What's on Your Mind?

At its best, work can be energizing, creative, and meaningful. It can also be emotionally exhausting and stressful. Even in healthy organizations, we all deal with interpersonal tension, stinging feedback, impossible deadlines, and the constant pressure to perform. Add in the rapid pace of change and a steady diet of uncertainty, and it’s no wonder many of us feel perpetually on edge. Stress isn’t just a sign that something’s wrong—it’s a signal that something matters. Emotions like frustration, anxiety, and excitement all contain useful data about what’s important to us, what we value, and what we need. Yet in most workplaces, we’re trained to treat emotions as distr…

The Senate took the first step to end the government shutdown on Sunday after a group of moderate Democrats agreed to proceed without a guaranteed extension of health care subsidies, angering many in their caucus who say Americans want them to continue the fight. In a test vote that is the first in a series of required procedural maneuvers, the Senate voted 60-40 to move toward passing compromise legislation to fund the government and hold a later vote on extending Affordable Care Act tax credits that expire Jan. 1. Final passage could be several days away if Democrats object and delay the process. The agreement does not guarantee the health care subsidies will be exten…

American agriculture is facing a crisis. The average U.S. farmer is nearly 60, and according to American Farmland Trust research, we are losing farmland at a rate of more than 2,000 acres per day. Yet, consumer demand for organic and regenerative food continues to climb, creating an urgent need. This is not just an agricultural issue. It is an economic and cultural challenge with profound implications for our food security, our environment, and our communities. If we step back, the problem reveals an opportunity: Farming must be reimagined as a viable, purposeful career for people who may never have considered it before. Tomorrow’s farmers may not grow up on farms at …

It’s not the coolest phrase in the world to utter, but here goes: I love Windows. Maybe you do too. Maybe you don’t, but you’re forced to use it for work. Whatever the case, for all its positives, Microsoft Windows also bundles in a handful of tools that are either bafflingly archaic or simply underpowered for the demands of the modern user. The good news? The best things in life are often free, and it’s never been easier to swap out some of Windows’ default bloat for great free replacements. Here are five that are worth the download. Trade File Explorer for Files The native File Explorer has received a facelift and tabs, sure, but it still feels sluggish a…

The longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history appears to be nearing an end, but not without leaving a mark on an already struggling economy. About 1.25 million federal workers haven’t been paid since October 1. Thousands of flights have been canceled, a trend that is expected to continue this week even as Congress moves toward reopening the government. Government contract awards have slowed and some food aid recipients have seen their benefits interrupted. Most of the lost economic activity will be recovered when the government reopens, as federal workers will receive back pay. But some canceled flights won’t be retaken, missed restaurant meals won’t be made u…

Phones have always been fashion statements. What started as simple cases to protect your phone has evolved into decking out the devices with every accessory imaginable: dangling charms and key chains, PopSockets, phone wallets, straps, and now . . . pockets? Apple just launched a new product called the iPhone Pocket, and it’s effectively a knitted bag for your iPhone. Apple designed the pouch in collaboration with high-end Japanese fashion brand Issey Miyake, whose relationship with Apple stretches back to the Steve Jobs era. (Jobs’s signature turtlenecks were designed by Miyake, who retired the iconic shirts following Jobs’s death in 2011.) The tech giant say…

Glassdoor Economic Research has released its Worklife Trends report for 2026. A key theme highlighted throughout is the growing disconnect between workers and their leaders. A notable contributing factor is that smaller, regular layoffs—which the report dubs as “forever layoffs”—are becoming more common than less frequent mass layoffs. Rolling layoffs are among several reasons why many employees feel anxious and less secure in the workplace. Let’s review the report findings. ‘Forever layoffs’ are becoming the norm Layoffs are back to pre-pandemic levels. And smaller, more frequent job cuts are now common. Glassdoor refers to these mini, rolling layof…

America’s aviation system is straining under the weight of the longest government shutdown on record: thousands of flight cancellations, long delays at major airports, and frustrated travelers nationwide. In an unprecedented move, the Federal Aviation Administration last week ordered airlines to scale back domestic flight schedules, saying the cuts are meant to ease pressure on an overstretched system and help manage air traffic control staffing. Unpaid for more than a month, some air traffic controllers have begun calling out of work, citing stress and the need to take on second jobs—leaving more control towers and facilities short-staffed. The numbers show t…

