Hear Us Out outlines the journey of a millennial in a modern, yet somehow conventional organisation, struggling to keep up with its changing workforce. The co-authors aim to draw attention to the issues millennials face at every stage of their careers, and pass a message to workplace leaders that it is in their organisation’s best interest to let millennials’ needs and thoughts be heard, as they are big influencers in today’s economy.
The book follows the journey of a millennial facing challenges at her dream job which coincide with the journey of a Gen X-er torn between the demands of the Baby Boomer generation, and those of the millennials. The Gen X-er decides to quell her frustrations by empathising, understanding and giving the millennial a chance to lead, which ultimately proves productive.
When asked how the idea for Hear Us Out came about, Amal says: “Once I left the world of work and decided to work for myself, I realised this was the time to pass this message, specifically to managers who didn’t understand me when I tried to make changes for millennials in order to increase productivity.”
She sought an inspired millennial among those she had worked with, who would express their opinions openly, and found Sajeda. About her introduction to the book, Sajeda says: “Amal called me just after I had my second baby and said, ‘Don’t just label yourself as a working mom. Do something for yourself that’s rewarding and will make you proud.’” Sajeda’s interest was piqued as “This is what we, as millennials, need in the workplace, for them [Gen X-ers] to understand our perspective of how things should be done.”
The intricately thought out layout resonates this point. The voices of the millennial and the Gen X-er are denoted through carefully constructed thought bubbles, succeeded by a general text influenced by research, a compromise section wherein both find mutually beneficial common ground, and finally, a ‘tips’ section.
Amal and Sajeda recall the trials of putting thoughts to paper. Their process involved bringing vast amounts of literature together, and creating a writers’ club that was a source of great motivation and guidance. They describe a challenging period after much of the book was written, wherein they decided to shelve it for six months and gain some perspective. During this time, Amal considered publishing her work as an article, but was advised against it by Sajeda, for which she is now grateful.
Sajeda mentions another unforeseen challenge faced by the co-authors – Amal, meant to be the voice of the Gen X-er was “too pro-millennial”. Amal, lightheartedly explains: “I wanted to show two contrasting views, but because I am pro-millennial by nature, it was very difficult.”
Their camaraderie, evident from the start of the interview, is echoed in their experience working together. Amal says: “We didn’t disagree on anything.” And Sajeda assents: “Amal made it very easy for me to write the way I naturally speak and convey a message. Although we both have high standards, we were very comfortable working together.”
Amal muses: “Although some forward-thinking organisations have taken bold steps to change, it still remains a universal problem, and therefore, this is a universal book, which tries to shake the status quo. Millennials are fast becoming the biggest powerful workforce – change is coming and organisations don’t realise just how fast.”
“This is just the start,” they say. Sajeda prefers to consider the public perception of Hear Us Out before committing to further writing; Amal has begun consideration of ideas for further books that focus of different aspects of the same issue.
Hear Us Out will be available in leading Bahrain bookstores and as an e-book by late September.
