What Nobody's Telling Gen Z About Work | Giselle Sandy-Phillips

This conversation opens on calling, guidance, and what it looks like to trust a path before you can see where it leads, and that path is exactly how Giselle Sandy-Phillips ended up writing a career guide for Gen Z. (Book talk starts around 24:00, if you want to jump ahead.) She built it as a family project: her own kids gave feedback on every chapter, and her daughter's photo is on the cover. 

In this conversation, Wendy and Giselle explore:

• The gap she kept seeing between how young employees actually think and communicate, vs. the myth that they are lazy, entitled, and unprepared
• How financial literacy, mental health, and career planning all ended up in the same book
• How the project shifted the moment she stopped keeping it private and let her own kids shape what made it into the final book

Giselle's book started as one woman noticing a hole on the shelf and deciding to fill it. What's followed — award recognition, international book fairs, a growing list of press — has as much to do with the people she brought along for the process as it does with her own drive to see it through.

Connect with Giselle:

Get her book, Thriving in the Modern Workplace: A Gen Z Guide to Success: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1969319089?tag=syty-20

Instagram: instagram.com/hrmeetsgenz

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gisellesandyphillips/

Facebook: facebook.com/p/Giselle-Sandy-Phillips-61578241349749

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:08

Hi friends, this is Wendy Harrow, and welcome to the Say Yes to Yourself podcast. On the Say Yes to Yourself podcast, you'll hear stories from women just like us who are adding the practice of saying yes in their daily lives in big and small ways, and as a result are experiencing the truth that everybody wins when you say yes to yourself. Saying yes to yourself is a graceful unfolding, an intentional becoming of the very best version of you. It is my hope that in these conversations we are able to find our truth and be inspired and empowered to live our very best lives. I'm so excited to go on this journey with you, and I look forward to finding a bit of our own story in each other's. Bonjour Monami, welcome back to the podcast and happy Friday. I'm so glad you're here. I hope you have big, fun, fabulous summer plans or winter plans if you are in the southern hemisphere. I want to know. I want to know what you're up to. I feel like I'm always telling you everything I'm doing all week. And no one likes a one-sided conversation. So please hit that fan mail button and just tell me something. Tell me something fun you're doing. Message me on Instagram, send me an email, all the things. You know, I love that we are in community, that we are in dialogue. I loving these conversations and I love the view out my window. Oh my gosh. I am having so much fun being in France. I am having so much fun being here with Amelia. I'm having so much fun knowing that things are happening at my house in Massachusetts also. I've got some big um systems work happening there. I have creative and residence coming. I have an elopement, I have uh photo shoots, all of these fun, beautiful things. There's a barn dinner, birthday parties, all of these great things, and I'm not even there. Isn't that fun? We can create these beautiful lives that are expansive that keep happening in our absence, not because we've transitioned, but because we're living our other big, beautiful, fabulous life in another house, in another country, wherever that is for you. And I just you guys know I'm saying yes to myself, and it's delicious. And I know you're saying yes to yourself as well, because if you weren't, I would be obnoxious to you and you would not be listening to this podcast. So hooray for us. It's very fun to be us, and I'm so excited to hear all the things that you are saying yes to in this season. Today's guest is fabulous. We have Giselle Sandy Phillips. She is an award-winning author, speaker, and next-gen workforce strategist. As a mother of two Gen Z young adults, Giselle saw firsthand how talented this generation is and how often they second guess themselves in a world that misunderstands them. That experience, combined with over two decades in leadership and consulting, inspired her to write Thriving in a Modern Workplace, a Gen Z Guide to Success. Through her company, World of Consulting, Giselle helps leaders and young professionals bridge generational gaps and build high trust workplaces. But at the heart of her message is something deeply personal. You don't need a title to lead. You need clarity and confidence and the courage to say yes to yourself first. Won't she just be the best representation of just that? Please enjoy this gorgeous conversation with Giselle Sandy Phillips. Giselle, I am already so excited about this conversation. I cannot wait to hear everything that is wild and wonderful in your world. Thank you so much for being here.

