What's on Your Mind?

Welcome to Pressing Questions, Fast Company’s workplace advice column. Every week, deputy editor Kathleen Davis, host of The New Way We Work podcast, will answer your biggest and most pressing workplace questions. Q: What should I do if my coworker is using AI unethically? A: This is a question that feels new but is actually just an evolution of a classic workplace issue. You can slot any number of issues in the place of “AI” and the problem is essentially the same: What’s the best way to handle misconduct at work? The answer for all situations, including this one, comes down to a few factors: 1. Do you know (or just suspect) your coworker is doing something they s…

“Follow your dreams.” It’s the first piece of advice most of us are ever given: as kids in the classroom, as students on campus, as graduates preparing to enter the workforce, and as working adults. We are told that jobs are for pursuing passions, not just paychecks. If we do what we love, money and success will follow. If we love what we do, we’ll never work a day in our lives. And the corollary to all that dreaminess? If we don’t find employment doing whatever we find most fulfilling, we’re somehow failures. We don’t have to follow our dreams to end up with our dream jobs. In fact, I’d argue the opposite. When it comes to careers, “follow your dreams” can be nightm…

After years of AI disrupting industries and streamlining repetitive workflows, the technology is now poised to transform animation. In 2024, director and writer Tom Paton’s AiMation Studios released Where the Robots Grow, a fully AI-animated feature film. Everything from animation and voice acting to music was generated using AI, at a cost of just $8,000 per minute—totaling around $700,000 for the 87-minute production. While IMDB reviewers criticized the film as “soulless and uninspired,” it proved that AI can deliver full-length animated features at a fraction of traditional budgets. But it’s not just filmmakers driving this shift. Indie game developers want to prototy…

A century ago, Guccio Gucci opened a boutique in Florence, Italy, that sold high-end leather luggage to well-heeled travelers. He infused his brand with all kinds of unique design elements that would become iconic, including the double-G insignia and bamboo handles. Guccio’s oldest son, Aldo, would go on to transform the label into one of the best-known luxury brands in the world, alongside Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Prada. Aldo’s granddaughter, Alexandra Gucci Zarini, heard a lot about the origins of her family’s business around the dining table when she was growing up. She wanted to follow in her great-grandfather’s footsteps by becoming a fashion designer. But by t…

Diversity training is more effective when it’s personalized, according to my new research in the peer-reviewed journal Applied Psychology. As a professor of management, I partnered with Andrew Bryant, who studies social marketing, to develop an algorithm that identifies people’s “personas,” or psychological profiles, as they participate in diversity training in real time. We embedded this algorithm into a training system that dynamically assigned participants to tailored versions of the training based on their personas. We found that this personalized approach worked especially well for one particular group: the “skeptics.” When skeptics received training tailored…

Spring is officially here. It’s beautiful outside, and let me guess: You are spending all of your time indoors. Don’t worry, you’re in good company. On average people spend 90% of their time indoors. Not to mention that the other 10% is probably mostly spent in cars or other built environments. Workers in cubicles spend eight hours every day in a small gray box, separated from human interaction, marinating in stagnant air and fluorescent lighting. It’s cramped, uncomfortable, and unhealthy. One 2018 study found that workers in cubicles were 31.83% less active and reported being 9.10% more stressed at the office compared with workers in open bench seating. Not to menti…

The buzz in Silicon Valley around AI agents has many asking: What’s real and what’s hype? Box’s cofounder and CEO, Aaron Levie, helps decipher between fact and fiction, breaking down the fast-paced evolution of agents and their impact on the future of enterprise AI. Plus, Levie unpacks how AI is really being adopted in the workplace and what it takes to legitimately build an AI-first organization. This is an abridged transcript of an interview from Rapid Response, hosted by the former editor-in-chief of Fast Company Bob Safian. From the team behind the Masters of Scale podcast, Rapid Response features candid conversations with today’s top business leaders navigating r…

