“Lazy girl jobs” and the concept of ‘hard work’

Work continuously evolves and that’s a good thing. From how we work (think: generative AI) to where we work (think: virtual meetings from anywhere), we’d be foolish to ignore all of this change. New employees are entering the workforce each and every year, and these new perspectives can sometimes challenge old ways of thinking.

You probably know I’m not a fan of reductive conversations about intergenerational workplaces. Gen X does this…Gen Z does that…why do all Millennials do this? These conversations aren’t helpful to anybody. Trying to boil things down and generalize is a much too simplified way of looking at such complex issues. But what I have noticed is that there’s a growing divide across generations around one particular concept: hard work.

What is hard work? And who gets to decide how we define it?

With an influx of Gen Z (and before we know it - Gen Alpha) employees joining the workforce, the disconnect between what ‘hard work’ looks like across lines of difference is continuing to widen. Hard work used to have a certain “look,” i.e. behaviors that were considered to indicate that an employee was dedicated, hard-working, worthy of promotion, and so on. Things like: staying late after working hours to finish a project, taking on extra work outside of one’s job description, attending every single after-work function to ‘show face’ and build relationships. These behaviors were widely considered to be what ‘hard work’ looks like.

Here’s a personal example. Before I founded Rework Work, I spent years working in industries from legal, to financial services, to real estate to HR (that’s a story for another time). In each role, I would start out with the minimally defined duties, but by the time I was ready to move on, I’d be in charge of double or even triple my original workload. The work would keep piling up with the expectation I was just going to keep taking on more and more.

But the world of work is changing. And what used to work well for folks in the past, is not working anymore. This is evident in the kinds of conversations we see trending among professionals today. Think about the concept of “lazy girl jobs” (side note: I dislike this term because setting boundaries doesn’t equal being lazy, and why are they “lazy girl’ but not “lazy boy” jobs and who came up with this ridiculous title anyway?) but the conversation does bring awareness to an important point). What would it look like to create a world where folks didn’t have to run themselves into the ground for the sake of a job? And does the fact that folks are finally setting boundaries and refusing to be overworked automatically mean that they’re not hard-working?

Absolutely not. So, what does hard work look like now? And how can workplace professionals shift their mindsets to be open to new perspectives? Here are some ideas to get you thinking:

Be an Inclusive Leader

For leaders, it’s time we redefine what hard work means. And I don’t just mean this conceptually - we also have to change the definition in practice. This means that the old ways of measuring hard work likely won’t fit anymore. We need to create new metrics for success, metrics that align with the landscapes of our workplaces today.

I’ve been saying this for the last 20 years: measuring success should be as simple as milestones and goal completion. That’s it. Did the employee complete the task that was set out for them? Did they reach the agreed-upon milestones? If so, that’s really all there is to it. Why managers get so bogged down in how their employees achieve these milestones is a mystery to me. Who cares which pen they used to solve the problem as long as they solved it? We’ve got to get ourselves out of this mindset of micromanaging, and be willing to do things differently. Just because one system has worked for years doesn’t mean that your employees can’t innovate a new way to do things more efficiently. Your employees are adults. They will do the job you’re paying them to do, but first, you have to let them.

Lead With Inclusion

The entire concept of “lazy girl jobs” really just boils down to setting boundaries. It’s saying: yes, I want to be paid well. Yes, I want to be able to afford to live. But I’m not willing to work myself into the ground in order to do so. These boundaries are healthy, and our working world needs them.

There is a pervasive, yet inaccurate view, that Gen Z employees don't want to work. And I continually ask leaders and managers to finish that sentence. Gen Z employees don't want to work for a micromanaging supervisor. Gen Z employees don't want to work in a job that isn't paying them a living wage. Gen Z employees don't want to work for a company that doesn't value them as an individual and promote them accordingly.

What boundaries often look like in practice is considering not only our own personal needs, but also the needs of others on our teams - which is something that many people really aren’t willing to do. For example, imagine that your entire team is in the process of transitioning from fully remote work back to working on-site in an office. However, one team member has a two-hour commute and is struggling with this return to work. There are a couple of ways the team could approach this. They could dismiss it, say that’s too bad, I guess this person either has to suck it up, or they can’t be on the team anymore. Or, the team could really ask themselves what’s possible. If this employee is a valued member of the team, we should be willing to think about ways that we can accommodate them. Brainstorm together, and hopefully find a solution where everyone can get what they need. If you’re willing to think outside the box, you might actually learn to see things from a different perspective.

If you’re looking for more ways to create more inclusive teams within your organization, did you know that we’ve moved our Rework Workspace here to Substack to make it easier for you to get access to resources? We still have issues of Lead With Inclusion, our Why of DEI course, unconscious bias education and all of my LinkedIn Learning courses in one place, but now it's all just one click away. So explore what the Rework Workspace has to offer you - and don’t forget to share this with your team.

About Stacey Gordon:

Stacey Gordon is a Global Talent Advisor, Bias Disrupter and an unapologetic evangelist for inclusion. As the Founder of Rework Work, she anchors action using change management principles while facilitating mindset shifts. She is a global keynote speaker, Top Voice on LinkedIn and a popular LinkedIn Learning [IN]structor reaching nearly two million unique learners who enjoy her courses.

Want to work with Stacey live? Consider booking her for your next keynote, leadership development meeting or consulting engagement.