From this week\u2019s reading\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt \u2018Cooker Bar & Grille\u2019 in Columbus, Ohio, one evening in the mid-1980\u2019s, ten of us filled a big long booth for dinner. We had all become new acquaintances at a recent party thrown by a bunch of unattached, high-achieving career women who worked obsessively at the corporate headquarters of \u2018The Limited.\u2019 For a decade, these workaholic ladies had seldom taken time to socialize but finally declared <\/em>enough!<\/em><\/strong> They threw a Wednesday evening poolside party at a condo complex, telling each other to invite any guy friends they knew on the theory that \u2018one woman\u2019s trash might be another woman\u2019s treasure.\u2019 A buddy of mine overheard their party-planning discussion at a T.G.I. Friday\u2019s restaurant and phoned me on their behalf to invite me, adding, \u2018They\u2019ll probably even welcome a guy <\/em>like you.<\/em><\/strong>\u2019 Hmmm. I went to the party and promptly befriended a gaggle of dynamic women, as well as a couple of the guys who had come.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Soon after the party came that night at \u2018Cooker\u2019 with the ten of us. The restaurant booth seemed too long for a group conversation, so we splintered into mini-chats. I found myself sitting across the booth from one of the guys who had attended the party, a local architect who is about fifteen years my senior. I don\u2019t even remember what we were discussing, but at one point I said to him, \u2018You know, Pat, I\u2019ll bet you and I feel differently about this topic because <\/em>you and I came of age during different times.<\/em><\/strong>\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n As he and I explored that thought, the other talk around the booth gradually came to a halt, as the other members of the group first listened and then wanted to weigh in on our discussion. When they did, the conversation<\/em> ignited.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n What followed were several hours of explosive and riveting discussion, all of it coming from a point of view none of us had ever considered and knew a thing about.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n MY generation! YOUR generation! <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My generation believes THIS! Well, mine believes THAT! <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, I think your generation is wrong! Well, I think we\u2019re right!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the evening, I left the restaurant scratching my head and asking myself, \u2018What the heck just happened in there?\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Friends, it is no secret that the Intramuralist deeply desires to promote and encourage interactive, respectful dialogue. We wish to be a humble part of the solution, encouraging the consideration of those points of view we don\u2019t know a thing about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That said, I find myself pondering the plethora of communication obstacles that impede respectful dialogue\u2026 surely it\u2019s more than Democrats vs. Republicans\u2026 Jews vs. anti-Semites\u2026 chickens vs. chicken-eaters on Capitol Hill\u2026 more than just those perceived cultural pittings which garner the most (and often, too-much) <\/em>attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This past week I finished a great book recommended by a wise friend which offered increased insight in that area: \u201cThe Generational Imperative\u201d by Chuck Underwood. Truthfully, it\u2019s an area I have never pondered quite so thoughtfully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Underwood is an author, speaker, teacher, trainer, and former ESPN college play-by-play announcer. He is also considered an eminent authority in generational study. Sharing nuggets such as\u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Silent Generation \u2014 those born between 1927-1945 \u2014 is described as \u201cthe generation born too late to be World War II heroes and too soon to immerse themselves in the social activism of the 1960s.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Boomers \u2014 born between 1946-1964 \u2014 they are the generation that, as Silent Frank Kaiser wrote, \u201csqueezes life for all generations.\u201d They like to think that they are always still young.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gen Xers \u2014 born between 1965-1981 \u2014 is a smaller generation, very individualistic, and the first generation that grew up with a distrust of previously trusted, societal institutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the Millenials \u2014 born between 1982 and into the mid 2000s \u2014 (don\u2019t call them \u201cGen Y\u201d) <\/em>\u2014 is massive. They are also the most adult-supervised generation, pretty pessimistic about the country\u2019s direction, and feel tons of educational\/grade pressure.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n [Info on Gen Z is still being formulated.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n Friends, these are mere snippets of info, but the reality is that there is significant variance between generations in regard to what they value, how they work, and how they communicate, and thus, how best to communicate with them. Generational differences are not about right vs. wrong or better vs. worse. Once more, it\u2019s about learning how to respect and communicate with those who are different than we.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Stay tuned for part 2 on Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Respectfully\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n AR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" From this week\u2019s reading\u2026 \u201cAt \u2018Cooker Bar & Grille\u2019 in Columbus, Ohio, one evening in the mid-1980\u2019s, ten of us filled a big long booth for dinner. We had all become new acquaintances at a recent party thrown by a bunch of unattached, high-achieving career women who worked obsessively at the corporate headquarters of \u2018The … <\/p>\n