The stock market survived the longest government shutdown in U.S. history with minimal impact. But it tumbled on Thursday, November 13, amid a sell-off of tech stocks as worries about overinflated values and interest rate cuts grew. Take the S&P 500, which shrank 1.66% to 6,739.49, or the Dow Jones Industrial average, which went down by 1.65% to 47,457.22—both at their lowest in over a month. It was only the day before that the Dow had surpassed 48,000, reaching a new record high. The Nasdaq composite met a similar fate, dropping 2.29% to its month low of 22,870.36. Many tech stocks felt the effect. Shares of electric vehicle maker Tesla (Nasdaq:TSLA) dr…

Another week, another questionable TikTok trend. The latest internet sensation has social media users asking someone to film them dancing. Instead, the dancer clicks the flip-camera button mid-dance — filming the filmer instead of themselves. And while the trend is meant to be funny (and, of course, get clicks), not everyone is laughing. The prank, called the flip-camera trend, has resulted in hundreds of videos showing awkward, close-up faces of people who believe they are filming friends (or even strangers) circulating on the platform. However, some of the videos are awkward to view, and are resulting in some major embarrassment. That’s especially true when the vide…

In early 2022, the meal delivery company I founded, Tovala, went out to raise $100mm from venture capitalists. Our business could not have been hotter. We’d crossed $110mm of revenue, growing over 100% YoY. We had retention that was 3–4 times better than other meal delivery services. We had low awareness, lots of room for product innovation, and a seemingly clear path to an IPO. Then the war broke out in Ukraine, and capital markets started to get spooked. All of the sudden, fast-growing, unprofitable consumer businesses were out of vogue. We managed to raise $32mm, not a small sum, but it felt like a failure. It ended up being the best thing that ever happened to…

Our culture equates busyness with importance, overcommitment with achievement, and exhaustion with value. For high-achieving professionals, this belief system isn’t just inconvenient, it’s quietly eroding energy, focus, and fulfillment. Meetings pile up, emails never end, and the pressure to “do it all” becomes a measure of worth. And yet, this version of productivity is deeply misleading. The truth is, sustainable success doesn’t come from cramming more into your day. It comes from aligning what you do with who you are, and giving yourself permission to prioritize energy, clarity, and presence over perpetual motion. Because motion for the sake of it is meaningless. …

Stories about AI-generated fabrications in the professional world have become part of the background hum of life since generative AI hit the mainstream three years ago. Invented quotes, fake figures, and citations that lead to non-existent research have shown up in academic publications, legal briefs, government reports, and media articles. We can often understand these events as technical failures: the AI hallucinated, someone forgot to fact-check, and an embarrassing but honest mistake became a national news story. But in some cases, they represent the tip of a much bigger iceberg—the visible portion of a much more insidious phenomenon that predates AI but that will be …

More than two decades of research—from Harvard professor Amy Edmondson’s pioneering studies to Google’s landmark Project Aristotle—have found that the strongest predictor of high-performing teams isn’t talent or strategy, but psychological safety. As Edmondson defines, it’s “a shared belief held by team members that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking.” It’s what gives people the confidence to speak up, take creative risks, and learn from failure—and it’s foundational to innovation. But one critical truth is often overlooked: Leaders can’t create psychological safety for others if they haven’t first cultivated it within themselves. I learned this the h…

Unsuspecting Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) investors might be startled this morning if they glance at a stock price chart for shares in the TV streamer. As of the time of this writing, popular stock tracking sites like Yahoo Finance and apps like Apple Stocks are showing that Netflix’s shares dropped more than 90% on Friday, when they began the day trading at more than $1,100. Those same charts now show that NFLX shares are trading at “just” around $111 each. But don’t panic. Netflix’s shares haven’t actually lost 90% of their value. NFLX stock just split. Here’s what you need to know. Why are Netflix shares trading so ‘low’? Netflix shares are currently trading …

When Jennifer Austin met Molly in second grade, they quickly became best friends. They giggled through classes until the teacher separated them, inspiring them to come up with their own language. They shared sleepovers and went on each other’s family vacations. But they gradually drifted apart after Austin’s family moved to Germany before the girls started high school. Decades passed before they recently reconnected as grown women. “Strong friendships really do stay for the long haul,” Austin, 51, said. “Even if there are pauses in between and they fade, that doesn’t mean they completely dissolve or they go forgotten. They’re always there kind of lingering like a …

In its early days, the odds seemed good that YouTube was destined for failure. After a false start as a dating website, it wasn’t clear whether the company could cover the cost of streaming video content, or avoid the fate of Napster, which was sued out of business for copyright infringement. But after getting acquired by Google in 2006, and deciding to share ad revenue with creators a year later, YouTube went on not only to survive, but also to revolutionize the entire media ecosystem—from “double rainbows” to the “Ice Bucket Challenge.” In 2024, YouTube took in $36.3 billion in ad revenue, and today it is the most-watched video provider in the U.S.—not just among s…