SPEAKER_01 4:41

Oh, thank you so much for having me, Wendy. Um, it's such a pleasure to be here to speak with you and just to really get into how I'm saying yes to myself in this season.

SPEAKER_00 4:51

Yes, yes, and more. Yes. I just have to take a moment. I know I do this all the time. So, sweet listener, bear with me. I can't believe I'm at work right now. I can't believe that it is my job to shine a spotlight on fabulous women and their fabulous yes. And I love that I created this job for myself.

SPEAKER_01 5:22

And it's not great, right?

SPEAKER_00 5:24

Like, and I feel like a job's not the right word, but like this work, this calling, this invitation, this inspired action, this mission of goodness is a yes that I say to myself. And I love that it is growing, that the impact is far and wide, that the ripple effects I don't even ever know about. And I'm certain that so much of those same feelings are what you're experiencing in the things that you are putting out in the world. Obviously, you've got recognition and things that you do hear back. You get feedback, you have reviews, all of these things, but there's so much more that we never hear about firsthand, but we feel energetically, and it motivates us and inspires us to do even more.

SPEAKER_01 6:27

I totally agree with you. You know, you really don't understand the impact that you have on people's lives until someone says it. You know, I usually people ask me, why are you so calm about things? This is such a big deal. And I'm like, okay, I guess it's because I'm a very humble person and I am very intentional about what I do and the goals I set and the impact that I want to make in this world. And so, you know, I just really focus on putting my energy into everything that I do. And once I accomplish that mission, I mean, if I'm making the impact, great, but you're so right. We don't understand the ripple effect that we're making in the world. So long as we're making it, I I'm happy.

SPEAKER_00 7:06

Right. And I think you're the key word that you said about intention, and it is we started with what we desired, the intent we had behind the thing that is calling us next, whether it's a book, whether it's some other beautiful big thing. And then as we listen for the guidance of what the next steps are, and then we take the inspired action, and then it plays out, I can understand why people would be saying to you, oh my gosh, this is such a big deal. Why aren't you jumping up and down? And yet to you, it's like a movie you're watching that you were also the screenwriter and the director and the producer of. So, yes, it's thrilling to watch it unfold, and there are so many elements of surprise and delight in that unfolding, but you're not surprised. You're it's not a mystery. Like you started this, and you started it by setting an intention. It's so powerful. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:19

And you said something ago that just really resonated with me. You said you're just being guided, and uh it's it's really true. I guess when you're just being guided, you're just being obedient and you're just doing what you're supposed to do. So it doesn't really seem like a big deal. It's just like it's like walking, you know, one foot in front of the other, and you're just going on the journey. And so for me, I think that everything that I do, that's just how it is. Like I, you know, I set my goals and I I just really listen and and and let myself be guided as to what I'm supposed to fulfill in this life, what my path is supposed to be. You know, I have I've heard many times like it will be such a sad thing if you die and you never fulfill the thing that you were born to do. And um, I don't want to be that person.

SPEAKER_00 9:11

Right, for sure.

SPEAKER_01 9:12

You know, it's sometimes it's hard figuring out what you are meant to do because you're so good at so many things, but there is something, or maybe some things that we're all meant to do. You know, you mentioned about finding such joy and satisfaction in in this podcast and just being here. And um, you know, maybe this is this is your calling, this is what you were called to do. And so you find that joy in it. And I think for everyone, uh, when you really find that, it it doesn't seem like work. It is it's just it's just a pleasure. You can't wait to do it, you can't wait to get up every morning to do it. And um, that's that's what I really want to be doing for the rest of my life. I just really want to enjoy every moment of what I do, no matter how difficult it is. I just want to make that impact.

