What's on Your Mind?

Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you carefully laid out all the context for your manager, only to have them cut you off? Or maybe you’ve found you’re eager to dive into the tactical details of a project while they keep steering the conversation back to vision. These moments can leave you frustrated and confused. You’re doing what seems logical, yet somehow it’s not landing. The good news is that these disconnects usually aren’t about your competency or the quality of your ideas— they’re about different styles. Studies have found that two primary dimensions shape how people communicate and approach their interactions at work. The first is dominanc…

Social media has a reputation for capturing ephemeral thoughts and images, but around the world, people are using Facebook for a different purpose, setting up groups to record and share images and memories of the past. Facebook history groups and pages have popped up in major cities like New York and Seattle and in small towns and suburbs across the U.S. Other groups focus on the histories of hobbies and interests from ham radio to cooking to punk rock, but geographical groups in particular often collect unique information that may not be found anywhere else on the internet. Members share personal photos, family stories, and ephemera tied to places in their hometowns …

IBM plans to invest $150 billion in tech manufacturing, research, and development in the United States over the next five years. The technology giant announced this commitment in a news release on Monday. IBM says the investment will accelerate American production of quantum computers and fuel the economy. The $150 billion investment includes more than $30 billion to fund research and development to advance American manufacturing of mainframe and quantum computers. IBM is one of the largest technology employers in the U.S. The company currently has manufacturing facilities in Poughkeepsie, New York. “We have been focused on American jobs and manufacturing since…

Branding is design. It’s the logos, typefaces, and design systems that bring a company to life. But it’s also strategy. A rebrand can reveal the priorities, motivations, and aspirations of a company if you look beyond the logo. In a recent conversation for FC Live, Fast Company‘s design editors Liz Stinson and Mark Wilson explored the true impact of branding through the lens of some of the biggest branding moments from the past year. If you missed the subscriber-only event, you’re in luck. You can catch the whole conversation in the video above. View the full article

Nearly a year after Adobe first teased video AI features, the company is finally bringing its new video AI model to market. Today, the company is launching its Firefly Video Model in public beta. The model comes alongside a new Firefly web application, which essentially gathers all of Adobe’s AI tools, including existing features like Text to Image and Generative Fill, under one roof. Users can access Firefly’s web app through two subscription tiers—Firefly Standard and Firefly Pro—which retail for $9.99 and $29.99 per month, respectively. [Image: Adobe]What is Adobe’s new Firefly video model?Firefly Video Model is Adobe’s answer to existing video models like Open AI’s S…

Harvard Business Publishing Corporate Learning recently surveyed leaders and L&D professionals about what they’re looking for in a leadership development program. At the top of the list? Scalability. One of my passions—and one of the reasons my company developed our own learning platform—is expanding access to leadership development, so it’s exciting to see companies recognizing how important scalability is. At the same time; however, I know that making scalability work at your organization can be a tall order. For a long time, scalability and quality have seemed at odds in leadership development. An organization could spend its budget on highly effective, b…

The color of your house matters beyond aesthetics. An extensive body of research shows that painting buildings white (which reflects heat) can make them cooler, and painting them black (which absorbs heat) can make them warmer. This is the reason why most houses in Greece are white, and many houses across Scandinavia are black. But what about the rest of the world, where temperatures often shift with the seasons? Industrial designer Joe Doucet has developed what he calls a “climate-adaptive” paint that can change colors based on the temperature outside. The patent-pending formula, which is known as thermochromic paint, follows the same principle as 90s mood rings. Except …

Embarking on a personal transformation, often termed a “glow up,” encompasses more than just external changes; it’s about building confidence and holistic wellbeing. While the multi-billion-dollar beauty industry offers numerous products to aid in this journey, an accessible and potent tool is often overlooked: music. Scientific research underscores the profound impact of music on essential aspects of well-being, including sleep quality, stress management, and exercise performance. By integrating music into these areas, one can enhance overall health and, consequently, personal appearance. Music and sleep: Your secret weapon for restorative rest Good sleep hygi…

The tops of dried, bent cornstalks crunch underfoot. Jill Holtz’s gaze is fixed on the ground ahead. She wanders into the nearby woods and weaves between twisted branches. Then, Holtz spots something and starts to riffle through the withered twigs. To the untrained eye, it’s easy to overlook. But for Holtz, it’s instantaneous recognition. Scraggly, white lines give the appearance of shattered glass, but a name can still be made out at the top. It is a sonogram strip—crinkled, abused by the elements, but intact. In early February, Holtz combed through parts of a flattened cornfield in Swannanoa, North Carolina—a rural area razed by fierce floodwaters from Hurri…

