Summary5 min read

Podcast Summary

Podcast: Work with Erika Ayers Badan
Episode: WORK Net/Net: Gen Z Says Take Your Work Emergency and Shove It
Date: February 1, 2026
Host: Erika Ayers Badan

Overview of the Episode

In this episode of Net/Net, Erika Ayers Badan tackles the evolving attitudes of Gen Z in the workplace, particularly their resistance to manufactured crises and the "workplace emergency" mentality. Erika explores generational mindsets around passion, accountability, stress, and the dangers and benefits of remaining level-headed versus stepping up in moments of workplace chaos. She draws on anecdotes, recent headlines, and her own management experience to deliver a blend of tough love, empathy, and humor.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Gen Z’s Response to Workplace Emergencies

Core Theme: Gen Z is less likely to get "wrapped up" in workplace drama, crises, or last-minute emergencies.
- Erika’s Observation: Gen Z keeps a level head, treating many so-called emergencies as company problems rather than personal catastrophes.
Quote [00:36]:
- “Gen Z is not going to get wrapped up in your workplace drama. They're not going to work all night, drop everything, cancel plans, feel the stress, feel the anxiety, feel the personal pressure or accountability to solve your work problem.” — Erika

The Pros and Cons

Pros: Gen Z’s approach can prevent the unhealthy “frenzy and chaos” that dominated previous workplace cultures.
Cons: Apathy can be toxic for managers and team leaders, especially when trying to build or create something meaningful.
Quote [02:02]:
- “Having people who are apathetic about making it really sucks… when shit’s about to go wrong and it really matters and the team or the Gen Zers are apathetic, it makes you be like, fuck, you're not bought into what I'm doing.” — Erika

The Accountability Dynamic

Discussion: Some workers bear more responsibility than others, often because they care more.
Erika relays a story from a morning conversation about a colleague who consistently does the least and shifts work to others, resulting in the more invested people overcompensating.
Quote [03:40]:
- “This is actually the bigger dynamic happening at work. It's a question of accountability. It's a question of responsibility.” — Erika

Managing Gen Z Effectively

Advice: Be direct about expectations: assign clear ownership, explain consequences for success and failure.
Insight: If people feel connected not just to the pain but also to the reward, buy-in—and performance—improve across all generations.

Passion, Purpose, and Career Progression

Question: Is Gen Z truly apathetic, or just searching for what excites them?
Opinion: Erika believes Gen Z is still looking for their "thing" and that there’s danger if they never find it:
- "If you don't find the thing and you’re just floating along, then you’re going to be in a place where AI is going to take your job… and you’re not actually going to develop the grit, the resilience and the skills that you need…” [05:38] — Erika
Future Outlook: Gen Z will eventually be the managers and bosses, but their path may be more winding.

Healthy Perspective on Workplace Urgency

Skepticism About Constant Emergencies: Too many hype-driven crises undermine real productivity.
Comparison to PR: In public relations, everything is treated as a crisis, but Erika questions whether that’s healthy or necessary.
Jamie Dimon Reference [07:33]:
- “If you're worked up at work, that's on you. Like if you're frazzled, that's a you problem. That's not a company problem.” — (paraphrasing Jamie Dimon)
Takeaway: Combine passion with perspective. Focus on deliverables, teamwork, and quality—without succumbing to unnecessary stress.

Managerial Styles & Learning from Leaders

Passionate vs. Perfunctory Managers:
- Passionate managers bring energy and rally teams.
- Perfunctory (technical, numbers-driven) managers set clear parameters and autonomy.
- Erika enjoys working for both.
Warning: Emulating apathy in leadership ("learning from someone who doesn't care") is dangerous, as these behaviors can become contagious and damaging long-term.
Quote [11:38]:
- “I think learning from someone who doesn't care, though, is very dangerous because then you pick up those habits, you adopt those behaviors… and that is not going to set you up well for the long term.” — Erika

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

"Gen Z is being...incredibly Zen in the workplace and not getting wrapped up into the frenzy and the chaos and the crisis at work. I think this is a good thing at large.” — Erika [01:15]
”A lot of the psychology…is that Gen Z doesn't feel bought into the reward, so they don't feel like taking the pain.” — Erika [04:19]
"If you work in pr, right, literally everything is a crisis, everything's an emergency…when you really don't have to. You're like, I just need to get the job done.” — Erika [06:54]
“So then the last thing I would just say is what happens when you're a manager and nothing is a fire drill, right? Like, you don't have any passion, you don't care. You're utterly apathetic to what's happening. I mean, in my opinion, you're not going to have a job anymore.” — Erika [10:56]

Timestamps for Important Segments

00:36 – Gen Z’s resistance to workplace emergencies
02:02 – The downside of apathy to leaders and creators
03:40 – The accountability and workload imbalance
04:19 – How feeling the reward changes buy-in
05:38 – Risks if Gen Z never finds their passion
06:54 – Are work emergencies overblown? PR as an example
07:33 – Jamie Dimon’s take on personal stress at work
10:56 – What happens if managers are apathetic
11:38 – Learning from both passionate and perfunctory leaders; avoiding apathy

Conclusion

Erika uses this episode to critique, empathize, and advise—urging both Gen Z workers and managers to find a balance between passionate buy-in and healthy emotional detachment. The episode challenges listeners to consider their own roles in cultivating accountability, managing escalations, and learning from both energetic and procedural leaders—without falling into the trap of disengagement.