SPEAKER_00 10:01

Yes, I love that so much. And it's so resonant with how I'm living my life as well. And what it's interesting for me, I don't know how long you've just been a person who follows their bliss and follows the guidance. Um, I thought I was, you know, like we only know what we know. Yes, and then newer revelations, you learn more things so you can do more things. And in that it's so fascinating. I've noticed that sometimes the guidance, and I'm talking for me, I'm referring to God. I'm very connected to the divine, and I set intention about connection on a daily basis. It's very important to me. Um, but the guidance feels so fun and so delicious and so giddy and delightful that sometimes I try to make it harder. Yeah, because there's this conditioning, this old story that says, oh, listen here, little lady, you can't just twirl around and point at all the things you want and then have them. Like, but you can't do that. That's not allowed. That's not, you got to get your head out of the clouds. And I'm like, wait a minute. And it's so funny because those comments are not like no one's saying that to me. I don't, they might be saying it, but no one's actually saying it to me. I am conjuring up my own resistance to having the life that I desire. I trust I'm not the only person that does that. And I'm just wondering if that happens for you, how does that show up? And how are you like talking yourself back to the reality that is a capital R that you do get to be and do and have whatever you desire?

SPEAKER_01 12:16

So you're not by yourself by any means, you know, and um you talked about not finding it all at once, and I don't think anybody really finds it all at once because you know, we start off in life, you know, you figure you get out of high school, you get your first job, then you, you know, you may go to college and you get a job off after that. You just kind of it's like you're finding your way, you're doing different jobs along the way, and you're really figuring out, okay, what what gives me joy, what doesn't. And I I know I went through that and I was good at everything that I did, but they weren't giving me that joy. They weren't, you know, I would do them for a while, and yes, it was it was good. But after a while, I was just like, eh, I don't, I don't know that I want to do this for the rest of my life. And so it's like you keep searching after that thing, you know, what it is you want me to do, Lord. And like him, a religious person, I believe in listening for his voice, you know, listening for the messages that he sends to people. Because sometimes, you know, he's speaking to us quietly. And like you said, we're like, no, that can't be him, because we have different plans for our lives. We want to do different things, and we're like, no, I don't want to do that. That that can't be it. And so he finds a way to really shake us into reality. Like, look, this is what you're supposed to be doing, you know, and oftentimes it's not a good way, it's it's nothing pleasant, but we come to the realization, and that's kind of how it is for me. You know, it took me getting injured, it took me having to be at home and just being quiet, just really being quiet and hearing from him that okay, this is the part I want you to go, this is what I want you to be doing right now. You've done all those things, all right? Listen, listen for my voice, listen to what you want me to do. And so when I really started going down that path, it things just started becoming clearer. But you're absolutely right that we start our own blessings, right? Because we are so busy doing what we want to do. You know, we want this, we want that. We, you know, we want the things that we can see in front of us. And very often the things that he's trying to offer us are the things that we can't see, right? So it's about having faith, it's about having that connection that you speak about, it's about having that belief that he wants the best for us, and it doesn't matter how difficult it seems and how difficult the journey may be. At the end of it all, you're gonna have that satisfaction that you seek, you're gonna have that joy unspeakable, and you're gonna really reap the rewards of your work. And so I that that has been my journey. That's kind of how I reasoned it now that okay, I have to trust him. I really have to surrender and trust that everything he wants me to do is for my good.

SPEAKER_00 15:11

Yes, yes, absolutely. And what I have found is that my surrender is not that, oh, I have to surrender this dream that I had because I'm probably not gonna get it and I just need to trust that there's something better. It's actually what I'm learning for me. I'm surrendering my resistance, my arguments for why I can't have it yet, or why it needs to be harder. And sometimes what I'm considering quote unquote hard is I one of two things. It's either uncomfortable and unfamiliar, like that's a that's a calling me to grow, calling me to expand kind of hard. The other kind of hard is because I've somehow determined that I'm the one that's supposed to figure out how I'm gonna get to this thing that I want. And the how is not my responsibility. That is on God's to-do list. My job is what I want and why I want it. And that continues to be fine-tuned as I go. Like, oh, I thought it was this. Hmm, I liked 80% of that. So, what can I take with me and learn to go to the next thing? So it is a consistent trial and error, a feedback loop of what to do, but the who, the when, the where, the how, that is all on God's to-do list. My to-do list is the what and the why, and then the listening for what my guidance is today, not what is the five-year plan, what is the documentation I can hand to the person at the bank or the person in my house, or the person that I've determined is the gatekeeper of my dream life. It's this reframing of we do get to be the person that we're being called to be. And we get to do that in a way that is gracious and expansive and is impactful, and we get to invite the people that are close to us into that with us. We get to invite them to create their own dreams, and we get to cheer them on as well, and then we just get to beautifully bask in the impact of that.

