Gen Z workers must learn to put up with bad bosses, says Michelle Obama

According to former US First Lady Michelle Obama, Generation Z needs to experience “bad bosses” and “boring” jobs before they can be successful.

He suggested that “hard times” and being treated “unfairly” contributed to developing the resilience needed to be a leader.

“I want young people to understand that every experience, the bad boss, the boring assistant job, the job where you feel underappreciated, the job that doesn’t give you the task you want when you want it – it’s all about learning to be resilient,” he said during a live podcast recording in London.

“One of the important things is to learn how to do something you don’t like doing and become good at it,” the 62-year-old actor added.

This comes as youth unemployment has reached a 12-year high as the number of entry-level jobs in the UK declines.

The crisis costs the UK £125bn a year; The number of young people who are not working or studying has exceeded 1 million for the first time since 2013.

The number of medium- and low-skilled jobs has decreased by approximately 1.6 million over the past 20 years.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that vacancies in the hospitality industry have halved in the last four years alone.

Meanwhile, the number of people starting apprenticeships has fallen by 35 percent in the last decade.

Mrs. Obama spoke alongside her brother during the recording of their podcast: IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson at the Truman Brewery in Shoreditch.

He said: “I think a lot of young people want to do what they want to do or what they’re good at. But you’ve got to earn it, carry some bags, go through tough times and have people treat you unfairly.”

“It’s not about giving you a raise when you think you deserve it, it’s about character building that prepares you before you become your own manager, your own leader.”

She added that she encouraged her daughters Malia and Sasha to take “a year or two off” instead of working, and would encourage other young people to do the same.

Mrs. Obama said she swapped being an Ivy League-educated lawyer for city work, which led her to discover that “helping people” was what motivated her.

“That’s what gets me up every day, I get really excited, and no one taught me that in college or teaches it to young people,” he said.