If you’ve ever been passed over for a promotion, you may have questioned the quality of your work. The other candidate probably had better experience, right? But what if the answer is that you simply weren’t top of mind. Instead of focusing exclusively on building a résumé, how much time do you focus on how you’re perceived? “A lot of people think that heads-down good work will speak for itself,” says Lorraine K. Lee, author of Unforgettable Presence: Get Seen, Gain Influence, and Catapult Your Career. “Then there are people who are thoughtful about how they’re seen, but they’re not being seen by the right people in the right places.” Both can be career killers. …

People often think of disasters as great equalizers. After all, a tornado, wildfire, or hurricane doesn’t discriminate against those in its path. But the consequences for those affected are not “one-size-fits-all.” That’s evident in recent storms, and in the U.S. Census Bureau’s national household surveys showing who is displaced by disasters. Overall, the Census Bureau estimates that more than 4.3 million Americans had to leave their homes because of disasters in 2024, whether for a short period or much longer. It was the fourth-costliest year on record for disasters. However, a closer look at demographics in the survey reveals much more about disaster risk in Am…

A viral clip of a woman scrolling on a completely clear phone with no user interface briefly confused—and amused—the internet. But the truth turned out to be far more literal than most expected. Originally posted to TikTok by user CatGPT, the video quickly racked up over 52.9 million views. In the comments, some speculated it was a Nokia model; others guessed it came from the Nickelodeon show Henry Danger. “This looks like a social commentary or a walking art exhibit. I’m too uncultured to understand,” one user commented. “It’s from a Black Mirror episode,” another wrote. Turns out, it was none of the above. Just a piece of plastic. The woman seen in l…

Michael Long is not the typical neuroscience guy. He was trained as a physicist, but is primarily a writer. He coauthored the international bestseller The Molecule of More. As a speechwriter, he has written for members of Congress, cabinet secretaries, presidential candidates, and Fortune 10 CEOs. His screenplays have been performed on most New York stages. He teaches writing at Georgetown University. What’s the big idea? Dopamine is to blame for a lot of your misery. It compels us to endlessly chase more, better, and greater—even when our dreams have come true. Thanks to dopamine, we often feel restless and hopeless. So no, maybe it’s not quite accurate to call it…

Layoffs. Corporate restructuring. Leadership changes. New market strategy. Chances are that you’ll go through at least one significant company upheaval in your career (if not more than one). Employees are expected to adapt quickly, often with little support. While you may not be able to prevent internal changes, you can be prepared—and protect yourself. Get clarification on your job responsibilities One of the biggest impacts on your day-to-day might be changes in your job responsibilities. As soon as possible, you’ll want to discuss any changes with your boss. Ask directly, “Do I have any new responsibilities?” and “How will my performance be evaluated no…

When we talk about decarbonizing industries, footwear doesn’t often steal the spotlight. Yet behind every pair of sneakers or boots is a complex web of supply chains, raw materials, energy consumption, and logistics. While our shoes leave physical footprints, they also leave behind a much larger, often invisible carbon and waste footprint. The footwear industry is estimated to be responsible for hundreds of millions of metric tons of CO₂e emissions each year—that’s more than the emissions of some entire countries. And it’s a sector undergoing massive transformation, fueled by a perfect storm of shifting regulation, growing consumer demand for transparency, and the ur…

Today’s U.S. farmers and agricultural businesses are navigating a complex landscape, with unique near-term and long-term challenges that include intensified global competition, record trade deficits, rising costs, and more frequent and extreme weather events. These challenges have created economic instability across the entire agriculture sector with U.S. row crop farmer net income remaining persistently low for the third straight year. Estimates from the University of Illinois show that corn and soybean farmers could face a net loss of between $50 and $70 per acre this growing season. On top of this, global acreage has leveled off at 2.3 billion acres and the avera…

In any language, silence sounds just about the same. It carries a thunderous kick, though, when it comes from Duolingo, the world’s most popular language-learning app, and its famously irreverent social media presence. Facing heavy backlash online after unveiling its new AI-first policy, Duolingo went dark over the weekend on the social media channels where it cultivated an enormous following with quirky posts. The company even took down all of its posts on TikTok and Instagram, where it has 6.7 and 4.1 million followers, respectively, after both accounts were flooded with negative feedback. After days of silence, the company on Tuesday posted a bizarre video message …