SPEAKER_01 18:02

Exactly, exactly. And you know, that you know, the surrender that's hardest for me, and it's exactly the one you described. It's getting out of the way, yeah, and just letting go and let God, not trying to fix it, just letting him just say, Lord, you fix it, you do it, you handle it. Um, because when I try to fix it, when I try to figure out the how, when, who, where, why, you know, that's when things are so much more difficult. You become stressed, you become, you know, it just affects you in so many ways. And so it's taking a lot for me to learn, but I'm I'm happy to say that I'm at that point in my life where I'm truly surrendering. I'm just truly like, you know, something comes into my mind for me to worry about it. I say, Lord, fix it, Lord, handle it, Lord, I just surrender it. And then I just try not to think about it anymore. You know, if it comes back into my mind, I just repeat the same thing. And so I don't give it the energy to kind of box uh into anything else.

SPEAKER_00 19:04

Yes, yes, yes. You know, and I think that we're we're taught that that's irresponsible, that that it's very important that you be involved and that you be informed and you get your nose in there and make sure that all that's wrong with the world is righted before you can go do this great thing. And it's just not how it works. It's exactly what you said. Where our energy is focused, that's gonna grow.

SPEAKER_01 19:35

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 19:36

So if you are looking at something that you don't want, and you're just saying how much you don't want it and how awful it is that it's here, and how much better it'll be when it's gone. All you're doing is getting water and sunshine on that thing that you don't want. So really handing it off to God like you do, and then shifting your focus, shifting the direction of your energy. It doesn't even, it shouldn't even be on the same subject because our vibrations where we just left it and we only just gave it over to God. So we're probably not ready to like take it back. So it can be something so silly, like petting your dog or taking a walk, or baking cookies, or do something that you know, like if you're feeling like surrendering feels so hard because control is a value that you have, then do something that you know you can control the outcome of. I bake, I bake because I can control the outcome, right? And it takes my mind off of the things that I previously thought I had control over, but have come to the realization I'm decided, I have decided to be guided about this issue, and I'm handing it over.

SPEAKER_01 21:07

Yes, yes, it it it's it's like something you have to you have to practice it. It's almost like you have to roll the muscle memory for sure, because we as human beings, we're so stubborn, you know, for lack of a better word. We we we just want to have things our way so much, we want to be in control. God forbid we just like no, you take control, and and we see it even in relationships, just giving the next person our lives control. We don't even want to do that. So imagine how hard it is to give someone that you can see that, you know what I mean, the control and say, Okay, Lord, you take control. And so it's something you really have to be practiced, you have to be intentional. And if it is you don't have that connection with God, it's even harder.

SPEAKER_00 21:56

For sure. Well, thank you so much for sharing that. I know it has nothing to do with the book and it has everything to do with the book.

SPEAKER_01 22:07

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 22:07

Like I love these conversations because they're not a 45-second commercial on why someone should buy a book. They are, let me tell you about the human who picked up her pen and started writing, who felt like there was a void on a bookshelf and wanted to fill that. And I so I love that that I know about the author. It's the author that makes me want to buy the book.

SPEAKER_01 22:41

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 22:42

Right. So thank you for that. I would love to know how you are saying yes to yourself in this season.

SPEAKER_01 22:51

So we've kind of touched on a lot of it already. You know, I'm I'm saying yes to myself in this season by being really intentional about achieving my goals, about stepping outside of my comfort zone and um stretching myself, you know, trying to take on opportunities that are unlike things I've done before, but opportunities that I think are in the path that I was meant to work on. And so for a lot of the things that I find myself doing, a lot of the engagements I find myself looking at, they look differently. They're unlike anything I've done in the past. And so it's challenging in one sense, but it's exciting at the same time because there's so much to learn, there's so much to experience, there's so much to explore. And so it's not about being perfect for me, right? Because we're never going to be perfect human beings. It's just really about growing and protecting my energy, my peace, my time, and uh, you know, making sure that before I leave this earth, I have accomplished what the Almighty wanted me to accomplish.

