What's on Your Mind?

When people talk about work-life balance, they often mean that they have some engagement with activities outside of work—not just filling the hours of the day when they’re not working. That engagement might involve taking care of family members, engaging as a volunteer, or participating in a hobby. If you’re fortunate enough to have the time to spend on a hobby, does it matter what you do? Perhaps any activity you engage in outside of work is likely to lift your spirits. But research suggests that different activities affect your overall happiness in different ways. The power of movement In particular, hobbies that enable you to be active make you happier than …

When I first launched my business, I believed growth meant saying yes to everything. Every client who reached out, every opportunity that landed in my inbox, every late-night email that felt urgent. It all felt like momentum. I had spent years in the finance industry learning how to be reliable, responsive, and endlessly available. So when I went out on my own, I brought those habits with me. I believed boundaries were something you earned later, once you’d proven yourself. To make matters worse, there’s an unspoken belief in founder culture that “serious” entrepreneurs are always available, always hustling, always willing to sacrifice their lives for their businesses…

Sharing personal hardships like divorce, health issues, and family emergencies can make workplace conversations emotionally difficult and professionally complex. But given that our working lives are not getting shorter anytime soon, it’s not a question of if individuals will need to have these conversations, but when. And navigating these conversations professionally while managing emotions and privacy requires careful thought and preparation. Here are some strategies to help you handle sensitive discussions with confidence while maintaining personal boundaries. 1. Determine the purpose of sharing your news Getting clear on your reasons for sharing will help yo…

I sat in my car staring at the front door of the community mental health center, questioning if I could walk in. If anyone saw me, they might have assumed I was a patient struggling to face my mental health issues head-on in treatment. But I wasn’t. I was the therapist who was struggling to find the courage to walk in the door. My husband had passed away unexpectedly just two months before, at the age of 26. After my three days of bereavement time, I wasn’t in any shape to return to work. Fortunately, my doctor diagnosed me with “acute stress disorder” and bought me two months of short-term disability. I still didn’t feel ready to go back to work but my mortgage bill …

A meeting drags on. People are talking, but no one is saying the thing that needs to be said. Direction is unclear, the energy dips, and everyone is waiting for someone to speak with authority. When you finally do speak, the words come out softer than you intended: – “Maybe we should consider . . .” – “I think it might be good if . . .” – “Sorry to interrupt, but . . .” One of the biggest challenges leaders face isn’t just what they decide, it’s how they communicate it. Clarity, confidence, and authority are what set the tone for the room. If you tend to soften your tone or worry about sounding pushy, being more direct can feel uncomfortable.…

Ghost jobs are postings for positions that don’t actually exist for various reasons, and they waste countless hours for job seekers who apply to roles that were never meant to be filled. Experts in recruiting and career strategy have identified specific warning signs that reveal when a posting is likely fake or abandoned. This guide breaks down how to recognize these red flags before investing time in an application, so you can better focus your efforts on genuine opportunities. Prioritize Responsive Employers that Show Immediate Engagement One reliable way to identify a ghost job is to see whether applying to it leads to any human response at all. Today, silence h…

A headline catches your eye: A company you admire, known for its market performance and strong culture, is embroiled in a massive scandal. It causes reputational harm, profitability tanks, and customers notice. The details feel depressingly familiar—enough to fill books (most recently The Dark Pattern). With postmortems pointing to “culture problems,” your instinct might be to double-check your own organization’s cultural health. So, you pull up last year’s employee engagement survey: 85% of employees feel comfortable raising concerns, and 90% believe leadership demonstrates ethical behavior. The numbers are reassuring. But the company you’ve read about probably had s…

If you’ve ever felt frustrated by job listings that seem too good to be true or lead nowhere at all, you’re not alone. The truth is, the job market is full of fake postings and ghost jobs that can waste your time or even put you at risk. To help you navigate this confusing landscape, nine experienced experts have shared their advice on red flags to watch out for, so you can differentiate between legitimate opportunities and scams designed to exploit job seekers. Look for salary transparency In my experience, the biggest red flag has nothing to do with the job description or the company website. The real issue shows up when a listing has zero mention of salary—or wo…

