By: Grace Hoening, former Social Media Coordinator
As a young female professional it is hard to go to conferences and get taken seriously. It’s hard to sit back and listen to people who “know more” tell you things that you already know. Now don’t get me wrong, every conference I go to, I do learn more but that doesn’t mean I don’t have to jump through hoops to get there. I have to make sure I’m dressing the part because otherwise I’m not being professional enough. That doesn’t just mean looking nice, that’s business casual leaning towards the side of business professional because what I lack in age I need to make up for in how I look. I also can’t be taking notes on my phone, because “Gen Z are glued to their phones and it’s the only thing they know.” It’s never impressive where I’m at in my career or that I get to attend conferences and represent my organization. It’s cute that they trust little ole me in this kind of setting. As a young professional woman, it is so easy to feel like I am not enough. That is so discouraging.
While I wish this was an incident that happened once, I have countless memories of conferences I’ve attended that have made me feel less than enough. I have sat in rooms where older generations have said “Gen Z are the most connected but least able to make relationships,” and there are so many more instances too. I struggle with people telling me “Gen Z are the future!” because we are not. Gen Z is the generation of people born between 1997 and 2012. That is an age range of 13 to 27 year olds, making over half of us adults.
While I do not have the same experience as people older than me, that doesn’t mean I don’t have anything to bring to the table. I sat in a room where everyone laughed when a presenter made a joke about how Gen Z doesn’t know what a Rolodex is. And yes, I didn’t know what that was, but with a quick google search I can learn what that is and teach you how to use LinkedIn. My lack of knowledge of a staple office supply in the 80s does not discredit all the abilities I do have.
At a conference I attended there was a presentation all about Gen Z. Some highlights of the presentation included how we are passionate about what we believe in and how when we find a cause or organization we want to support, we will be devoted to the mission. It might take us a little bit to get on board as we always do some digging before we go all in, but we know our way around the internet and know how to find something that both matches our beliefs and is credible. We were described as loud and proud. The presenters said we have a lot to say and good insight, people just need to listen. These are all great things, throughout the entire presentation, there was not a negative thing said about us. They were so close to nailing this presentation, yet so far. The youngest person on stage had “proud elder millennial” in their LinkedIn bio. This really screamed practice what you preach. I’m not saying Everyone in the panel had to be born before 1997, I’m just saying it would have been nice to see myself represented on stage.
If you want us to feel welcomed, think about the spaces you’re inviting us into (or excluding us from.) I love it when I feel empowered, but if it’s backhanded, I would argue it’s worse than if you would have just done nothing. We want authenticity, not some fake apology with a lack of empathy to cross it off your to-do list. As a 20 year old, there were places and spaces I legally couldn’t enter. That’s okay, just because I can’t drink doesn’t mean I can’t have fun whether that be going bowling, or spending time with people I care about. While I couldn’t drink, that doesn’t stop people around me from having alcohol. And again, there’s nothing wrong with that. The problem comes in when parts of a conference supposedly empowering Gen Z is held at a rooftop bar with a strictly 21+ policy. It’s an issue when before said event the hosts are describing the beautiful view and how “everyone is invited” when I know I’m not. And you have to bring it up more the next day because of how much fun it was. But don’t worry, I was told, you’ll have other time to network. Yes I did, from 8-9 in the morning as people are starting to drink their coffee and not ready to talk to people let alone network. And nobody did talk to us between 8-9 each morning, even when we tried networking and building connections. There was a little bit more time when we got to network, and when someone asked “not to be rude, but how old are you?” it was followed by “well it’s an open bar, so I don’t think they would check your ID if you wanted to get something to drink.” I don’t want a drink, I want a seat at the table.
I went to my first conference as a professional when I was 16. Not only was I invited, but I was also one of the presenters. FoodRecovery.org saw my potential and gave me an internship. They saw my passion and valued my voice. FoodRecovery.org believed in me and gave me a seat at the table. They believe in young people.
If you want Gen Z in your workspace and you want to empower them, take a good look at yourself. Are you giving them an environment where they are heard and listened to? Are you giving them the respect they deserve? Are you making them feel welcomed and not excluded?
I have come to a point where I never share my age or the fact that I’m still in school with people in professional settings unless they bring it up first. It sucks when people discredit me because I haven’t finished my undergrad or because I’m not qualified because I’m young. I’ve been working with FoodRecovery.org for 6 years. That’s longer than other participants have worked with their organization, but I’m “less than” simply because what I have in experience I lack in age. I’ve been a part of a team who in 2024 recovered over 81 million pounds of food. It was through young innovative minds that we were founded and thanks to young innovative minds that we can continue to grow and develop.
I didn’t get to where I am today because I knew how to behave and when to sit down and let the more important people talk. I’m here because I know when to advocate for myself and I know my entire team supports me. I know they have my back when I am treated less than and I know that they will encourage me to speak up. In fact, I wrote this blog post because they encouraged me to share my experience with the hopes that conference organizers and alike, will keep in mind that the drink does not matter as much as the seat.
So yes, I don’t want a drink, I want a seat at the table.
We, Gen Zers, want a seat at the table.