SPEAKER_00 23:55

Yes. Oh, it's so good. Okay, so

About the Book: THRIVING IN THE MODERN WORKPLACE: A GEN Z GUIDE TO SUCCESS

SPEAKER_00 23:59

tell us about the book, about what led you to write the book, and what are you hoping to accomplish with it?

SPEAKER_01 24:11

So the book for me came about by um just really being awakened in my own life. So I have two Gen Z children. You know, from time to time they would ask me questions like uh why aren't we taught this at school? Or how do we do this? Just life questions. And so, you know, it occurred to me, I'm like, yeah, why aren't you all taught this at school? You know, and it really brought me in tune with how unprepared these young people are for the workplace. And being incorporated myself, working around other young people, seeing how they show up in the workplace, seeing how much they don't know, what they don't know. And at the same time, being exposed to all the myths about them, you know, they're lazy, they're entitled, they're, you know, they're this, they're that. It's so it got me thinking. It really got me thinking. And like I said, you know, it all came down to this guidance. One day it just came to me that, okay, you need to write a book that is a roadmap, that's a guide, that speaks directly to these young people to prepare them for the workplace, for the modern workplace. Something that gives them a voice, something that makes them feel like, okay, yes, you're a different generation. Don't be ashamed of who you are. You're smart, you're intelligent, you know, you're capable of doing all things that you know you're meant to do. You do things differently. So use the things that you know how to do, such as um being an influencer or being, you know what I mean, like content creator, etc. Use that to become your side hustler, become your moneymaker. You don't have to go to college because college is not necessarily for everyone. Just really speak to them in a way that I don't think anybody really speaks to them. So I got down to just writing the book, and then I nobody knew for a while. I was doing it. I was just, it was just like my little private project. And then one day I shared it with my children. Hey, I'm writing a book. And they were like, You're writing a book. I'm like, Yeah. And so I started getting them involved in the project, and I would share with them contents and have them give me feedback. And you know, they would share with me, they're like, Well, yeah, we don't think like that. Or, you know, then they would start giving me input. And then, you know, they have friends, and I knew they're friends, and so they would become part of the project, and it just really evolved into like a family uh project at one point, and so I just I just kept on doing it. And once I started going, I I was determined to see it to the end, and um I kept going until I got it published. I published it last September.

SPEAKER_00 26:54

Amazing.

SPEAKER_01 26:55

I published it, I knew I wanted to have um audiobook. I knew I there's a part of me, and I'm working on this right now. I want to have a screenplay, so I want to have it adapted into a screenplay, so that's something I'm having done right now because I really like this can reach young people where they're at, you know, it's like a mini-series. And then, you know, through reviews, etc., the book has really been put on. And it's been catching on because I guess the voice, the way I speak, the clarity with which I speak to young people, that has been the one comment that has come forth over and over again. And so I see that as accomplishing my mission because I really wanted to speak to them in a way that they don't feel belittle, they don't feel like, okay, I'm talking down to them, they don't feel like I don't understand them. And I'm really proud of that.

SPEAKER_00 27:47

Oh my gosh, I'm so happy for you, and I love just knowing how it all unfolded. Because when we come to parenting, when you come to answering these kinds of questions of what's happening in the workplace, curiosity gets you so much further than writing another set of rules. Yes. I'm eager to know like what are some examples that you were noticing that are different? And I'm asking purely out of curiosity. I am a lifelong entrepreneur, so I have spent a very short amount of time in a corporate situation. That's just not where I live or thrive. So, so I'm interested to know how this is playing out in a corporate atmosphere. I certainly see just my style of parenting and my style of being in the world. I'm much older than you, and my child is much younger than yours. So I became a mother at 48. My daughter um was born in China, and we brought her home when she was two. So I was 46 when she was born, but I didn't know her then. So when you're parenting uh the age of a grandparent, it's a completely different situation. I'm obsessed. Like I actually know things now. I mean, I thought I knew everything when I was 25, but now I really, really know. And it feels so empowering and delightful to raise her. And I see already, you know, how her interaction with more traditional systems, it's not a fit, and I recognize that it's not a fit for her, but I think I'm also seeing how it wasn't a fit for me, but now I'm in a position that I could do something about someone's experience. I couldn't do anything about mine, so I'm wondering if there's some bit of that as well in the way that you can so clearly see the experience of your children and see how the systems that were working before aren't working for them is because there's a little bit of you that the systems weren't working for either, which opened up the curiosity that made you see what you see now.