Beep, beep: Amazon is making a bigger move into the market for used vehicles. The retail giant and Ford Motor Company announced a partnership today which will mean car buyers in three major cities can shop for, finance, and purchase a certified pre-owned Ford vehicle on Amazon Autos. This new partnership is initially launching in Los Angeles, Seattle, and Dallas, with plans to expand, and will allow customers to complete all steps of the car-buying process online before scheduling a pickup time at a participating dealer and signing the paperwork. “The addition of Ford certified pre-owned vehicles to Amazon Autos represents an exciting expansion of our store, givi…

Imagine you’re watching a basketball game. You’re not focused on the stat sheet—you’re watching how the players read the court, pivot when a play breaks down, and celebrate their teammates. Those moments tell you a lot more about how someone performs under pressure than any metric ever could. I think about hiring the same way. Like a stat sheet, a résumé might list someone’s achievements, but it won’t show how they adapt under pressure or support a team. Yet in the age of AI, companies often overlook that, prioritizing technical skills instead. According to a 2024 report from Microsoft and LinkedIn, 71% of employers said they would choose an AI-fluent candidate wi…

AI has a writing style, or, at least, an alleged style. Tools like ChatGPT and Claude seem to communicate with a tendency toward formalism. The chatbots are earnest, sometimes too evenhanded or overly complimentary. There’s a noticeable lack of personal flair, and no deeply held opinions. According to Grammarly, AI language tends to evoke “repetitive phrasing” and “robotic tone.” Now, there are even AI buzzwords and phrases like pivotal and delve into and underscore. It’s the verbiage of instruction booklets for middle schoolers writing their first essays. In the age of AI, these helpful crutch words are now verbata non grata. Some people are now trying to avoid usin…

A widely used Internet infrastructure company said that it has resolved an issue that led to outages impacting users of everything from ChatGPT and the online game “League of Legends,” to the New Jersey Transit system early Tuesday. Around 10 a.m. ET, Cloudflare said it was “continuing to monitor for errors to ensure all services are back to normal.” Other platforms that experienced outages Tuesday included the social media site X, Shopify, Dropbox, Coinbase, and the Moody’s credit ratings service. Moody’s website displayed an Error Code 500 and instructed individuals to visit Cloudflare’s website for more information. New Jersey Transit said parts of its digi…

Business leaders are scrambling to understand the fast-moving world of artificial intelligence. But if companies are struggling to keep up, can today’s business schools really prepare students for a new landscape that’s unfolding in real time out in the real world? Stanford University thinks it might have the answer. At its Graduate School of Business, a new student-led initiative aims to arm students for a future where AI is upending in ways that are still unfolding. The program, called AI@GSB, includes hands-on workshops with new AI tools and a speaker series with industry experts. The school also introduced new courses around AI—including one called “AI for Hum…

When I was learning to play bass, my first teacher told me, “Find your groove and stay in it.” As a musician, that meant discovering the rhythm that allowed me to lock in with the drummer so the rest of the band could shine. Years later, as a consultant and culture architect, I realized the same principle applies to productivity: Each of us has a groove—a natural style of working—that, once discovered, allows us to perform at our best. The challenge is that most professionals attempt to replicate productivity systems that don’t align with their brain’s natural rhythm. They read about a CEO waking up at 4 a.m. or a time-blocking hack and feel frustrated when it doesn’t…

A 1940 self-portrait by famed Mexican artist Frida Kahlo of her asleep in a bed could make history Thursday when it goes on sale by Sotheby’s in New York. With an estimated price of $40 million to $60 million, “El sueño (La cama)” – in English, “The Dream (The Bed)” — may surpass the top price for a work by any female artist when it goes under the hammer. That record currently stands at $44.4 million, paid at Sotheby’s in 2014 for Georgia O’Keeffe’s “Jimson Weed/White Flower No. 1.” The highest price at auction for a Kahlo work is $34.9 million, paid in 2021 for “Diego and I,” depicting the artist and her husband, muralist Diego Rivera. Her paintings are reported …

“Your new boss didn’t even offer you a glass of water?” my mother had questioned me in disbelief. “After how many interviews? You should not take that job. I am telling you not to take that job.” I had received a call from a recruiter to interview with one of the biggest beauty brands in the world. This was my chance to catapult my career into a company that didn’t often have job openings at my level, but didn’t have the best Glassdoor reviews. And I didn’t have time to ask too many questions. The recruiter had given me 48 hours notice to come in and do interviews. I had shared with my mother I did close to a dozen in person interviews, 30 minutes each, back to back. …