Blog, YouTube & Content Monetization

U.S. job openings fell to the lowest level in more than five years, another sign that the American labor market remains sluggish. The Labor Department reported Thursday that vacancies fell to 6.5 million in December — from 6.9 million in November and the fewest since September 2020. Layoffs rose slightly. The number of people quitting their jobs — which shows confidence in their prospects — was basically unchanged at 3.2 million. December openings came in lower than economists had forecast. The economy is in a puzzling place. Growth is strong: Gross domestic product — the nation’s output of goods and services — advanced from July through September at the faste…

Artificial intelligence might be the future of the workplace, but companies that are trying to get a head start on that future are running into all sorts of problems. Klarna and Duloingo have been some of the poster children for the “AI-first” workplace. Two years ago, Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski announced he wanted his company to be the “favorite guinea pig” of OpenAI, instituting a hiring freeze and replacing as many workers as possible with AI systems. Last month, Duolingo announced an AI-first shift, saying it would stop using contractors to do work AI can handle and only increase headcount when teams have maximized all possible automation. Klarna, thou…

This morning, shares of two of the largest computer memory companies that trade on U.S. markets are up yet again. The stock prices of Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU) and Sandisk Corporation (Nasdaq: SNDK) rose after a Japanese memory firm issued a surprising outlook. Here’s what you need to know. Stock prices jump as demand continues Shares in several memory chip makers traded on U.S. markets are currently up in premarket trading this morning. The companies include Micron and Sandisk, as well as Western Digital Corporation (Nasdaq: WDC) and Seagate Technology Holdings (Nasdaq: STX). As of this writing, Micron shares are currently up 2.9%, Sandisk…

Just because you’re an ultra-talented global celebrity doesn’t mean you’re a shoo-in for an amazing gig. In fact, even stars have to apply to jobs, just like the rest of us. Just ask Charlie Puth, who’ll be singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Super Bowl LX Sunday night. It shows how humility fuels success for even someone at the top of their game—in this case, a dream opportunity for one of pop’s biggest stars on entertainment’s biggest stage. In a recent Rolling Stone interview, the “We Don’t Talk Anymore” singer spoke frankly last month about how he applied and auditioned to sing the national anthem, and how he’s elated for the gig. He shared that perfor…

After weeks of searching and applying, you’ve made it to the interview stage, a victory in and of itself. But what happens if you land multiple interviews with different companies at the same time? While it’s certainly a good problem to have, it’s still one that needs to be handled with care—especially if one of the companies asks whether you’re interviewing elsewhere. But does interviewing with multiple companies make you seem like a more desirable candidate—or someone less committed? What if you get a job offer from one company, but are midway through the hiring process at another? These questions are common, and how you handle them can impact not only you…

In recent years, brands have changed their entire marketing approach in order to attract the new breed of so-called eco-conscious consumers. This is unsurprising considering the mountain of research showing the majority of people saying they care about sustainability when it comes to their purchasing decisions. But the notion of an eco-conscious mass consumer who is willing to sacrifice their own personal comfort for the planet is largely a myth. This is because, while people might “say” they support sustainable practices, their actions tell a different story. Our own research reveals that almost six in 10 (57%) American consumers say sustainability shouldn’t come…

“If this is your first time being poor, I’m Kiki, and I’m trying to make it affordable to eat by using depression, recession and wartime recipes,” says TikTok creator Kiki Rough in a video posted last month. While most people wouldn’t turn to the 1940s for dinner inspiration, Rough’s video has since racked up over four million views. “‘We are so back’ as says my 104-year-old grandparents,” one comment reads. “The economy must be cooked if this is trending,” added another. Rough’s video dropped just days after President The President’s global tariff announcements in April, which sent the stock market tumbling and triggered headlines warning of a looming rec…

When Howard Schultz joined—and later acquired—Starbucks in the 1980s, he was deeply inspired by the communal culture of Italian coffee bars. From the beginning, Schultz envisioned Starbucks as more than a transactional stop for coffee. He wanted to build a community-centered space for people to congregate and connect. That vision helped redefine what a coffee shop could be. In recent years, however, that vision has lost momentum. Shifts in how and where people work, rising costs, and intensifying competition have challenged Starbucks’s dominance in the coffee shop landscape. In New York City, the company recently lost its position as the city’s largest coffee chain …

Novo Nordisk announced Friday that it would part ways with its longtime CEO, who steered the company into an unprecedented boom time for weight loss drugs. The Ozempic maker’s chief executive Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen first joined the company as an economist in 1991. Jorgensen has served as Novo Nordisk’s CEO since 2017, leading the company before the current gold rush in weight loss drug development was imaginable. In a press release announcing the move, Novo Nordisk cited market challenges and its declining share price in a press release announcing the leadership shake up. Jorgensen will stay on as CEO temporarily for an undetermined period of time “to support…

No, it’s not April Fools’ Day, but despite some erroneous reports that Walmart will be closing at least 11 stores across multiple states in 2025, Walmart says it will not be closing any of its stores this year. “There are no current plans to close any stores in 2025,” a spokesperson for Walmart told Fast Company. “The erroneous claim originated from a late March US Mirror story, and that article was updated following our call to the editors for a correction. Unfortunately, other outlets have incorrectly reported the store closures without checking with our team, leading us to seek corrections from them as well.” Some of those news outlets included MSN and The Huds…

Cloud storage services conveniently let you store and access documents, photos, videos, and more from any device. The best part? Many top providers offer free plans that are surprisingly capable. But with so many options, how do you choose the right free cloud storage service? Let’s take a look at some of the leading free online storage services available today. Google Drive Google Drive offers 15 GB of storage, shared across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos. That’s one of the most generous free storage amounts, and the service offers seamless integration with Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides). It’s also got a user-friendly interface and solid s…