The shine has worn off the new year and, given the long slog of winter that still lies ahead, you might be feeling less excited about work. There’s a good chance that what you’re feeling is more than just the winter blahs. According to a study last year, an alarming 82% of workers feel at risk for burnout. If you think you, your coworkers, or even your boss might be part of that group, here are the red flags to look out for—and what you can do about it. Red flags for personal burnout You likely know many of the obvious signs of burnout, such as feeling exhausted and disengaged at work. But there are plenty of other less obvious red flags that you should pay attent…

No matter how talented and ambitious you are, your ability to do well in your job and career, and especially enjoy your professional life, largely depends on where you work—in particular, the workplace culture. Defined broadly as the formal and informal rules that determine “how we do things around here,” workplace culture is a sort of human algorithm that governs the social dynamics in organizations, much like national culture does so for countries. Although there is no such thing as a universally good culture, and there are many different ways of creating positive working environments under which people thrive, there are rather consistent patterns when it comes to t…

Below, Leanne ten Brinke shares five key insights from her new book, Poisonous People: How to Resist Them and Improve Your Life. Leanne is Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of British Columbia, where she directs the Truth and Trust Lab. She has been studying deception, distrust, and dark personalities for the past 20 years. What’s the big idea? Most people are far kinder—and more trustworthy—than we assume. The real danger comes from a small group of manipulative personalities who exploit our good nature. Once you understand how they operate, you can spot them early and take back control. Listen to the audio version of this Book Bite—read …

It’s okay to admit it: You want to stand out, get ahead, and achieve all you can. And while you may feel that you can’t mention these goals, they don’t actually make you a narcissist. In fact, it’s natural for people to want a sense of status at work. After all, status is an indication that the company and your peers respect and appreciate you. But you’re also wise to balance your desire for accolades with the appropriate humility. No one likes someone who is arrogant, self-serving, or disrespectful—and there is a delicate balance between being confident and being egotistical. AVOID ARROGANCE In a 2019 study published in Review of General Psychology researchers…

Because hiring staff is typically a time-consuming and costly process, many companies are now opting to interview multiple candidates at once. The Society for Human Resource Management reported that group interviews have become increasingly popular among employers. For applicants, this changes the interview experience significantly. Instead of fielding questions about your résumé in a one-on-one setting, you’ve now got to vie for a role alongside other applicants and take part in real-world workplace scenarios designed to showcase your leadership skills. Tech companies and brands such as Disney, Starbucks, and The Gap are choosing to adopt the trend. Not only can…

Some studies show that the interview process can take up to six weeks. But there are ways that might help speed up the process and get those final hiring managers to land on you as the one they offer the job to. View the full article

In a perfect world, workplaces would be environments of mutual respect, open communication, and fair treatment. Unfortunately, that’s not always the reality. Whether you’re dealing with a micromanaging boss, a dismissive colleague, or a workplace culture that undervalues your contributions, knowing how to assert yourself is essential to avoiding burnout and developing as a professional. Standing up for yourself doesn’t mean becoming combative or aggressive. Instead, it’s about cultivating confidence, setting boundaries, and advocating for your worth. Here’s how to grow a backbone at work while maintaining professionalism and integrity. Recognize your value This…

Staying focused for an entire workday can feel like a losing battle. Between constant notifications, shifting priorities, and mental fatigue, even the most disciplined professionals struggle to maintain momentum from morning to evening. To understand what actually helps people stay in the zone, we turned to experts who study attention, performance, and productivity. They shared nine practical, research-backed strategies for sustaining deep focus and getting meaningful work done throughout the day. 1. Reset With Box Breath High performers don’t usually lose discipline. They lose regulation. When your body flips into fight-or-flight, focus gets choppy and your thinki…

You are bound to have one of those crazy days (or weeks or months) where your calendar is jammed with meetings, there are looming deadlines, and an emergency has cropped up that absolutely needs to be dealt with right away. Having a few things that hit at the same time can actually be good for you, but eventually, it is going to cause you problems. In particular, the researchers Yerkes and Dodson published a paper in 1908 (you read that right—over 110 years ago) talking about the optimal level of psychological energy called arousal. They suggested that when people have low levels of energy, they don’t get much done. That shouldn’t be surprising. As your arousal goes u…

