The other day, I received an out-of-office email from a work contact that left me puzzled. The message said, "Thanks for your email. I'm on leave until August 15. For anything urgent please WA me." I had no idea what "WA" meant, and even when I realized it was short for WhatsApp, I couldn't reach the sender since they didn't include their phone number.
I later complained to a friend about this, ranting about how young people at work don't seem to understand basic office etiquette. Who uses confusing abbreviations in an out-of-office message, and then tells people to contact them on a platform without providing the necessary contact information?
However, my friend pointed out that the sender had actually been quite sensible. By asking people to "WA" her, she was politely indicating that she was available for urgent work matters while on leave, but only if the person contacting her was a client, colleague, or someone who already had her phone number - not a random, cold-calling irritant.
My friend was right, and I realized I was wrong. In fact, I plan to adopt a similar "WA" policy myself, as I've been frustrated in the past by people calling me after I left my number in an out-of-office message.
This experience made me reflect on how younger people at work sometimes turn out to be right, even when their approaches initially seem confusing or different to older workers like myself. While I believe generational differences can be overblown, I've had to acknowledge that younger colleagues occasionally know better, whether it's their preferences for certain clothing styles or their approach to work-life balance.
The pandemic, in particular, has forced me to rethink my views on long working hours and the need for more sustainable work practices. Younger colleagues who announce they'll be taking time off after working weekends, no matter the news cycle, have challenged my own ingrained habits of powering through deadlines and working around the clock.
As I've watched older workers in various sectors burn out, fall ill with stress, or become less productive, I've become convinced of the importance of making working hours more sustainable. The health benefits are clear, and even from a business perspective, overwork is linked to low employee engagement and productivity.
Ultimately, the younger generation's disapproval of long, unhealthy working hours is pushing working life in a better direction, even if it may initially jar or grate with older workers like myself. Their approach is definitely worth considering and adopting.