Friday night I facilitated a session on Generational Differences for the Advisory Board of Woman’s Missionary Union of Virginia (WMU-VA). My presentation included an overview of the four generations and a look at how those differences play out in today’s culture (the workplace, church, WMU, etc.). And then we got personal.

I asked the women in attendance to give examples of how they’ve experienced those differences within their own missions groups, within their churches or their workplaces. Their stories were varied, and yet similar. The big “aha” came as we laughed together about our differences and truly began to see that different is neither good nor bad. It just is.

7 Observations that Struck Me:

1. Traditionalists were completely in the dark as we discussed Facebook and blogs.
2. One pre-Traditionalist lady (born in 1921) has seen change happen more rapidly than any other generation, at speeds that could only be characterized as intimidating and probably even frightening.
3. One Baby Boomer said she used email and could view You Tube videos (from her email) but didn’t know “how to get there.” Think about that. She didn’t know how to navigate the URL in a web browser.
4. Another Boomer said she didn’t realize you could look up phone numbers online. (We never use phone books in our house.)
5. Yet another Boomer had never heard of T9 technology with SMS. She had, however, just recently started using IM for the first time.
6. Gen X’ers could not fathom living a life without telephones (especially smart phones). They were also the first to consistently have computers in school.
7. The Millennials in the group are the iPod generation (who download music and get their primary news/information from the web).

Is it any wonder that conflicts exist in organizations? We see things from vastly different perspectives. For too long many of us, even we who have committed ourselves to following Christ’s call to share his love with a world in need, sometimes view people in generations other than our own as “less than” people in our own generation. In reality, they are simply different from us. Again, neither is good nor bad. Just different.

Saturday morning before breakfast, I had the chance to talk with Lucy Palmer, a Traditionalist from the Norfolk Baptist Association. This beautiful white haired mature woman of faith began the conversation thanking me for the session Friday night. Then she said something that blew me away.

“For the first time in my life, I now understand why the younger women don’t want to play with us.”

She was beginning to get it. I could see it on her face and in her eyes, her heart longing to reach out and embrace women in other generations.

The challenge for WMU groups, churches and other non-profit organizations, as well as businesses, is to move beyond understanding and begin bridging the gap. WMU of Virginia is ready to take those next steps. It’ll be exciting to be a part of their journey.

What about you? How have you noticed generational differences in your workplace, church or non-profit organization? How have the generations collided? What are you doing to bridge the gap?

Photo by Skott Chandler, used with permission.