At the Exceptional Women Alliance (EWA), we enable high level women to mentor each other to enable each leader 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 some of the thought leaders who are part of our peer-to-peer mentoring. Our insights today come from Susan Holliday, board director and adviser, who speaks about her global career in the insurance industry, spotting new risks and turning them into opportunities. Q: Your career has addressed various issues related to the insurance industry. What are some recent challenges? Susan …

China produces 75% of the world’s batteries. South Korea and Japan control much of the remaining supply chain. With tariffs looming over the industry, the U.S. is in a unique position, having both urgency and opportunity to strengthen domestic battery production for myriad uses. The reality is that American battery manufacturers lag their Asian counterparts. Companies here are attempting to catch up by rushing to follow Asia’s manufacturing formula, but that strategy won’t hold up in the long term. The only way to surpass these larger Asian competitors is to move on from outdated manufacturing methods and materials and focus on what defines American leadership: innov…

Adobe will be giving its priciest subscription tier an AI-first rebrand—and adding an even higher price tag. Adobe’s Creative Cloud All Apps subscription, which includes access to more than 20 Adobe apps, will soon be known as “Creative Cloud Pro,” the company announced last week. The renamed subscription plan will give users expanded access to Adobe’s AI-powered tools and apps, but for a price: For subscribers on an annual plan, the cost will increase from $59.99 to $69.99 monthly, or from $659.88 to $779.99 annually. Beginning on June 17th, any members of Creative Cloud All Apps will be automatically opted into Creative Cloud Pro. According to Adobe’s announceme…

Google is rapidly expanding its AI search capabilities, as reflected in the announcements it made Tuesday at its Google I/O developer conference. The search giant announced the general availability of AI Mode, its chatbot-format AI search product; some changes to its AI Overviews search results; and its plans to add new visual and agentic search features this summer. Google’s biggest announcement in the realm of search was the general availability of its AI Mode, a chatbot-style search interface that allows users to enter a back-and-forth with the underlying large language model to zero in on a complete and satisfying answer. “AI Mode is really our most powerful vers…

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and health officials in several states are investigating a multistate Salmonella infection outbreak linked to whole cucumbers grown in Florida and shipped around the country. As a result of the ongoing investigation, health officials have recalled whole cucumbers grown by Bedner Growers Inc. and distributed by Fresh Start Produce Inc. between April 29, 2025, and May 19, 2025. As of Monday, 26 people have been infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella. Cases have been reported in 15 states. Nine people have been hospitalized; no deaths have been reported. Several pe…

On April 14, 2025, Blue Origin launched six women—Aisha Bowe, Amanda Nguyễn, Gayle King, Katy Perry, Kerianne Flynn and Lauren Sánchez—on a suborbital journey to the edge of space. The headlines called it a historic moment for women in space. But as a tourism educator, I paused—not because I questioned their experience, but because I questioned the language. Were they astronauts or space tourists? The distinction matters—not just for accuracy, but for understanding how experience, symbolism and motivation shape travel today. In tourism studies, my colleagues and I often ask what motivates travel and makes it a meaningful experience. These women crossed a boundary …

Want more housing market stories from Lance Lambert’s ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. This week, Zillow economists published their updated 12-month forecast, projecting that U.S. home prices—as measured by the Zillow Home Value Index—will fall by 0.9% between April 2025 and April 2026. After a series of downward revisions—beginning in January, when Zillow’s 12-month national home price forecast was +2.9%, and subsequently lowered each month until reaching -1.7% last month—Zillow has finally stopped downgrading its outlook. That said, it’s fair to call the Zillow economist bearish, given that for this forecast to be correct, 2025 …

Americans largely agree that women have made significant gains in the workplace over the past two decades. But what about men? While many Americans believe women are thriving, over half believe men’s progress has stalled or even reversed. To make matters more complex, recent research has revealed a massive divide along gender and partisan lines. The majority of Republican men think full gender equity in America has been achieved, while the majority of Democratic women think there’s still work to be done. As researchers at the Rutgers Center for Women in Business, we think this divide matters a lot. And for business leaders, this gap isn’t just a social or politica…