The Return Digiday

In this episode, we cover Gen Z’s origin story: they were raised to be resilient from the get-go. We discover how major world events – being born around 9/11, entering school during the time of mass shootings, then graduating into a pandemic – have shaped them as they enter the workforce today. And we meet Jerah Reeves, a Gen Zer who works at the Binghamton University School of Management in New York State, who had to leave behind his dream of being an NFL football player, and switch careers entirely, when Covid-19 hit.

In this episode, we talk about the importance of mentorship in the workplace. There’s an awful lot to learn from experienced workers, and there has been a long tradition of passing down that experience – usually, in the office. But when Gen Z entered the workforce, it was remote. How did that impact building mentorship in the earlier days of their careers? 
Tracy Ziemer, one of host Cloey Callahan's first mentors, shares what advice she passed on to Callahan over Zoom at the beginning of her career. And Danielle Farage, a Gen Z entrepreneur, tells us how she is redefining mentorship with the idea of "friend-torships."

In this episode, we break down how important corporate social responsibility is to Gen Zers looking for a job. Making sure that a company’s values align with their own is at the top of their checklist.
That mindset has impacted their job search, to the point they even say no to the highest paying positions to work at a company that closely aligns with their values instead.
Choosing a career that aligns with your values was the case for recent college graduate Aldrin Villahermosa II. Growing up on the island of O’ahu in Hawaii, he saw a shortage of healthcare workers and systemic issues in the public health sector. That's why he pursued a master's degree in public health.
And Gen Zers aren't just choosing a career that aligns with what they value – they're joining unions too. Genessee Floressantos, associate publicist, international sales at HarperCollins Publishers, tells us what it was like to be a part of HarperCollins' nearly 90-day strike.

The days of working for one employer for the majority of your life are long gone.
Our relationship with work has slowly evolved over time. In 2022, 22% of workers aged over 20 years old spent a year or less at their jobs – the highest percentage with a tenure that short since 2006, according to data from the Employee Benefit Research Institute. About 33% spent two years or less in their jobs over the same period.
But Gen Z takes it a step further: they aren't even dedicated to a single employer at one time.
According to research from marketing data and analytics company Kantar, 40% of Gen Zers report having two or more jobs. That’s a figure that suggests that “quiet quitting” is no more than the need to be at their next job on time.
In this episode of The Return, we talk to two Gen Zers who have opposite beliefs regarding job loyalty. Kyle Lawerence stayed at his first job in the finance industry for 14 months, even though he didn't enjoy it because he was fully remote and it was hard to make connections. Julie, on the other hand, is juggling four to five jobs at any given time – her 9 to 5 and other gigs, like barista, cater waiter, and events coordinator.
Rikki Goldenberg, a career and leadership coach, breaks it down for us in this episode. How does a Gen Zer make the decision to quiet quit? And how does that turn into actual quitting?

Our whole lives we're told to look up to older people, learn from them and take their guidance. But what happens when a Gen Zer ends up in a leadership position managing people older than them?
We spoke to Gen Z bosses about the realities they face as they work with older generations. They’re bringing fresh perspectives that might be misunderstood by more seasoned workers. In this episode, we check back in with Jerah Reeves, who we spoke to earlier in the series, to see how he handles these dynamics. Reeves is the coordinator of the transformational leaders program at Binghamton University of New York, where he helps students – many of whom are older than him.
Leaders are getting younger overall. Nearly a third of newly appointed S&P 500 CEOs last year were younger than 50 years old, which is more than twice the rate in 2018, according to research from McKinsey & Company.
Want to be featured in a future episode? All season we’ve been hearing directly from Gen Z workers about their experiences starting their careers in this new era of work. And now we want to hear from you. If you’re a member of Gen Z, or a manager of one, or even a parent of one, we want to hear your thoughts on friend-torship, work-life balance, quiet quitting, and any other ways you think this new generation is changing the way we think about work. You can call and leave a voicemail at 845-580-2884 or send a voice memo to cloey@worklife.news and it might be featured in a future episode.

WorkTok, or CareerTok, is in full force.
Combined, those hashtags on TikTok have over four billion views. There are sneak peaks into “a day in my life” from the perspective of everyone from McDonald’s employees to top executives at Fortune 500s. You can hear people vent about how they struggle to nail a work-life balance and there are those who share their 9 to 5 routines and how they find time for fun things to do after work. And there are salary transparency videos and even tips from career experts on how to land a job.
In fact, Gen Zers are swapping LinkedIn for TikTok, realizing they can find job opportunities in an environment that is more attuned to their career and workplace goals and hopes. Andrea Moreno, who we speak to in this episode, is one of them. She landed her job as a PR account executive thanks to a TikTok connection.
Also in this episode we speak to a WorkTok creator, Jerry Lee. His account is devoted to giving career advice, including how to optimize the job search process, how to write a better resume, how to ask for a raise and even how to deal with passive aggressive co-workers. Shola West, a Gen Zer, has also dedicated her TikTok to covering career tips, leaning into building her own brand as a young professional working in media and marketing.
Want to be featured in a future episode? All season we’ve been hearing directly from Gen Z workers about their experiences starting their careers in this new era of work. And now we want to hear from you. If you’re a member of Gen Z, or a manager of one, or even a parent of one, we want to hear your thoughts on friend-torship, work-life balance, quiet quitting, and any other ways you think this new generation is changing the way we think about work. You can call and leave a voicemail at 845-580-2884 or send a voice memo to cloey@worklife.news and it might be featured in a future episode.