What's on Your Mind?

As we move into 2026, it’s time to examine the subtle behaviors that undermine our professional impact. As someone who works with mid- to senior-level leaders, I see and hear the ways in which communication behaviors and patterns get in their way. Small changes can create influential outcomes! Here are three critical habits to eliminate if you want to project true confidence and gravitas. Breaking these three habits isn’t about becoming someone you’re not—it’s about removing the barriers between your capabilities and how others perceive them. True executive presence combines confident delivery with substantive content, and that starts with eliminating the small be…

From greater flexibility to a sense of ownership and the hope of financial gain, solopreneurship feels like the new American dream. However, there’s a hidden cost to that dream that has nothing to do with the unending hustle that comes with being both a business owner and that business’s sole employee. It’s the undeniable cost to the planet. In 2025, about 41 million businesses in the U.S. were run by a sole individual who is both its owner and only employee. As AI allows for solopreneurs to automate a growing number of tasks, the technology is enabling small businesses—from gigs like content creation to event planner or even niche work like dog grooming or jewelry ma…

Six years ago, Atari announced ambitious plans to build a gamer-themed hotel in Las Vegas, featuring an e-sports studio and a movie theater. The legacy video game company’s management at the time saw hotels as a way to revitalize the brand’s name, which was largely a nostalgia play. “I love the idea. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do,” said then-CEO Fred Chesnais. “I always wanted to make an amusement park, and hotels could be the first step.” But now the company tells the Las Vegas Sun that the project has been shelved after “the deal didn’t come to fruition.” It’s the latest in a series of disappointments for Atari’s lodging ambitions. Only one of what th…

Ozempic-maker Novo Nordisk turned to the actors from Apple’s 2000s “Get a Mac” ads to differentiate its GLP-1 medication amid a rising sea of competitors. On January 20, the Danish pharmaceutical company announced its “There’s Only One Ozempic” campaign starring Justin Long and John Hodgman. The actors are reprising their roles from Apple’s Mac vs. PC ads playing the personifications of a name brand and the alternative—but now for weight-loss drugs. Long personified Mac in the original Apple campaign by dressing in a more youthful, casual way than Hodgman, who personified a stuffy, dorky PC by wearing glasses and a suit and tie with a closely cropped haircut. …

Want more housing market stories from Lance Lambert’s ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. Among the 24 price forecasts tracked by ResiClub in our final 2026 home price forecast roundup, the average prediction is a +1.43% increase in U.S. home prices in 2026. Keep in mind that roundup mentioned above looks at forecasts for nationally aggregated home prices. On a regional and neighborhood basis, home price swings can vary greatly from the national figure. For example, on a year-over-year basis, U.S. home prices as measured by the Zillow Home Value Index are up +0.1%, while home prices in the Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, Connecticut me…

In the world of business, we tend to believe that success is a direct result of talent, resources, and a “great idea.” We expect that if a company has a track record of dominance, like Google, Amazon, or Apple, they are a sure bet for the next big thing. Yet, the history of innovation is littered with the wreckage of unexpected flops launched by industry giants. From the futuristic promise of the Segway to the early dominance of MySpace, these failures prove that even a massive war chest and a visionary concept cannot guarantee market survival. Here are some of the traps that companies fall into. The ‘Solution in Search of a Problem’ Trap One of the most common…

Back on December 15th, Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg became the youngest player in NBA history to score more than 40 points in a game. It was also just the third time a teenager had 40 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the league’s 79-year history. The only other two players to achieve that last stat line were LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Given that elevated company, and the fact that James, Durant, and about 65% of the NBA wear Nike shoes, it is still a bit of a shock to see Flagg donning New Balance. The privately-owned, Massachusetts-based shoemaker has gradually built a comparatively small, but elite roster of athlete ambassadors ove…

Right now, too many physicians and patients are trapped in a fragmented system. Information exists—but rarely in a form that’s usable or easily actionable. Too often, lab results arrive as scanned images. Medication histories show up late or unreadable. Critical details hide in pages no one has time to sift through. What clinicians feel in those moments is not just inconvenience—it’s strain. They’re carrying the weight of navigating a complexity that shouldn’t sit on their shoulders in the first place. Many expect artificial intelligence (AI) to solve the problem but while it can be an important part of the solution, AI is only as smart as the data it feeds on and onl…

The EAT-Lancet Commission gives us a clear roadmap: If we want to feed 10 billion people without destroying the planet, we need to radically transform our diets by eating more whole grains, more legumes, and fewer ultra-processed foods. The problem? We’re asking consumers to overhaul their eating habits while competing against an entire industry that has spent decades—and billions of dollars—engineering products to be scientifically irresistible. Whole foods don’t stand a chance against ultra-processed alternatives optimized for addictive taste and shelf stability, unless they can deliver on both flavor and texture. SUSTAINABLE FOOD NEEDS TO BE DELICIOUS Consum…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has alerted the public to a threat posed by select canned tuna products. The canned tuna is at risk of harboring the bacterium that causes botulism, a potentially fatal form of food poisoning. Here’s what you need to know about the canned tuna recall. What’s happened? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has posted a recall notice on its website announcing that select cans of Genova Yellowfin Tuna have the potential to be contaminated with Clostridium botulinum, a bacterium that can cause botulism in humans and animals who consume it. The canned tuna is produced by the El Segundo, California Tri-Union Seafoods compan…

