Loehr is 44. She spent the entire decade of the 90s running hotel and safari operations in Kenya. Nevertheless, she has managed to master the subtle nuances of Generation Boomer, Generation X, and Generation Y. She uses her knowledge to educate the olds about "people born in the late 1970s or early 1980s." That's us, and you, creative underclass! Marvel at how she seems to know you personally:

"People say to me, 'Why do they talk like that?' Because they grew up on reality TV. Okay? It's not good, it's not bad. That's what they grew up on. They think it's okay to talk like that."

She has Richard Lawson nailed already!

"They saw 9/11," she says. "Connection is vital, they want to be connected all the time. People say, 'Why are they on Facebook all the time? Why are they texting?' They really want balance, too. They saw their parents go crazy in Generation X. They are not having that lifestyle. They are going to do it their way. They're going to go to yoga at 4, and the Red Sox game at 7, and do their work at midnight. It might be a good idea to let them go to yoga at 4!"

And how!

"If you can say you are 'green,' or politically correct or socially correct, whatever, that goes a long way with them. Nike, no way. Gen Y will not buy Nike — that big, ugly globalized company. This generation is very well-educated — both parents probably have MBAs."

She's speaking your language! Assuming both of your parents have MBAs. And her seminars get results. Her clients are learning to "walk the walk," as Gen Y says:

Xiaoyuan "Wennie" Hanson, 29 (Gen X/millennial), a financial adviser at Morgan Stanley, looks puzzled. She came to the seminar because many of her clients are "trust-fund babies who are Generation Y," she says, and she is slowly beginning to use words like "cool" and "sucks" to make better inroads with them

You can financially advise me any day, "Wennie." As long as you don't "suck!" Just keep Anne Loehr's Generational Cheat Sheet close at hand, and remember that if a Gen Y-er seems listless or unfocused, they're probably just thinking about AIDS or the "Internet boom/bust," two "Life-Shaping Events" of their generations. So get off our backs, and give us some money. We're going to yoga at 4.
[Washington Post]

• He wants to be your mentor: Has your boss taken a sudden interest in your ambitions, dreams, hopes, and goals? That's not old-fashioned small talk. He's trying to figure out what he can do to fabricate the illusion of fufillment so you might actually get some work done.
• He's stopped ordering you around: Instead of barking commands like an angry sea captain, your boss will start explaining why filing those TPS reports will save the company — and stop global warming, blah blah blah. He's hoping that, under the delusion that all will fall apart without you, you'll take them on as a moral obligation.
• He sets up a suggestion box: We hate being told what to do. Our parents had more sense than that: Our therapists told them confrontation might forever warp our fragile psyches. If your boss starts soliciting suggestions, watch out: If you're not careful, he'll brainwash you into thinking it was your idea to do the work in the first place.
• He invites you out to happy hours: He's trying to show that, hey, just because he's a stodgy old guy, he can be your friend too. It's a ploy. He's hoping these staged social interactions will boost your self-esteem, and, in the end, your output.

If you notice any of these warning signs, it's time to jump ship.

(Photo by Steve McFarland)