For more than two decades, users have turned to search engines like Google, typed in a query, and received a familiar list of 10 blue links—the gateway to the wider web. Ranking high on that list, through search engine optimization (SEO), has become a $200 billion business. But in the past two years, search has changed. Companies are now synthesizing and summarizing results into AI-generated answers that eliminate the need to click through to websites. While this may be convenient for users (setting aside concerns over hallucinations and accuracy) it’s bad for businesses that rely on search traffic. One such business, educational tech firm Chegg, has sued Google i…

The discount retailer that plans to take over and operate hundreds of Big Lots stores is closer to deciding which locations it will save. Some 200 Big Lots leases have been designated to be transferred to Variety Wholesalers, the North Carolina-based owner of Roses and other discount chains, new court documents show. In a bankruptcy filing dated Monday, Big Lots said it will transfer the locations as part of its agreement with Gordon Brothers, the restructuring and investment firm that took control of the embattled retailer earlier this year. The list includes Big Lots locations across more than a dozen states, mostly in the South and Midwest regions. It’s un…

The humanoid robotics revolution is just around the corner. Test models are already working in factories alongside human beings across the world, while AI companies develop new foundation models designed to help robots navigate their environments as easily as humans do. But computer “brains” are useless without the skeletons that give humanoid robots their form—and the many components that make up those skeletons need to come from somewhere. Alongside bearings, which reduce friction, motors, and gears, the average humanoid robot relies on dozens of screws—key components that convert the rotational motion produced by a motor into linear motion. Traditionally, ball …

Having a helicopter manager can bring you down. It’s exhausting to have a boss who constantly monitors you, requires you to check in all the time, and takes away your authority to make decisions. This sort of micromanagement can lead to decreased employee morale, lower productivity, and reduced job satisfaction, according to experts. “Whether intentional or not, helicopter managers send clear signals that they do not trust their direct reports and are concerned about the work getting done correctly,” says Matthew Owenby, chief strategy officer and head of human resources at Aflac. “Helicopter managers can often exacerbate burnout by making employees feel that they ar…

You’re applying for a job and made it to the next step in the hiring process: the dreaded personality assessment. Few people like to take these tests—especially when a job offer hinges on it. And are these tests even legit? You want to showcase that you’re right for the job, and some of the questions seem like no-brainers. For example, if you’re asked to assess statements such as “I like to learn new skills” by choosing from “strongly agree,” “agree,” “neither agree nor disagree,” “disagree,” “strongly disagree,” you’ll likely choose “strongly agree.” Others are more nuanced, such as being asked to complete this sentence: “When I set goals at work, I choose …

In today’s whiplash business environment of change and uncertainty, there are a few simple, timeless strategies that consistently rank among the best for accelerating growth. No reinventing the wheel required. One such strategy is test-to-scale—close cousin of the venerable test-and-learn approach that’s long been a startup staple. Both can play a key role, depending on the stage of your company, industry, size, growth curve, and—importantly—internal culture. Basically, test-and-learn uses small scale, iterative experiments to see what works best. Testing different messaging in a marketing campaign, for example, or perhaps different product features. The idea …

Two powerful forces are dramatically reshaping the current world of work—artificial intelligence and an aging workforce. While we can see that the way we work is changing, we need to move quickly to effectively cope with both. Currently, AI, machine learning, digitization, automation, and other technology shifts are continuing to drive big changes in how we work and evolving the skills we need. In fact, new Workday research into the AI skills revolution shows that 81% of workers globally recognize that AI is changing the skills needed for their jobs. At the same time, throughout most countries, midcareer and older workers (people aged 45-64) make up a growing po…

Scientists have finally given the all-clear to Earth from a newly discovered asteroid. After two months of observations, scientists have almost fully ruled out any threat from the asteroid 2024 YR4, NASA and the European Space Agency said Tuesday. At one point, the odds of a strike in 2032 were as high as about 3% and topped the world’s asteroid-risk lists. ESA has since lowered the odds to 0.001%. NASA has it down to 0.0017% — meaning the asteroid will safely pass Earth in 2032 and there’s no threat of impact for the next century. Paul Chodas, who heads NASA’s Center for Near Earth Objects Studies, said there is no chance the odds will rise at this point …