I’ve worked remotely since 2006 (way before it was common). However, my days were filled with calls to colleagues and DMs to chat about everything from work to what we had planned for the weekend. Now I’m a solopreneur. I have occasional calls with clients, but they’re rare. Most of my days are spent working alone. In many ways, this is great since I have the freedom to work however and whenever I want. But staying motivated when it’s just me requires being really thoughtful about how I work. According to a 2025 report by Leapers, nearly half of self-employed professionals feel lonely occasionally or some of the time. One in five feels lonely or isolated often o…

Things are tough right now, with complexity and uncertainty in the world driving stress and worry. You’re probably trying to stay positive and muscle through. But there’s an important difference between keeping appropriately optimistic and acting with toxic positivity. If you’re faced with toxic positivity in yourself or others, it’s probably based on good intentions that have run amok. But it can actually create a negative spiral that can make things worse. Staying positive during trying times According to a survey from MyPerfectResume, people are reporting record levels of exhaustion, anxiety, and stress with 88% who said they were burned out. In addition, 32…

Barely 10 days into the new year, it already feels like you can’t look away from the news. In the last week alone, the U.S. military captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and took over operations of the country; President The President withdrew the U.S. from dozens of international organizations, including a major climate treaty; and an ICE agent fatally shot a Minneapolis resident, sparking outrage and widespread protests. If it seems impossible to focus on work—or anything else, for that matter—amid all this troubling news, you’re not alone. Plenty of research in recent years has shown that Americans are overwhelmed by the state of politics and feel a heighte…

Lately, you may have noticed headlines about anti-DEI executive orders. While these orders are aimed at the federal government and don’t directly affect companies, they can make anyone who cares about inclusion feel uneasy. If your organization is serious about creating a fair and welcoming workplace, now is a good time to review and refresh your strategy. Let’s chat about some practical ways to stay focused on your values and navigate these challenging headlines. Reassure your team that inclusion is legal First things first, it’s important to remind everyone that diversity, equity, and inclusion work is completely legal. In an email interview, Working IDEAL’s…

Most founders believe their job is to stay deeply involved as their company grows. But that instinct often becomes the very thing that holds the business back. As companies scale, what once made them successful—founder-led decision-making, strong creative direction, tight control—can start to create bottlenecks. Teams can’t become truly autonomous, leadership layers struggle to emerge and the organization remains tied to the founder’s perspective instead of evolving beyond it. I saw this firsthand after a decade of building Kurppa Hosk with business partner Thomas Kurppa. Nothing was broken; we had become a globally renowned creative agency. But growth was becomi…

About 1 in 3 Americans make at least one New Year’s resolution, according to Pew Research. While most of these vows focus on weight loss, fitness, and other health-related goals, many fall into a distinct category: work. Work-related New Year’s resolutions tend to focus on someone’s current job and career, whether to find a new job or, if the timing and conditions are right, whether to embark on a new career path. We’re an organizational psychologist and a philosopher who have teamed up to study why people work—and what they give up for it. We believe that there is good reason to consider concerns that apply to many if not most professionals: how much work to do a…

Beth Kaplan is a belonging researcher and advocate. She has spent her career studying how people construct their sense of belonging. With more than two decades of experience as an executive and having conducted research into workplace trauma, she is a sought-after consultant for Fortune 500 companies, nonprofits, government, and educational institutions that seek to improve their retention and culture. What’s the big idea? Braving the workplace means showing up as yourself—every single day—in a world that constantly tells you to be someone different. Too many of us feel unseen, undervalued, and unhappy at work. It’s time to stop shrinking and molding to keep your s…

Japanese psychology often likens attention to a flashlight. Wherever you shine this flashlight is where your focus and energy go. However, problems can arise when people shine this flashlight inwards for too long. They focus obsessively on their thoughts and emotions, and particularly those related to things outside of their control. Another common tendency that causes problems is shining the flashlight on other people’s behavior, the past, or the future. These are all inherently uncontrollable areas. Worrying about these factors can lead to a mental loop where it seems impossible to find solutions. When you start fixating on past events you can’t change, it can lead…