When I started out in the workforce, nobody explained much of anything. You showed up, watched and got told once, maybe twice. If you didn’t get it, you either figured it out on your own time or found a new job.

Like a lot of Gen Xers, I took a certain pride in being self-sufficient. We were the latchkey kids. We learned to find our own way through a challenge.

So I’ll admit it: the first few times a young employee needed more direction to learn something new, it was easy to get frustrated and chalk it up to a lack of work ethic. But after a while, it occurred to me that they’d simply been raised to use a different kind of map.

Here’s the best way I’ve found to explain the gap. Most Gen X managers learned to navigate work with a paper map. You knew the general direction, watched for landmarks and, when you took a wrong turn on a range road, backed up and tried again. There was no calling a friend for help.

Nobody told you how you were doing. You knew you’d arrived when you got there.

Gen Z grew up with GPS. They’re used to seeing the destination before they leave, getting turn-by-turn directions and hearing “recalculating” the moment they drift off course. They expect to know the arrival time, too.

Then add social media to the mix. This is a generation that grew up posting something and knowing within minutes whether it landed. Likes, comments and shares provided feedback that was constant, instant and out in the open.

So when a young employee goes three months without hearing how they’re doing, they may not assume no news is good news. They may assume they’re missing the mark. For many of us, a once-a-year review was plenty. For someone accustomed to regular feedback, a year between check-ins can feel like driving with the GPS switched off.

Neither way is wrong. Both get you there. But if you hand a GPS kid a paper map and say, “Figure it out like I did,” don’t be surprised when they pull over and start looking for another ride.

Previous generations often stayed put to prove loyalty, believing it would eventually be rewarded. Sometimes it was. Sometimes it wasn’t.

Many younger workers measure a job differently: Am I learning? Does this matter? Do I have a life outside of it? If the answer is no, they may leave, sometimes without much warning. Those who have felt like disposable labour may see little reason to offer loyalty in return.

It’s easy to write that off as entitlement. I’d suggest a different read. Funny enough, Gen X was the generation that pushed back on “live to work.” Gen Z just took us at our word.

Gen X was told the what. Gen Z wants to know the why.

Let’s say we run an agricultural equipment dealership and have just hired a 22-year-old apprentice service technician. Here are two ways to bring them on board.

The first: “Shadow Dave for a few weeks. You’ll pick it up.”

That’s how many of us were trained. But to a new hire, it can sound like no destination, no directions and no idea how you’re doing until something goes wrong.

The second: “For your first 30 days, you’ll work alongside Dave on pre-season inspections. The goal is for you to be doing them on your own by day 30. Every Friday, you and I will take 15 minutes to talk about what went well, what you’re stuck on and what’s next.

“And here’s why your work matters: if we miss something that needs fixing on a combine in August, a farmer could lose days in the middle of harvest. Farming is hard enough as it is.”

Same job. Same Dave. But the second version gives a destination, a route, regular course corrections and a reason the work matters. The weekly check-in takes about 15 minutes.

That brings me to work ethic. We tend to measure it in hours in the chair and never complaining. But a young employee who asks good questions, wants feedback and leaves at five to make it to ball practice isn’t necessarily lacking work ethic. They may be telling you exactly what they need to do their best work.

Work ethic isn’t how long you’ll tolerate being left in the dark. It’s how much you care about doing the job right.

Not every 24-year-old fits the mould, and not every Gen Xer is a gruff paper-map driver. People are people, and they’re all a little different. But the managers I see keeping good young staff have one thing in common: they’ve stopped expecting new employees to read their minds and adjusted the way they manage.

Leading the next generation doesn’t mean lowering the bar. It means showing people where the bar is, why it’s there and how they’re progressing toward it.

So here’s my question for you: if your newest employee were asked tomorrow where they’re headed in your business and why it matters, could they answer?