Want more housing market stories from Lance Lambert’s ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. Mortgage giant Rocket Companies—the parent company of Rocket Mortgage, formerly known as Quicken Loans—announced on Monday it has entered into an agreement to buy Redfin in an all-stock transaction valued at $1.75 billion equity, or $12.50 per share. If completed, the move would integrate Redfin’s real estate search platform, which attracts nearly 50 million monthly visitors, with Rocket’s mortgage services. “Redfin is known for its beautiful product but is also [a] data powerhouse in an AI-driven world—100 million properties, 50 million engaged mont…

Just a couple of years ago, pundits were warning of streaming’s demise. From Netflix to Spotify, these companies were burning through cash. How could they keep operating? Now, almost all of the streamers have made it to positive profits. Netflix is the envy of the entertainment industry, while its underlings like Disney+ and Max have also turned around their losses. Last Tuesday, Spotify shares jumped 13% after the company announced its first full year of profitability. There are still stragglers, but on the whole, streaming has formed itself into a successful business model. There’s a lesson here: For emerging tech, there’s value in patience. It took streaming …

As Los Angeles reels from deadly January wildfires that destroyed thousands of homes, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday he will order the state to advance long-delayed regulations requiring homeowners in high-risk areas to clear combustible materials around their homes. His office didn’t immediately say if the executive order will set a timeline for implementing the rule, which was passed by lawmakers in 2020 and originally set to take effect by January 1, 2023. Newsom is expected to sign it after his trip to Washington to advocate for disaster aid. The rule requires homeowners to clear materials like dead plants and wooden furniture within 5 feet (1.5 me…

A $19 strawberry has broken the internet. Over the weekend, several content creators went viral with reviews of one very expensive berry, purchased from the upscale Los Angeles-based grocery chain Erewhon. “Apparently it’s the best-tasting strawberry in the entire world,” influencer Alyssa Antoci says in a video that has racked up more than 15 million views. It’s worth noting that Antoci appears to be a social media manager for Erewhon, and her family also owns the store. “Wow. That is the best strawberry. That’s crazy,” she adds. Along with the $19 price tag, the berries from luxury Japanese fruit vendor Elly Amai are individually packaged, set on a …

Rain-parched Southern California finally received some much-needed precipitation recently, offering some relief from the Los Angeles wildfires which displaced more than 150,000 people from their homes—and either razed or damaged some 15,000 structures. Of course, not everyone jumped to help. But amid the widespread devastation came what seems like, in our socially and politically fraught times, an unlikely ray of hope: A convergence of communities, of neighbors helping each other in whatever way possible and even heading out to assist complete strangers. The goodwill and altruism born from this calamity has been a boon to exhausted and overwhelmed firefighters and p…

Throughout Harvard Square, there are many bookshop brimming with the latest literary fiction and intellectual memoirs, patronized by scholarly types. But in January, a new bookshop popped up in the neighborhood that is nothing like the others. Lovestruck Books is a romance bookstore. It’s Instagrammable entrance is adorned with pink and purple flowers. There’s a coffee shop that transforms into a wine bar for evening events. Besides an enormous selection of romance novels, you can also purchase sex toys and tote bags emblazoned with “I read smut.” “We want to toe the lie a little bit with being provocative and edgy,” says Rachel Kanter, the store’s founder. “But the …

It’s hard to imagine any industry not having to contend with the deepening sociopolitical division in America—brand marketing included. McCann Worldgroup’s intelligence unit Truth Central creates studies on what their clients are grappling with including data privacy, wellness, and Gen Z. And the past few years have paved a clear path toward their latest study: The Truth About America, which the team exclusively unveiled this weekend at the Fast Company Grill at SXSW. “We saw that not just our clients in America but our clients everywhere were asking more and more questions about America. What is going on in this moment? How do we navigate this market?” says Laura…

Want more housing market stories from Lance Lambert’s ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. Economic forecasting has never been an easy task, and it becomes even more challenging when confronted with unprecedented economic events like COVID-19 lockdowns and unparalleled levels of government intervention, followed by a rapid cycle of interest rate hikes. Look no further than recent mortgage rate forecasts. Last year marked the third year in a row that mortgage rates ended the year higher than forecasters expected. Will they finally get it right this year? ResiClub’s latest roundup of quarterly mortgage rate forecasts shows that most …