For Emerging Leaders and High-Potential Employees
Gen Z professionals stepping into the workplace, navigating confusion, and seeking clarity, growth, and early leadership opportunities.

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You work hard.
You follow through.
You show up.

But somehow, you still hear things like, “You missed the point,” or “You should have known better.”
And that’s confusing.

You’re not lazy, and you're not checked out. You just want clarity. You want direction. And more than anything, you want to feel like your contributions matter.

If you are Gen Z and trying to find your footing at work — especially alongside older colleagues who don’t always say what they mean or explain what they want — you’re not alone.

And you’re not the problem.

As Jorge Loebl put it in a recent conversation, “Gen Zs know what they know. They don’t know what they don’t know. So we cannot expect them to come up to the level of experience they haven’t had. We need to help them grow, not blame them.”

This blog is about helping you grow.
Not by asking you to change who you are, but by giving you the tools to ask the right questions, clarify expectations, and become a leader early by learning how to work across generations.

Why Doing the Work Isn’t Enough for Gen Z

Most Gen Z professionals want to do a good job.

But too often, you're asked to “read between the lines” when the lines were never drawn in the first place.

Expectations are vague.
Feedback is inconsistent.
And older coworkers assume you already know things they never explained.

Jorge captured this frustration clearly:

“Gen Zs sometimes get put in the spot. And I’m not blaming them. The complexity has increased. The instructions are not clear, and the expectations are not articulated.”

This is not a talent problem.
It is a communication gap.

And while it is not your fault, you can take the lead in closing that gap.

The Goal: Build Clarity and Credibility Across Generations

The most powerful move you can make is not waiting for instructions to become perfect.

It’s learning how to ask for what you need, communicate how you work best, and build trust with older colleagues in the process.

You do not have to be a manager to lead.
You can show leadership by:

• Clarifying expectations before starting something important
• Giving feedback on what’s unclear, not just what’s wrong
• Positioning yourself as coachable and curious, not passive or defensive

Jorge put it this way:

“We need to understand each other better. I need to explain how I was raised, how I learned. But I also need to understand how you work today, how you consume information, how you ask questions. That’s the only way collaboration works.”

The Strategy: Understand, Ask, and Adapt Without Losing Yourself

Here is how you start building credibility, trust, and growth using Revolving Change’s Discover, Design, Deliver framework.

Discover How Generations Think and Work

Every generation has its own set of assumptions, communication habits, and emotional wiring.

You are not imagining the disconnect. It’s real.

For example, Jorge shared, “When a Gen X says, ‘We need to rewind the tape,’ a Gen Z will look at him and say, ‘What tape? What does rewind mean?’ They’ve never seen a tape.”

These gaps aren’t just about language.

They affect how instructions are given, how feedback is delivered, and how trust is built.

To move forward, start by asking questions like:

• How does this person usually communicate expectations?
• Do they assume I already know how to do this, or are they open to questions?
• What does “done right” look like in their mind?

This kind of discovery builds awareness and helps you avoid guessing your way into conflict.

Design a Personal Feedback and Clarity Toolkit

Instead of waiting for clarity to arrive, create it.

Try these simple tools:

• Expectation Recaps: After a meeting, message your manager with a short recap. “Just confirming, you’d like this done by Friday, in slide format, covering X, Y, and Z, right?”
• Preferred Work Style Brief: If your team is open to it, share a one-pager about how you work best, how you like to receive feedback, and how you approach deadlines
• Clarifying Questions: Get comfortable asking, “What does success look like for you on this?” or “Is there anything specific you want me to avoid?”

This is not about being needy.
It is about being strategic.

Jorge emphasized that feedback is the key:

“Millennials have been trained to give and receive feedback. Gen Zs, not so much yet. But that’s where the learning is. That’s how you grow into management.”

Learning to accept, reflect, and act on feedback is what will separate you from the crowd.

Deliver Results That Build Trust and Autonomy

The best way to get more freedom, trust, and recognition at work is to consistently deliver results that meet or exceed expectations.

That starts with:

• Aligning early on goals and deliverables
• Following up on feedback instead of defending against it
• Proactively checking in, especially when something is unclear or off-track

You are not just doing your job.

You are showing that you understand the job in context — that you know how your work affects others — and that you are growing faster than expected.

Jorge put it directly:

“Technology is moving fast. The human side of work needs to move with it. And Gen Zs are going to face the same transition challenges ten years from now. The sooner they learn how to lead across generations, the more prepared they’ll be.”

The Benefit: Growth, Recognition, and Early Leadership

Gen Z professionals who learn to communicate expectations, give and receive feedback, and build trust across generations are the ones who move up faster.

You become known as someone who:

• Takes initiative
• Seeks clarity
• Works well with everyone

These are leadership skills.
And they start now.

You don’t need to wait for a title to lead.
You just need to show up with clarity, curiosity, and consistency.

Your Next Step

Revolving Change helps build tools specifically for Gen Z contributors who want to grow their influence and impact at work.