As backlash over Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show rippled through conservative media, a notable group of right-leaning commentators broke with President Donald The President to defend the performance—in some cases walking back their own earlier criticism. Despite Bad Bunny’s message of love and unity, the performance has been placed squarely at the center of the culture war in recent weeks. After initially calling for viewers to turn off the halftime show and labeling Bad Bunny a “fake American citizen” who “publicly hates America,” influencer and boxer Jake Paul, 29, has now claimed amnesia over his viral rant. “Guys i love bad bunny idk what happene…

The Fast Company Impact Council is an invitation-only membership community of leaders, experts, executives, and entrepreneurs who share their insights with our audience. Members pay annual dues for access to peer learning, thought leadership opportunities, events and more. At the Exceptional Women Alliance, we enable high-level women to mentor each other to achieve personal and professional happiness through sisterhood. As the nonprofit organization’s founder, chair, and CEO, I am honored to interview and share insights from thought leaders who are part of our peer-to-peer mentoring program. This month, I’m pleased to introduce Roslyn Schneider, MD, a physici…

Today marks the start of the Year of the Fire Horse, which in Chinese tradition is all about action, boldness, and taking on new challenges. And what better way to celebrate a year that should be full of red hot, blazing energy than with a hand-crafted cowboy hat from Stetson? The color? Red, of course. The company, started by John Batterson Stetson in 1865, invented the cowboy hat. Today, it’s still known for embracing the spirit of the West with its quality hats, boots, and outerwear. And to mark the year of intensity, which hasn’t happened in 60 years, the brand is partnering with Gold House to turn an iconic cultural item—the cowboy hat—into a modern…

Soccer, football, futebol, voetbal. Whichever moniker the world’s favorite game’s 3.5 billion fans use to describe this mega sport, this beautiful game is going through a cultural evolution creating more impact beyond the game than ever before. When I joined Manchester City FC in 2009, soccer clubs and the broader sport were just starting to open their eyes beyond the traditional rules of category marketing for the game and its impact was felt in soccer only. At Manchester City FC, we saw an opportunity to do something different. Very quickly we went on a journey from being a “soccer club that sold entertainment” to strategically pivoting to be an “entertainment b…

Artificial intelligence has shifted from an experiment to an expectation. Boards push CEOs about ROI. CEOs launch enterprise rollouts. Leaders invest in tools, platforms, and governance. Yet adoption still stalls. Work-arounds spread. Risk grows. Value lags. The failure rarely sits with the technology. The breakdown sits in adoption design. Many organizations treat AI as an IT rollout or a standard change initiative. Tools gain approval. Policies circulate. Training launches. What’s missing is the rigor leaders apply to external products. Employees receive tools without a clear value proposition. Managers face delivery pressure without added capacity. Governance favor…

As the year winds down to a close, with just three weeks left on the calendar, Nextdoor may be the next, last, big meme stock of 2025. Here’s why. What happened? On Wednesday, Nextdoor Holdings Inc. (NXDR) shares rose 49% in early trading, the most in over four years, according to Bloomberg. The gains come on the heels of a series of posts on X on Wednesday morning by investor Eric Jackson, founder of EMJ Capital hedge fund, who described the neighborhood-focused site as “one of the most misunderstood platforms in the market” and touted its AI potential: “Nextdoor isn’t a social network. It’s a neighborhood operating system with AI-native revenue,” as well as …

Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. If you received this newsletter from a friend, you can sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning. Baiju Shah is constantly bridging different worlds. His formative years were shaped by observing his mother, who trained as a commercial artist, and his father, who was an engineer. As global CEO of agency AKQA, he leads an organization that deploys creativity and technology on behalf of cl…

Next week’s conclave to elect the successor to Pope Francis as leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics is a solemn affair steeped in centuries-old traditions. But far from the Sistine Chapel where cloistered cardinals will cast votes, people are placing bets on who will be chosen as the next pope. From cash bets on websites to online games modeled after fantasy football leagues and casual wagers among friends and families, the popularity of guessing and gambling on the future of the papacy is increasing worldwide, experts and participants say. It’s even topped the Europa League soccer tournament and Formula One drivers’ championship, said Sam Eaton, U.K. manager for…

When we minimize our suffering with statements like “I shouldn’t complain—others have it much harder than me,” it can seem evolved, empathetic, even wise. In professional culture, this phrase often earns admiration. It signals gratitude, resilience, and perspective. However, beneath that polished humility lies a psychological defense mechanism that can quietly block emotional growth. That mindset reflects a subtle form of emotional bypassing, which is the tendency to sidestep uncomfortable emotions by rationalizing them away. This ends up muting, rather than healing. It may seem like a sign of maturity. However, empathy bypassing often prevents us from engaging honest…

Commuters in the New York City and New Jersey area are in for what is likely to be a weekend of increased congestion and more limited transit options after the engineers who run the New Jersey Transit rail system voted to go on strike. That strike is now in effect and could continue throughout the weekend—and potentially even longer. Here’s what you need to know about the NJ Transit strike. What’s happened? On Thursday, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) announced that its members who run the trains in the New Jersey Transit Corporation, better known as NJ Transit, were officially on strike. The strike came after the BLET and NJ Transit…

HBO Max’s Heated Rivalry, a gay hockey romance TV series based on the Game Changers book series by Rachel Reid, is the breakout hit no one saw coming. With almost no promotion, it quickly became one of the most talked-about streaming TV shows in the U.S. after HBO Max purchased the rights from Canada’s Crave network this November, turning its two co-stars, Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, into overnight celebrities. What’s unique about Heated Rivalry is just how fast its popularity has spread, and how devoted its massive fan base is. From the week it debuted, to its season finale six episodes later, its viewership grew from 30 million to 324 million streaming minut…