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[00:00]
A
Welcome back to Net Net. We are talking about Gen Z. We love talking about Gen Z. Who doesn't love talking about Gen Z at work? I love Gen Z at work. I don't know if I'm alone in that or with the majority in that. I don't know. But what we're talking about is a headline that is it's pr, not the er, Gen Z is resisting the Workplace Emergency. The net net of this article or this perspective is that Gen Z is not going to get wrapped up in your workplace drama. They're not going to work all night, drop everything, cancel plans, feel the stress, feel the anxiety, feel the personal pressure or accountability to solve your work problem. They're kind of like, hey, nobody's dying from this. There's nothing truly catastrophic that comes from this. This is a company problem. It's not. And so Gen Z is being, I would say, incredibly Zen in the workplace and not getting wrapped up into the frenzy and the chaos and the crisis at work. I think this is a good thing at large. I think when people get too unhinged at work or too wrapped around the axle around a crisis, it can be a bad thing. At the same time, I think if you are trying to build something or you're trying to make something, having people who are apathetic about making it really sucks. And I think ultimately the people who leaders and managers and entrepreneurs and people who want to build things, I think the people those people want to bring with them are people who care. And when shit's about to go wrong and it really matters and the team or the Gen zers are apathetic, it makes you be like, fuck, you're not bought into what I'm doing. You don't care. You certainly don't care as much as I care and you're not going to really help me solve the problem. I think it also has reverberations where you find people who then over index and do all the work and then end up resentful towards the Gen Z people. So I think this dynamic is happening at work. I had a conversation with someone this morning and she was saying, hey, I work with this person. They don't really care. They tend to do the least amount of work possible and they tend to shift the project always to someone else. And this person was saying, when I give assignments I tend to give myself the most work because I know I care the most and I know I will get the job done. And I think this is actually the bigger dynamic happening at work. It's a question of accountability. It's a question of responsibility. If you're a manager and you have a lot of Gen Z people, I find that if you're just straight with them on, hey, this is your project, you're accountable to it, you're responsible for it, and if it doesn't go well, it's on you. And if it does go great, it's also on you. A lot of the psychology that people are talking about at work is that Gen Z doesn't feel bought into the reward, so they don't feel like taking the pain. And I think by changing that, it makes humans, regardless of what generation you are, it makes humans feel more bought in to what you're trying to achieve. Overall, I don't know where this goes. I think what's going to be really interesting is in a couple of years Gen Zs are going to be the managers and a couple years after that they're going to be the corporate bosses. I actually think it's just taking Gen Z a little bit of a different, more winding, longer path to find the stuff they're passionate about. I don't think Gen Z isn't passionate. I don't think Gen Z isn't. Doesn't believe there's an emergency and doesn't want to help or take part in it. I think they haven't found the thing that grabs them. I think the challenge is if they never find the thing. Because if you don't find the thing and you're just kind of floating along, then you're going to be in a place where AI is going to take your job. Your manager is not going to choose you if there's a shortage of budget or time and you're not actually going to develop the grit, the resilience and the skills that you need to be more and more successful in your career. I also think, you know, and I give Gen Z a lot of credit, is there are too many emergencies at work and you know, a lot of times there's just hype and drama. If you work in pr, right, literally everything is a crisis, everything's an emergency and it's really easy to get, you know, stressed and anxiety and anger and all these like, escalated, elevated emotions around that when you really don't have to. You're like, I just need to get the job done. Like Jamie Dimon had a. Someone posted a Jamie diamond thing this morning that was basically like, if you're worked up at work, that's on you. Like if you're frazzled, that's a you problem. That's not a company problem. That's a you problem. And I think that's very Gen Z, which is Jamie Dimon's, obviously not Gen Z. But, like, why is everybody so worked up? Like, let's take a deep breath. I think it's okay to be mad. I think it's okay to be passionate. I think it's great to be passionate. But I also think having a little bit of perspective and also really focusing on what do we have to get done for whom, why, and by when and in what format or at what level of quality. And I think so long as you have that and you get those pieces done and you're a good teammate and a good partner in making that happen, everything goes okay. So then the last thing I would just say is what happens when you're a manager and nothing is a fire drill, right? Like, you don't have any passion, you don't care. You're utterly apathetic to what's happening. I mean, in my opinion, you're not going to have a job anymore. So I think that's a problem. I think the second piece is there's really two different types of managers. One are like the passionate people people, and you're about a miss and you're bringing people along with your energy. And then there's a lot of managers that are actually more technical and more perfunctory. You can learn from both types of people. You don't always have to have a passionate manager. I think I'm a passionate manager. I actually like working for dispassionate managers, to be honest with you. That's actually interesting. I've never thought about that. I like working for the perfunctory people who are like, just make the numbers work and you can go do what you want. I think other people like to work for the passion person. And I think you can learn from both. I think learning from someone who doesn't care, though, is very dangerous because then you pick up those habits, you adopt those behaviors, those type of attitudes, type kind of infiltrate who you are and what you do, and that is not going to set you up well for the long term. Now, work, That's net. Net. You can follow us wherever. You follow work and think about work and want to talk about work, and we're here for it.