasks to self-soothe.
9. They're burnt out
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While it might have been an unspoken job rule for older generations to hide their stress and conceal their burnout, millennials are much more conscious of this. From battling resentment to sabotaging their personal well-being, they can't make it through a day of work without thinking about how burnt out they are.
Millennials will take the time they need to rest and recover, even if that means not being as productive with their workload. They're less likely to overexert themselves for the sake of a job or employer, especially if they've experienced a history of being overworked and underpaid.
10. They're battling chronic stress or anxiety
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Whether they're dealing with personal struggles or workplace burnout, millennial workers experiencing chronic stress and anxiety tend to be less productive, according to a study published in the Kansas Journal of Medicine.
They're too busy grappling with their internal emotional turmoil and stress to consider overworking themselves any further. Especially in a toxic workplace environment where they already don't feel supported or appreciated, the last thing on their mind is pushing themselves further.
11. They want to work from home
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Many millennials caught a glimpse at a remote work structure during the pandemic, and now, they're yearning for that same flexibility. But since being forced back into the office, they've become resentful, trying to prove to their employers that it's possible for them to not only get their work done, but to be more productive at home.
They know that they could do the same, if not more, work at home than in the office, but they're still forced to get ready and commute, and then engage with co-workers for the sake of their employer's comfort. They're struggling to get through the day out of resentment and contempt for their place of work.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
