How to Lead Employees Who Have Worked in The Business Longer Than You Have

Being a young leader is difficult. Even the most competent of young professional superstars can struggle. No matter how many books have been read or adult experiences had, the fact remains: leading seasoned team members is tough.

They know the ropes. They have seen it all. It has always been done this way. The common tropes are all there, but the reality is: leaders lead, regardless of age or experience. Sure, there are certain lessons that only come from the accumulated scars of mistakes, but there are others that can be learned prior to engagement. Lessons and actions that show competency, humility, and understanding, setting the stage for the times when bold action is required. That doesn’t mean it won’t be hard, or that there won’t be personal accountability and reflection, but it does mean that age has never been the issue when it comes to successful leadership and management.

A youthful appearance or presence is often viewed as a disadvantage, particularly in leadership. For younger professionals leading teams or working alongside more experienced colleagues, it can create added pressure to prove credibility, authority and expertise. However, with youth comes energy, new ideas, and many times a unique perspective on how work is accomplished. New perspectives can be refreshing; however, the key is to prove oneself worthy of offering new ideas.

Most times, the status quo is such based on years of accumulated experience and decades of business learning curves that helped to create the current culture, processes, and procedures in place. This does not mean change cannot happen, that a younger person cannot lead, but it does mean that the right to lead, improve, and make changes must be earned.

Earn the right to lead

So how is that right, the authority often assumed to come with leadership or management, actually earned? It is through servant leadership.

For younger leaders, it is worthwhile to prove, especially through action, that no form of work is beneath them. A delivery needs to be made and no one is available? Step up. Driver needs help loading the truck? Step up. Counter overloaded? Step up. Warehouse needs assistance? Step up. When a leader is able to tell the team what to do, but isn’t willing to work side by side with them, they notice. The team starts to think, especially when it comes to younger leaders and managers, “He/she doesn’t know. They have never had to do the work themselves.” However, when the boss is right there in the mix, side by side and shoulder to shoulder with the team, the energy changes.

Asking simple questions, such as “What are your goals and how can I help you achieve them?”, changes things. Servant leadership—changes things. It allows one to see the team and those who are veterans in the industry as worthy of approaching from a position of gratitude and understanding. It allows the leader to actively engage with the team as humans who need someone in their corner. A leader who isn’t above the work, but proves, through the work, that he or she is just another member of the team.

From respect to real influence

Nonetheless, there is a fine line that must be walked. At the end of the day, leaders must lead and exercise authority, and cannot be afraid to do so because it may ruffle some feathers. The goal is to earn the respect of the team through servant leadership, which allows for the leader to be the boss and exercise real influence, not influence through hierarchy.

It is one thing to be the leader and boss in name, and another to be the person the team looks to for advice, guidance, business acumen, and company direction. Having the title is important, but it is hollow without the respect and understanding of the team, especially those longstanding team members that have been working in the industry longer than the leader has lived.

The beauty is, these individuals often have knowledge and insight to share, and it is up to the leader to understand them and decipher ways to bring this wealth of knowledge to the forefront. Particularly in conversations focused around personal growth and business acumen.

Servant leadership is the cheat code that allows generational gaps in knowledge to be bridged. It allows for young leaders not only to learn and grow from older peers and team members, but to show humility and earn the respect required to properly lead and be the boss. Not just in name or title, but through credibility and judgment. It allows for young leaders to turn their experienced teams into catalysts for growth, both professionally and personally. A leader is never above the work, but there is certain work that is best attributed to the leader. Most times, that work cannot be completed until the leader can exercise influence and competence, and servant leadership is the pathway that makes it possible.

Ryan A Pinnock is the President & Owner of Winsupply Middletown CT Co.