现如今，三十多岁的人完全可能有比自己年长一二十岁的下属。虽然这种情况越来越常见，但往往也伴随着上下级关系紧张。一方面，年长的员工不喜欢年轻人指手画脚，另一方面积极上进的年轻人努力想树立威信，但又不想大动干戈。

如果你年纪轻轻当上经理，好消息来了：即便下属年长几十岁，你一样可以当个成功的领导。咨询多位职场专家后我们发现，无论和团队成员年纪相差多大，只要掌握以下要诀，你都能当好上级。

为人谦虚

有雄心固然好，但不要表现得高人一等。你可能觉得需要证明自己是凭真才实学坐上高位。但是，总强调过去多么优秀可能会显得爱吹嘘。美国德克萨斯州奥斯汀的领导力发展专家沙拉·卡纳迪指出：“有时，领导最好少说话。”

要树立优雅谦逊的形象。卡纳迪说：“在这方面哪怕做得过分点都不要紧。有资历的员工对权力和特权的迹象异常敏感，你要充分接受一点，即你主要任务是提供支持，给大家鼓劲，尽管这话听起来像老生常谈。”

了解年长的下属喜欢用什么方式沟通

或许你的沟通风格是直截了当，直奔主题，可年长的员工也许习惯开会刚开始花几分钟时间聊聊天气。美国加利福尼亚州的职场代际差异专家奇普·埃斯宾诺莎博士建议，不妨留意年长员工习惯的节奏，调整自己的风格稍作迎合。

对于工作和生活，年长者通常比年轻人分得更清楚。因此你如果打算晚上11点还发电邮就该三思了，否则下属会觉得，你想要他们一周七天每天24小时随时待命。埃斯宾诺莎建议，如果没有特殊情况，晚8点到早6点之间最好别谈工作，这样对大家都有好处。

向年长的员工学习

花时间了解你的团队成员，以及工作方式。“因为下属们比你了解企业文化，你如果想成功就需要他们帮助。”美国宾夕法尼亚州职场与领导力顾问、著有《敬告千禧一代：这是父母没有告诉你的事》和《老板需要你知道这些事》的工商管理硕士翠西.C.琼斯如是说。

琼斯认为，年长员工多年的经验可以帮助你更好地完成工作，避免陷入窘境。

不要让年长员工反客为主

假如你比同事年轻，即使你是领导也容易遭到利用，尤其是新官上任时。

埃斯宾诺莎指出：“有时年长的员工喜欢捉弄比自己年轻的领导，说一些诸如‘你更懂技术，这个工作不如你去……’这样的话。”你是应该支持员工，但也得坚持个人权责，克制越俎代庖的冲动。

如果你发现碰上了这种事，不要把活都揽到自己身上，把项目交还给年长的员工，然后主动提出教他们使用必要的程序完成工作。

寻找共同领导的搭档

琼斯说，在团队里找一些模范成员并且交上朋友，这很重要。“这些成员会迅速接受你，为你打气。”而且这些人在公司往往有些年头了，同事们都比较信任。

“他们会帮你，”琼斯说，“他们找其他员工说话比较方便，可以帮着解释‘嘿，我们是应该这么做，理由是这样的。’”

接受对个人行事方式的任何建议

卡纳迪建议，你应该主动让团队成员了解自己的领导风格，以及你对他们的期待。这样他们才不会按自己的想法走。她说：“不要生硬地下命令也不要乱指挥，要记住你是教练，是同事们坚实的后盾，你最大的作用就是扫清前进的障碍。”

不过，别刚刚上任就大改特改。埃斯宾诺莎建议，你向所有人征询：你觉得哪些需要改变，哪些不想改变？了解公司的人可以提供建议，让你知道之前有过哪些改变的尝试没能奏效，省得你犯同样的错误，最后惹麻烦又尴尬。

“让同事们参与讨论，因为结果不外乎两个，要么他们帮你，要么就是抵制你。”埃斯宾诺莎说。

表明你打算长期做这份工作

让员工知道，你对这个职位倾注了心血，而不是当作升职的跳板。埃斯宾诺莎指出：“缺少耐心是很多千禧一代的致命弱点。不少员工之所以对年轻的管理者感到失望，正是因为觉得管理者总想着下一次升职。”如果能感受到你的投入，团队会更尊重你。（财富中文网）

译者：Pessy

审校：夏林

These days, it’s entirely possible for someone in their 30’s to oversee people 10 or 20 years older. And although that scenario is increasingly common, it’s often met with tension. The older crew doesn’t want to be bossed around by someone younger, while the young go-getters grapple with how to establish authority without shaking things up too much.

