What's on Your Mind?

When I was a leader in corporate America at a large regional bank, I held the assumption that once I was promoted, and received my new title and salary, then I would finally feel confident and successful. I was wrong. The allure of a new title and office wore off quickly, and my persistent worries about whether I was cut out for leadership, or even a good leader at all, continued to persist. A decade later, even after I submitted the first draft of my book, Closing the Confidence Gap, I was overwhelmed with self-doubt. I felt completely stuck: Unable to move forward with marketing, I was paralyzed by many of the same old fears of “What if people think I’m no good and this…

In recent months, major tech companies have lured top talent from rival companies with multimillion-dollar salaries and rumors of unprecedented sign-on bonuses. Big firms are fighting for talent from Apple, OpenAI, Microsoft, Google, and beyond, reportedly offering pay packages that resemble those of NBA stars. Meta has been aggressively poaching talent from its competitors in the race to dominate AI, luring Apple’s robotics chief earlier this month in a move that made headlines. It’s news like this that makes workers ask themselves: “How can I get that to happen to me? (Even if I’m not a Silicon Valley CEO?)” Luckily, career experts say anyone can make themselves mor…

Business travel is often seen as glamorous—whether that’s new destinations, exciting opportunities, or packed itineraries of fun and adventure. I was certainly looking forward to all of these things when I began working with national and international companies. Unfortunately, once we actually start to go on these trips, the reality looks different. It’s long flights, disrupted sleep, constant stimulation, and very little space to recharge. Over time, this can leave us running on empty. As a result, decision-making, creativity, and well-being all suffer. Rest and recovery on work trips aren’t luxuries. They’re necessities if you want to stay at the top of your game. W…

In part two of How YouTube Ate TV, Fast Company’s oral history of YouTube, we look at how the company’s rapid ascent after its 2005 founding led to multiple challenges, from bandwidth costs to unhappy copyright holders. This prompted the startup to consider selling itself, and on October 9, 2006, Google announced that it would be buying it, for $1.65 billion. That deal came with the promise that the web giant would help YouTube scale up even further without micromanaging it. Eventually, the balance they struck between integration and independence paid off. But when YouTube was still a tiny, plucky startup, nobody was looking that far ahead. Read more How YouTube A…

As tech companies race to build more AI data centers, your electric bill is probably going up. And while some companies are prioritizing adding clean energy to accommodate their intensive demands, climate pollution is also climbing as utilities turn to gas or even coal to support our chatbot habits. But there might be another way for new data centers to get the enormous amount of energy they plan to use. A recent report from the nonprofit Rewiring America suggests that instead of building new power plants, hyperscalers—the Big Tech companies whose data centers provide the backbone to cloud computing—could help homeowners install new solar panels, batteries, and heat p…

Hiring an executive assistant (EA) to delegate work tasks and life admin to has long been something reserved for celebrities and Fortune 500 executives. But that belief might now be changing, as rank-and-file workers decide they, too, want a taste of the EA experience. As Callum Borchers wrote earlier this month in The Wall Street Journal, more workers outside the C-suite are finding assistants—virtual, in person, or AI, and sometimes just for a couple of hours a month—to help with everything from booking bouncy castles to managing work calendars. Nowadays, everyone’s schedules are packed right down to the last minute. Plus, labor has never been easier to offload…

It is a sad fact of online life that users search for information about suicide. In the earliest days of the internet, bulletin boards featured suicide discussion groups. To this day, Google hosts archives of these groups, as do other services. Google and others can host and display this content under the protective cloak of U.S. immunity from liability for the dangerous advice third parties might give about suicide. That’s because the speech is the third party’s, not Google’s. But what if ChatGPT, informed by the very same online suicide materials, gives you suicide advice in a chatbot conversation? I’m a technology law scholar and a former lawyer and engineering…

A few years ago, I received some news I’d been longing to hear: The first book I’d ever written received an offer from a publisher. My childhood dream of becoming an author looked set to become a reality. It was six o’clock in the evening—the ideal time for a celebratory drink with my colleagues. But I didn’t tell anyone the news. I thought my excitement would be seen as bragging. So I kept my mouth shut. If only I’d known about the concept of Mitfreude: a German term for the vicarious joy people can feel at another’s happiness. According to recent research, we are needlessly cautious about sharing good news, because we fear it will provoke boredom, irritation, o…

