Gen-X Workers Say They're Sick & Tired Of Being Stuck In The Workplace's 'Middle Child' Role
Karola G | CanvaLet’s just say it: Baby Boomers were supposed to retire and relinquish the keys to the corporate kingdom.
That was the deal, right?
That’s always been the deal.
Gen-X workers have long suffered a career version of middle child syndrome
This condition has only worsened since our forebears (read: Boomers) broke the implied work-world contract. Instead, they squandered their savings, extended their work life, and embroiled themselves in an endless war for relevancy with those pesky Millennials, the only generation to try and distance themselves from themselves (geriatricMillennials are apparently a different breed than standard Millennials, who knew?)
The skirmish has since expanded to include Gen-Z corporate kids who long to exchange their participation trophies for C-suite titles. Watching the trio argue over a prize we’ve discovered to be essentially meaningless is simultaneously gratifying and exhausting.
As Gen-Xers begin to flip the odometer on turning 50, we face dual challenges of ageism and salary pricing pressure
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We’d complain, but we’re more prone to snark than snivels. So we’ll just sit back and watch the show … for a while, anyway.
Ultimately, Gen-X people are action-oriented fixers
To remedy this nonsensical twist of fate, Gen-Xers will do what we’ve always done: leverage our latch-key kid independent streak and sprint down one of three roads:
- Outshine our generational competitors with a brute-force work ethic.
- Consult in our chosen profession.
- Take a left and start something new.
Many of my brethren find they have the optimal blend of energy, experience, and savings to walk roads two or three. It will be interesting to see what happens to the generational bookends if the small but mighty middle heads for the exit.
Maybe Gen-Z will slide smoothly into the corner office and render the rest of us irrelevant. Perhaps the Boomers will forever retain the reins of power. It won’t matter to us. Gen-X is scrappy — and we’ll do just fine.
Tim Toterhi is a CHRO, author, and executive advisor who has been quoted in publications such as Fast Company, Forbes, Fox Business News, and the HuffPost and profiled in the book Magnificent Leadership.
