Tired of all the negative news? Being told what to worry about and how to navigate, manage and persevere?
Time for a fresh take? I agree. I thought we could start there.
This article from Chief Executive grabbed my attention because it had gone out of its way to not be a negative article. We have enough of those – we know the challenges we’re facing. And we can be ready for them. But in the face of so much negativity that doesn’t mean we should completely abandon the thought (hope?) that there is plenty of good out there too. Good that we need to be ready for.
Consider the opening to this article:
“It’s pretty easy to be pessimistic these days. The long run of Black Swan events, the fierce political divides, the fearmongering and apocalyptic thinking in so many quarters of society—if you’re not feeling pumped about the direction of the country, you’re hardly the only one.
But falling into that thinking right now is a huge mistake for executives—and it could cost you dearly. So says Philip Powell, an Indiana University economist and executive Director of the Indiana Business Research Center…”
If you’re ready for a bit of optimism. If you’re ready to change your mindset, even for a day, you will want to check out this read.
Because American workers have quit quitting. For now. Some economists are calling it the big stay. A research study from HBR seems to imply employees value flexible, unchecked time
(*Article is from WSJ, subscription needed.)
I call it a bubble. I’ve thought we were living in this job bubble for some time. Where companies had overstaffed and were waiting for an opportunity to adjust. The biggest issue I see with where things are now is that everyone might be a little…stuck.
Employees want flexible time. Freedom over their schedule. If they get that, they’re not leaving. Well…duh. Why would they? This provides them the chance to do what they want, when they want. But what if companies tried to implement some type of time tracking or restrictions on how they manage their day? Would they still stay?
Point is, are we on a collision course for companies pulling back the very perks and conditions that got us to this spot? And are employees open to trading some of that freedom for stability as the job market cools?
UPDATE: The latest JOLTS report came out shortly before I finished this edition. It seems to support a lot of the findings in the HBR study.
Yes, layoff fears are real. The number of employees preparing for and reporting anxiety about potential layoffs are very high. The report, from MarketWatch, linked above is in-depth and offers some very eye-opening numbers.
Two examples of those:
1. If laid off today, 40% of employees say they’d run out of money in one month. 24% said two weeks.
2. 63% of employees said they’d take a pay cut to stay employed.
Even CrowdStrike thinks this company needs a crisis communications plan.
What a great report from Taylor Borden (The Work Shift on LinkedIn). I would hope you were aware July is Disability Pride Month; if you didn’t, definitely get caught up on why and how it’s celebrated. But regardless, you will want to spend some time with Taylor’s report. Great intel on the emergence of people with disabilities in the workforce and how they are climbing the corporate ladder.
Supercharge isn’t my word. But I didn’t want to alter the headline from this fun, quick read from TopRank. The last (bonus) idea in the blog may be my favorite idea.
Google has reversed course, announcing last week it will not be phasing out cookies. Why? What does it mean? What should you do?
We got you covered.
Valuable info and perspective from Manufacturing Dive as you consider your budget for the back half of the year.
Nothing for the pod squad this edition. (I’m behind due to traveling in July.)
I would be happy to contribute to your next event or planning session. Contact me to talk more.
Feel free to share with anyone else you think would enjoy the articles and resources!