SPEAKER_01 30:48

Yeah, so so you know, one of the biggest things I think um is the communication. The way that they communicate is totally different than the way the older generations communicate. I mean, go figure, they they live on their phones, texting and DMing and everything else. So, you know, their communication style is more direct, it's more abrupt. They like emojis and they like apps like Slack, so they're doing Slack messages, and you know, they don't want to spend time doing long emails. Emails for them is like, okay, an absolutely necessary, you know, it has to be necessary. If we're talking back and forth, it's a short conversation, they'll rather have a Slack message, they'll rather have some kind of direct messaging. There's no point to them in writing an email to say, okay, I got the report and I'm working on it. You know, so they're just very much more, their communication style is totally different. And I think that's where you see the biggest breakdown because in uh an environment, in a lot of workplaces, you may have as much as five generations working under the same heat. That's a huge gap. You know, you have your, you know, you may have your boomers, your millennials, your, you know.

SPEAKER_00 32:01

And the boomers don't want to do the email either. And it's the guy in the middle is making all the rules and he's just pissed because no one's playing by them.

SPEAKER_01 32:10

Exactly. And so it's like, how do you, you know, there has to be a rich, they have to find a way to kind of like communicate. You know, I talk about reverse mentorship where young people have to mentor the older generation, you know, and all this new technology. And and then, you know, the older generation has to realize that they have a part to play in teaching them about the experience and and you know what it means to be in a workplace. And, you know, they have valuable things to bring too. So bringing them together is really important there. Outside of the communication, um, expectations. You know, young people come into the workplace, and for a lot of them, they come in not knowing what they don't know. So they may come in with high salary expectations. And as you know, traditionally, you come in, you have to be worth it. You know, you have to have so many years of experience, you have to prove yourself before you can demand a certain salary. And for many of these young people, they know what they're capable of. They're judgment of, okay, well, I know I can do this, I have the potential, but for some reason, the supervisor doesn't yet see that potential, so they don't want to compensate them for that. So there's a little bit of breakdown there too, with that. Feedback. The younger people want instant feedback, whilst the older generation, you know, they want to wait once per year for a performance review, an annual review that's done once per year.

unknown 33:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 33:34

No, they want to know now. Well, how did that go? Did I do it well? What can I do better the next time? They don't want to wait six months to figure out what they did wrong. They want to know now. And so it's just situations like these, you know, where they just want to, it's just a different dynamic, different dynamic. And um, in a lot of these corporate environments, they're trying to use the same old playbooks to leave this younger generation, and it's just not working. And so the young people come in, they become disengaged, you know, they become disenchanted, and they don't stay around. A lot of them leave within the first one to two years. They're gonna move on to the next company where they feel like they're getting that. And so a lot of them quiet quit. You know, or they quiet quit in, they just they check out before they even sign out, like I like to say. It's it's just it's an expensive problem for a lot of companies, right? Because I mean, go figure, especially in certain industries. You bring these young people in, you spend money, you onboard them, you may train them, and then they leave within the first one to two years. Well, within that time, you haven't even gotten your ritual and investment yet. They haven't even started to really work.

SPEAKER_00 34:51

Right.