From “fake it till you make it” to “stay in your lane,” SXSW festival goers reveal the worst career advice they’ve ever been given and why it stuck with them. View the full article

When you have work life balance and fulfillment, you’re set up not only for success, but also for happiness. The big questions though, are about how you can find the best approach to work and life based on where you are in your journey, based on what’s unique about you, and based on what you find most important. The work-life mix is critically important. In fact, a survey of 26,000 people in five countries by Randstad found that for 85%, work-life balance was the most important element that people were looking for in both current and future jobs—a critical feature for their satisfaction. Importantly, this is the first time in the survey’s 22-year history that work-lif…

Despite the now widespread use of AI in workplaces, workers aren’t actually becoming more productive, according to a new survey led by Stanford Social Media Lab and BetterUp Labs. The report finds that while employees are using modern AI tools more than ever, they’re using them to create subpar work. The new report calls the phenomenon “workslop,” which it defines as “AI-generated work content that masquerades as good work, but lacks the substance to meaningfully advance a given task.” In other words, it’s thoughtless, sloppy work that someone will eventually have to clean up. The problem is widespread up and down the corporate ladder. Per the report, 40% of emp…

Let’s be honest: No matter your perspective, taking in news these days tends to be a pretty tiring experience. At best, it’s a bit boring. At worst, it’s anxiety-inducing and mind-melting, often leaving you with more questions than answers. This week, a whole new kind of news app is officially breaking cover. And, I know—yadda yadda yadda, right? Another “earth-shattering” news app with more of the same as every other app before it? I had the same thought when I first came across this. Then I started to actually use it. And man alive, lemme tell ya: This is not like any other news app I’ve ever encountered. It’s fresh, it’s interesting, and it’s absolutely…

Of all the things we’ve used ChatGPT for in 2025, one of the most specific was: “What should we drink on a Dalston dive bar expedition on a Thursday night with cooler, younger clients, to avoid a hanxiety-filled Friday, with a board presentation to write?” The answer? Neat Patrón or margaritas, with tips on hydration and sleep. It actually worked. We had a great night, and woke up (relatively) clear-headed. This is what millions of people are doing every day: trading Google rabbit holes for AI when seeking product advice, personal hacks, and brand choices. ChatGPT isn’t just an influencing preference. It increasingly is the preference engine. KILL THE FUNN…

America is at a generational tipping point. The next five years will usher in a whole new class of leaders as powerful positions shift from one generation to the next. Leadership roles are transitioning away from baby boomers, whether they like it or not. Millennials and Gen Z are poised to rise in the ranks, however much of the business canon and available literature offers advice from an irrelevant world—a world before hybrid offices, social media, and kiss cams at Coldplay concerts. Leaders are navigating digital and IRL (in real life) challenges where the older generations’ leadership styles are incongruous with the current moment’s needs. So how does one navi…

Sustainability once sounded like the pinnacle of progress—a badge brands wore proudly to signal responsibility on climate, health, and the environment. But for today’s consumers, especially Gen Z, “sustainable” feels like standing still while the planet unravels. In the face of climate chaos, depleted soils, and vanishing biodiversity, maintaining the status quo is no longer enough. The call of our time is not just to sustain, but to restore—to repair what’s been broken and restore what’s been lost. I spoke with Gary Hirshberg, cofounder of Stonyfield Farm, about this new generation of consumers, the fundamental shift in product expectations, and the important role of…

It appears that day trading could get easier. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, known as FINRA, on Tuesday announced it had approved amendments that will replace the current day trading and pattern day trading rules, “including the minimum equity of $25,000 for pattern day traders.” The proposed change, if approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), would mean traders would no longer need to maintain a minimum $25,000 balance in a margin account to execute four or more day trades within a five-business-day period, CNBC reported. Here’s a quick breakdown of what that means. What is day trading? Day trading, as defined by FINRA’s…

