I truly believe that labelling people, or ‘pigeon-holing’ them as we used to say, is not a good thing. Generally, we have accepted that certain labels can be divisive and result in segregation and even suspicion and hate. We are all people deserving of each other’s respect, consideration and kindness.
However, I also hold to the French phrase ‘vive la difference’ and believe we should celebrate that everyone is simply different. If we have one label of ‘people’ and lump everyone together, such differences will gradually fade and may eventually disappear. What is wrong with being ‘different’ and respecting it? I am not in favour of homogenisation, as with this approach we could lose, and have lost local accents and dialects, food styles and flavours, we could discard local traditions.
People are still people and worthy of respect even if they display different traits or behave differently. What works for one doesn’t work for the other. The only condition must be the lack of aggression or hate.
As always, we apply the usual question of ‘where do you draw the line?’ Differences should be celebrated but should all values be shared? Who decides where to draw this line? Those who shout the loudest perhaps?
There is one discriminatory label that is creeping into sales and marketing at the moment. It is that of generational labelling. Should we label generations, or should we simply acknowledge that social norms change over time? I favour the latter for some simple but common-sense reasons.
We now have labels for every ‘generation’ since early in the last century. If you search for a list of these you will find these classifications will follow notable dates, something that provided a little more impact on society at the time. It could be the start or end of a war, the coronation of a new monarch, and so on. Alternatively, it could relate to technological advances such as the introduction of the cell phone or the internet, each event heralding a new ‘generation’ and way of thinking. However, there appear to be some holes in this approach, and more recent labels have become more arbitrary. Favouring an inconsistent alphabetical approach we have ‘Boomers, x, y, z, alpha’ amongst others. Apparently, 2025 was the start of the ‘Beta Generation’. It is interesting that what started as labelling following an identified societal change or trait, has become labelling before any such trait is identified!
The danger here is that someone’s date of birth will automatically label them as a specific generation with specific traits then applied to them, often very unfairly. Not all generation Zs are focused solely on what will be of benefit to them, ‘what’s in it for me’, just as not all millennials seek stability and work-life balance above all else.
We are back to the old danger of making assumptions. Any such label will manage our expectations of how people will behave. In recruitment, I have heard people say that for a specific job they would prefer and expect to recruit someone they have labelled as a millennial, expecting them to display certain traits that would be desirable for the job. Isn’t this akin to using horoscopes? Preferring perhaps to take on a Pisces rather than a Leo?!
When sales training I always warn against such labels and in making assumptions as to peoples social and business traits. It has been proved that, of the possible influences; parents; year of birth; star sign; part of the country; belief system; and so on, it is the influence of your peer group, that has the most profound effect on your social behaviour. Choose your friends wisely!
My message is simple:
- Try not to take too much notice of labels, or to apply them.
- Do not make assumptions about people. Talk to them. Find out what really matters to them.
- Always respect yourself and others equally while enjoying the differences.
It’s a bit of a tightrope sometimes and it can be too easy to offend without intention. I have daughters who will quickly tell me what I can and can’t say these days!