SPEAKER_01 34:51

So for a lot of companies, it's millions, and even it can even go into the billions, depending upon um the industry. You know, the technology where you know the salary is a little bit higher. I mean, if you have like 100 people leave within a year, it's a huge amount. It hits the bottom line. And so I really feel like companies have to become really diligent about okay, what they're dealing with and understand that, all right, uh, these young people are different. They have a lot to offer. And how can we bring them to the full? How can we make them feel like they belong? How can we give them a voice, right? While at the same time helping them to understand that you're coming into a workplace that already has standards and policies and make it in such a way that they feel like, all right, I want to be part of that. All right, they're the next generation, they're the next generation of leaders, they're the next wave of so if we don't foster that, right?

SPEAKER_00 35:50

Who's gonna lead? It's so fascinating, and I have so many questions. I want to know, like, how you know, do you have some case studies? How has someone implemented these? And I'm wondering if you used any of the tricks that universities use because they are constantly bringing in a new group of people who were at the top of the place they just left and now they're entering at the bottom, and it's a pretty, I mean, it's only four years before they're at the top again, which is way quicker than it happens in a corporate environment. So I'm just wondering, are there some practices and just ways of doing things that are similar to higher education? That I'm just trying to think of what is there another example of a wave of incoming people who think they who came from the place where they knew everything and now they know nothing, but they're gonna leave knowing quote unquote everything again.

SPEAKER_01 37:06

Yeah. And um, you know, if you know the technology, you know the technology, so you can afford to move from one place to the next and um kind of like fit in. Yeah, it might be a different dynamic in terms of how they do things, but I I see that you know, you can still get involved, you can still get your foot in the door and work your way up the chain. You know, for me, I really feel like the problem needs to be solved at the manager level, training the managers to learn how to deal with these young people because they're the ones that deal with them on a day-to-day. I mean, go figure, you you train them on safety, you train them on new software, you train them on everything else, but you never train them how to lead this new generation. So there's a lot of conflict, there's a lot of butting heads, there's a lot of, okay, you know, they are just as frustrated as the young people are frustrated. And so that's where I feel like it needs to start. Train those managers to learn to work with them, communicate with them. That's gonna go a long way to helping bridging that gap. And then it needs to go even further. I feel like CEOs need to become involved. They don't need to just become involved once they see their bottom line being hit, which is when most of them are just now aware that there's a problem. They need to be involved earlier. They need from time to time to meet with these young people, have a tonghole, have you know, some form of discussion as to, okay, how are things going? Um, give them a chance to speak with senior leadership, right? Some young people never, they don't even know who senior leadership is because they never get a chance to meet them. And so that goes a long way to build a trust. That goes a long way to make them feel like, okay, someone is listening to me, that I have a voice here. They can see the potential. Okay, one day I can possibly be in this position. They feel like they have an avenue to advocate for themselves. If something does come up, okay, you know, at the next time meeting, I can I can have a word with the CEO, I can bring this topic up. And so that doesn't happen in a lot of, that doesn't happen right now in a lot of places. And simple things like those, I think, will go a long way to just kind of helping to solve some of the simple issues that they're having. But it takes time, it takes a different mindset, it takes, you know, getting in there and really working with them and helping them to understand that it's not a generation problem, it's not a Gen C problem, essentially. I I like to say just a communication. It it comes down to communication. That's at the crux of it. What is written, verbal, oral, it's just miscommunication.

SPEAKER_00 39:59

Yes, yes. Okay, so is the book directed toward people in in the organization? Is it directed toward the young person going to work? Is it a mashup so that everyone is getting the perspective of the other as they're reading it?

SPEAKER_01 40:24

So the book was written. It's written, the voice, you know, you read it, it speaks directly to the young person. Okay. But it's also written in a way that if you're an a manager or an employer and you read this book, it really kind of puts you in the mindset and at the same time give you cues as to how it is you can work with these young people. Same thing for educators. So it can be used by employers and educators to really give them insight as to how it is they can then understand these young people. Because I speak to young people and I say, okay, this is how you show up. All right. So it's helping them to understand how they're showing up. You know, don't be afraid to show up this way. But even if you're showing up this way, you still need to be this way. You still need to be professional. You still need to be, all right. And so I really feel like it it can be used by all three of those sets of people. But I really want to be an advocate for the young person so that they can feel like, okay, someone understands me and someone is actually trying to guide me. And you don't have to feel as lost. Try to understand and answer some of the questions that they may have going into it. Uh, you know, it deals with financial management, it deals with mental health, and it has assessments in it, you know, that allows them to take those assessments and understand what's their work style like, um, what's their financial, you know, how well do they currently manage money or how much do they understand? You know, it talks about AI and technology, and it just really is like all-arounded, really touching on all the different issues and situations that I think that they could possibly encounter.