A new study from scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that a dangerous strain of what some researchers have nicknamed a “superbug” is on the rise. The study, published on September 22 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, examines a bacteria called NDM-producing carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (NDM-CRE). Researchers found that, between 2019 and 2023, NDM-CRE infections surged by more than 460% in the U.S. These infections, which range from pneumonia to bloodstream and urinary tract infections, are extremely hard to treat and can be deadly due to their antibiotic-resistant properties—hence the name “superbug.” What is a “supe…

Lately, the conversation about office policy has been dominated by reports of return-to-office mandates, with many employers aiming to get all of their workers back in person by the end of the year. But a new study shows that, despite the best efforts of many RTO proponents, hybrid schedules represent a lasting shift in the way we work—and employees like it that way. The study is the ninth annual “State of Hybrid Work” report from Owl Labs, a company that offers remote work tech like videoconferencing. It found that, across industries, hybrid work isn’t just “a trend.” Rather, it’s now become a priority that workers are “often willing to trade compensation or quietly …

Two U.S. senators sent a letter to Tinder parent Match on September 24 pushing for action against dating scams on the company’s platforms and asking for information about its efforts to detect fraud and protect its users. In a letter to Match CEO Spencer Rascoff, Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan and Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn asked the company to provide documents about its policies and procedures related to fraudulent activity on its platforms. Romance scams often involve fraudsters creating alluring but fake profiles on dating apps, stringing along victims for weeks or months before asking for gifts or money. “We are also concerned that Match, throu…

Want more housing market stories from Lance Lambert’s ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. Heading into the fall last year, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate slipped to a low of 6.07% by September 17, 2024, as the market reacted to weaker-than-expected labor market data. At that point, there was a noticeable upswing in refinances as some 2022–2024 borrowers took the opportunity to get payment relief. However, it was short-lived and quickly fizzled out once labor market data tightened a bit and mortgage rates popped back up. Fast-forward to September 2025, and we’re once again seeing a mini “refi boomlet.” Similar to early las…

While dozens of companies have suddenly retreated from DEI efforts this year, leaders in inclusivity say there’s reason to be hopeful that this work is continuing—albeit more quietly than before. Even as companies like Target, IBM, and Goldman Sachs have ditched their diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, other leaders still firmly believe that diverse teams offer a competitive advantage. There has been progress in the past decade-plus, but it has looked like three steps forward and two steps back—which underscores that such work has never been more important, according to Jana Rich, founder of Rich Talent Group. “What you’re seeing, I think, are some re…

Kroger is celebrating National Chocolate Milk Day—which, by the way, is a real holiday that falls on September 27—in the best way. The supermarket chain is giving away free chocolate milk to loyal customers—or, at least, to customers who log on and grab the coupon in time. The Kroger Co., which serves more than 11 million customers daily through its e-commerce and retail food stores, is offering free half-gallons of Kroger’s chocolate milk over two days this month. “Chocolate milk may be the original after-school treat, but Kroger-brand chocolate milk has grown into so much more—it’s a top-rated favorite among customers of all ages,” said Ann Reed, group vice presiden…

Debate about whether artificial intelligence can replicate the intellectual labor of doctors, lawyers, or PhDs forgoes a deeper concern that’s looming: Entire companies—not just individual jobs—may be rendered obsolete by the accelerating pace of AI adoption. Reports suggesting OpenAI will charge $20,000 per month for agents trained at a PhD level spun up the ongoing debate about whose job is safe from AI and whose job is not. “I’ve not seen it be that impressive yet, but it’s likely not far off,” James Villarrubia, head of digital innovation and AI at NASA CAS, told me. Sean McGregor, the founder of Responsible AI Collaborative who earned a PhD in computer sc…

Congratulations! You’ve just closed a funding round or hit a major milestone in your company’s journey. Now, it’s time to share this exciting moment with the world. As a founder or company leader, you know how important it is to communicate major news to investors, partners, customers, and other stakeholders. But the steps you take when developing your communications strategy can make or break its true impact. Here is your communications playbook for developing a well-planned strategy that ensures your next milestone attracts the attention of media, employees, partners, and those who matter most. 1. Establish your North Star. As a first order of business, y…