Obama Brings Generation Jones to the White House

Scott Mills, Ph.D.

    Everyone is pretty clear that Barack Obama has ushered in a new era for our country.  Not only is he the first African American president of the U.S., he is also the first President to come from Generation Jones.  Maybe you hadn't heard of Gen Jones, although the recent election coverage used it quite often as a filler, but it makes a pretty big difference in what we might see from him as a leader.

    Gen Jones was born between 1954 and 65.  Obama, born in 1961, is clearly a member of this cohort.  This group doesn't look much like their Boomer and Gen X neighbors but have rarely been discussed as having a separate identity.  Jonathan Pontell, the California based sociologist, first coined this term in 2001.  He writes of Generation Jones. 

"They were given huge expectations in the Sixties, their formative years, but came of age in the unrequited reality of the Seventies. Their attitudes are different, their experience is different, yet just because they were born when the birth rate was high they have been lumped in with the boomers for all their lives. They are a lost generation."

   Perhaps the first yuppies, the Jones have a very different way of viewing the world.  They were a little too late for the great expectations, we can change the world, attitude of the Boomers.  And a little too early for the crushing sense of being completely powerless in a world gone mad that Xers inherited.   So they are the roll of your sleeves folks who have been described as "practical idealists."  This ethic has already confused some people who are watching Obama and wondering why he is picking certain people in his cabinet.  We can look forward to lots of other choices that might have us scratching our heads until he explains his reasoning.  

    As Obama leads our nation, we will also see an expanding conversation of the role of Gen Jones.  They are only now coming into positions of leadership that the Boomers are vacating.  If we are lucky they will maintain all of the hopefulness of the Boomers combined with the pragmatism of the Xers.   What do you think are the characteristics of Jones leadership?  We would love to hear your thoughts!

Scott Mills, Ph.D. is an expert in generational diversity and organizational development.  He offers workshops, presentations, consulting and coaching to nonprofit organizations and businesses.  To find out more or read more articles check out www.workforchange.net.