Warren Buffett’s successor appears to be considering his first significant move after taking over as CEO this month. Kraft Heinz warned investors Tuesday that Berkshire Hathaway may be interested in selling its 325 million shares in the name brand food giant that Buffett helped create back in 2015. The news came in a filing with stock market regulators. Buffett and the Brazilian investment firm 3G Capital orchestrated the merger of Kraft and Heinz back then because they already owned Heinz and believed in the power of their brands. Now Greg Abel may be plotting a different course. Over the years since Buffett had come to realize that the company’s competitive moat arou…

I’m a classic satisficer: I’m usually quick about making decisions and often fall back on the tried-and-true. Some people are optimizers, carefully analyzing almost every choice, whether it’s a new sofa or a cup of coffee. If you want to make decent, “good enough” choices about your financial plan and portfolio and get onto other things, what strategies should you employ? And what should you stop doing? Here are some strategies to embrace. Eliminate ‘onesies’ and embrace simple building blocks Step away from those individual stocks. Forget I bonds and laddered portfolios of individual Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities. If you’re a satisficer, they’re not for…

How can you win love and loyalty from your customers, your employees, your fans—and even the people in your life? Taylor Swift answered this question perfectly with just one word: “Overdeliver.” Overdelivering will impress your customers, create loyal employees and fans, and make all your relationships stronger. “I wanted to overserve the fans in terms of the amount of songs that they were going to hear and how far I was going to push myself,” she says in her new docuseries, The End of an Era. As you likely know, she made good on that plan. The Eras Tour show ran three-and-a-half hours, divided into 10 distinct eras covering different albums. Then she added another er…

For as much as we heard about AI in the past year, the top two best places to work in the U.S. are decidedly AI-free. Crew Carwash, an Indianapolis-based chain of car washes with 55 locations in the Midwest, claimed the top spot on Glassdoor’s list of the best places to work in 2026. In-N-Out Burger, the beloved chain with 400-plus locations, also moved up one spot this year to rank as the second-best place to work in the U.S. From there, however, tech and AI companies dominated nearly one-quarter of Glassdoor’s ranking of the top 100 companies with Nvidia claiming the third spot. But this industry’s representation on the list has actually come down somewhat in re…

Below, Charles Knowles shares five key insights from his new book, Why We Drink Too Much: The Impact of Alcohol on Our Bodies and Culture. Charles is a Professor of Surgery at Queen Mary University of London and Chief Academic Officer at the Cleveland Clinic London. Qualifying as a doctor from the University of Cambridge, he continues to practice as a consultant colorectal surgeon. He has authored more than 300 peer-reviewed publications and contributed to several major international surgical textbooks. What’s the big idea? Problematic drinking is not a problem of weak will or low moral integrity. Why drinking shifts from choice to compulsion for some and not o…

The Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday it will appeal the November ruling in favor of Meta in its antitrust case against the social media giant. The FTC said it continues to allege that, for more than a decade, Meta Platforms Inc. has “illegally maintained a monopoly” in social networking through anticompetitive conduct “by buying the significant competitive threats it identified in Instagram and WhatsApp.” Meta had prevailed over the existential challenge to its business that could have forced the tech giant to spin off Instagram and WhatsApp after a judge ruled that the company does not hold a monopoly in social networking. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg issue…

Labor unions, faith organizations, and local businesses in Minnesota are calling for a statewide “collective pause” this Friday—in which they urge residents not to go to work, school, or do any shopping—in protest of the The President administration’s aggressive deployment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in the Twin Cities and beyond. The action, called the “Day of Truth and Freedom,” is planned for January 23, and includes plans for a march in downtown Minneapolis at 2 p.m. Here’s what to know. What’s the situation with ICE in Minnesota? On January 6, the Department of Homeland Security announced it was deploying 2,000 officers to the M…

Headlines have been challenging in 2025. Companies are under attack publicly and privately for policies viewed as “too progressive” or “woke.” The reality, however, is that most companies have strongly reaffirmed their sustainability commitments but less so their DEI commitments. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) works in the grey area between the two. Many affirming companies have opted for “greenhushing,” staying quiet about their strategies and leadership. There are pros and cons to that, but why are companies staying true to their goals and strategies? A simple but powerful answer: long-term value creation. Those staying the course have built strategies …

Close your eyes and picture the word “Valentino.” Chances are, you’re seeing a very specific shade of red. This visual imprint is part of the creative legacy left behind by the Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani, who died at home on January 19 at the age of 93. Throughout his career, Garavani became synonymous with red—so much so that a myth that his signature brand color, Valentino Rosso, was once patented with universal color matching company Pantone has become part of fashion canon. While other designers, like Jason Wu, Richard Nicoll, and Kate Spade have indeed made custom brand colors with Pantone, the company says Garavani never turned Valentino Red in…