There’s good news if you’re a young manager: You can be successful in your role even when you’re managing people decades older than you. We spoke with a number of career experts about how to be the boss—no matter how big of an age gap you’ve got with your team.

Be humble

Don’t let ambition come across as arrogance You might feel like you need to validate how you ended up in your advanced position. But rattling off your impressive resume could come off as bragging. “Sometimes a leader is better off saying less,” says Sara Canaday, a leadership development expert based in Austin, Texas.

Aim to be graceful and humble instead. “You almost need to overcompensate here,” Canaday says. “People who have been there longer are going to be hypersensitive to any signs of power and privilege, so you need to embrace that your role is to be supportive and—corny as it sounds—an inspirational leader.”

Understand how they like to communicate

You might have a direct, to-the-point communication style, whereas older employees might be used to spending the first few minutes of every meeting chit-chatting about the weather. Pay attention to the pace they’re used to and cater your style when appropriate, suggests Chip Espinoza, Ph.D., a California-based expert on generational diversity in the workplace.

Since the older generation tends to divide work and life more than young people do, you should reconsider sending 11 p.m. emails, lest your team thinks they’re expected to be on the job 24/7. To get on everyone’s good side, avoid communicating between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. unless absolutely necessary, Espinoza suggests.

Learn from your older employees

Take the time to recognize the team that’s in place and how things are done. “They have the corporate culture knowledge that you need to be successful,” says Tracey C. Jones, M.B.A., a Pennsylvania-based career and leadership advisor and author of A Message To Millennials: What Your Parents Didn’t Tell You and Your Employer Needs You to Know.

Their years of experience can help you navigate your new responsibilities and avoid tenuous situations, says Jones.

But don’t let them push you around

When you’re younger than your coworkers, even if you’re their manager, it’s sometimes easy for them to take advantage of you—especially if you’re new to management.

“Sometimes older workers will kind of play younger managers and say things like, ‘Oh well you’re better at technology,’” Espinoza says. Be supportive while also holding the person accountable. Resist the urge to do their work for them.

If you find that happening to you, instead of piling more on your plate, shoot the project back to the older person and offer to teach him or her how to use the necessary programs.

Find co-leaders

Jones says it’s important to look for and befriend the exemplary members on your team. "These are the followers that are going to be your early adopters, your cheerleaders,” she says. Often they’ve been with the company for a while and are trusted by their colleagues.

“They're going to help you,” Jones says. “They're going to go down to the other employees and say, ‘Hey, listen, we need to do this and here's the reason why.’”

Be open about your way of doing things

Proactively share your leadership style and what you expect from your team so they’re not left to fill in the blanks, Canaday says. “Instead of instructing or directing, embrace the idea that you’re a coach and a sound board and you’re there to remove obstacles,” Canaday says.

But don’t just swoop in on day one and change everything. Instead, Espinoza recommends asking everyone: What is the one thing you don’t want to see change and what’s the one thing you think needs to change? Someone with institutional knowledge can advise you on previous attempts at making changes that didn’t work out, and save you the hassle and embarrassment of making the same mistake.

“Bring them into that discussion because you can set it up where they’re going to be helping you, or you can set it up to where they’re going to resist you,” Espinoza says.

Make it clear that you’re in it for the long haul

Let them know you’re invested in the position and not just using the role as a stepping-stone. “The Achilles' heel for many millennials is a lack of patience,” Espinoza says. “A lot of people can be frustrated with young managers because they feel the managers are already focused on their next promotion.” Your team will respect you more if they feel you’re committed.