SPEAKER_00 42:08

Oh, it's such a helpful tool. I'm really grateful that it is available and that the way that you wrote it so collaboratively is, I'm sure, a part of the impact of how it's being received.

SPEAKER_01 42:26

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 42:27

And so tell us how well it's being received for two reasons. Because I'm super excited for you, and I want you to practice basking in the spotlight of doing something big and bold and impactful. It's really beautiful.

SPEAKER_01 42:46

Yeah. So the book has been reviewed by multiple reviewers. You know, it's gotten raving reviews, five-star reviews on Amazon, um, by Literary Titan. It's actually actually received an award by Literary Titan.

SPEAKER_00 43:02

Congratulations.

SPEAKER_01 43:03

It's been featured in LA Weekly, New York Weekly. It has a lot of good things on the horizon coming up, where it's going to be featured at certain book fairs, international book fairs, the Frankfurt Book Fair, the London Book Fair, the LA Times Festival. It's also going to be featured in the New York Times Book Review. You know. It's so exciting. We've been on TV to speak about it on PLive. And so, you know, there's several interviews lined up to talk about the book. And so it's just really, really picking up momentum. And I feel like it has a long way to go. It has much work to do in terms of making the impact that I really wanted to make. Uh, I wanted to really make a global impact to be used by young people everywhere in the world. It's not just written for, you know, just the US. And so currently it's just available in English, but the hope is that one day it would be available in other languages. It is going to be available as an audiobook for those who just like to listen. Again, one day, the hope is that you will see it as a mini-series on either the TV or Netflix or Hulu or one of these.

SPEAKER_00 44:19

So speak it, Queen. I love it. We're turning thoughts to things around here. I love it. What did your kids say about it?

SPEAKER_01 44:26

My kids, I must say that they're pretty proud. Good. Pretty proud about it. But my kids are like me. They're very humble. So they went like, you know, they're very encouraging. Every time I tell them something new about the book, you know, they congratulate me. They, you know, they keep motivating me to keep on keeping on. In fact, my daughter is featured on the front cover of the book. So, you know, she's a part of it through and through. And so I I, you know, I make them part of the journey. They, it's like I said, it's a family affair. My husband, you know, he's involved. And, you know, we really, I don't just make it about me and me getting over glory, but I share it with them because at the end of the day, that's what it's about.

SPEAKER_00 45:07

Right. It's so beautiful. Yay. I love talking to you. I love hearing this beautiful impact. Please tell everyone where they can find and follow you, how they can get the book, all the good things.

SPEAKER_01 45:21

So the book is going to be available on Amazon, uh, Goodreads, all the popular platforms, Lines and Nobles, Ingram Spax. If you love to learn more about me and the book, see my interviews, etc., you can visit my author website. It's on www.authorgiselle.com. I also have social media. Again, Author Giselle. You can find me on Instagram, I'm on eggs, uh, Facebook. And so please check them out and feel free to drop me a line.

SPEAKER_00 45:52

Perfect. We will link everything down in the show notes. Thank you so much, Giselle. I loved this conversation.

SPEAKER_01 45:58

Thank you so much, Wendy. It's been a pleasure, and I really enjoyed our talk.

SPEAKER_00 46:08

I hope you enjoyed that conversation as much as I did. As always, any links or notes mentioned can be found at PhineasRighthouse.com in the podcast section of our site or in the show notes below. And if you haven't connected with me personally, come find me on Instagram at PhineasWrighthouse and let me know you listen to this episode. I'd love to get to know you. Thank you for sharing this time with me. I know your days are full, and I'm really grateful that you chose to spend some of your precious time right here. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any of these delightful conversations. I'll see you next week.