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We’re all looking to improve our organic performance. We want the latest news, tips, and thought leadership to help push our website past the competition. That’s why we’re here! However, the less glamorous side of staying current in SEO is learning from others’ mistakes. This article looks at eight common mistakes you can easily avoid. 1. Treating organic traffic as the end goal It makes sense to use organic traffic as a key metric to measure SEO success. It’s one of the easiest to define. However, it’s not the reason your company employs you. Traffic doesn’t pay the bills. In reality, it costs money when you factor in hosting and tools. Growing organic traffic isn’t necessarily a bad goal, but it needs to be more defined. You could be ranking for keywords that will never convert or attracting visitors who leave immediately. That’s not helping your business grow. Instead of viewing increased organic traffic as proof your SEO efforts are working, treat it as an indicator – one that matters only if the traffic is well-qualified. Ask key stakeholders what they report on each month. If you’re speaking to the board of directors, they care about the company’s financial health. Consider SEO’s impact on revenue as a better measure of success than simply saying, “Organic traffic is increasing.” Dig deeper: Why SEO often fails before it even begins 2. Forgetting about the user Focusing more on traffic volume than the users behind it is a mistake. If you create content only to generate traffic without a plan to meet visitors’ needs once they arrive, you’re wasting your energy. It’s easy to see traffic as the end of an SEO’s responsibility, but that’s not the case. A high-ranking page is only valuable if it attracts and engages the right audience. Whether targeting users at the top or bottom of the funnel, have a clear plan for their next step and craft your copy to guide them there. Too often, I’ve seen SEO strategies that begin and end with “get more users to the site” – with little thought about what happens next. 3. Implementing short-term strategies When developing an SEO strategy, it’s important to consider how far ahead you should plan. A common mistake – one I’ve made myself – is limiting an SEO strategy to just a few months due to uncertainty about the future of SEO. While it’s wise to stay adaptable as new SERP features emerge or a new search engine gains popularity, planning less than a year ahead is likely neither ambitious nor realistic for long-term growth. Algorithm updates can affect progress and require adjustments to your approach. However, if your strategy spans 12 months, your overarching goals will likely remain the same, even if specific tactics need to change. For example, if your SEO strategy is designed to increase revenue through organic search for a new product launch, a Google algorithm update won’t make that goal obsolete. You may need to adjust certain activities, but the strategy itself will remain intact. The risk of short-term planning is that you’re constantly shifting from one project to another, requiring frequent buy-in. This approach can prevent genuine growth, making SEO more reactive than strategic. You’ll also be more susceptible to chasing trends instead of implementing sustainable tactics that drive long-term success. Dig deeper: 5 SEO mistakes sacrificing quantity and quality (and how to fix them) 4. Blaming the algorithms without reason It’s all too easy to blame traffic drops on algorithm updates. We’ve all been in meetings where an SEO confidently tells a stakeholder: “Google makes hundreds of algorithm changes each year, and we don’t always know what’s changed.” While true, this can also become a scapegoat. Instead of investigating the actual cause, it’s convenient to attribute the drop to a Google update – especially when stakeholders have no way to prove otherwise. Before jumping to “algorithm update” as the reason for a traffic drop, rule out other possibilities. Check if the decline is happening across multiple search engines. If it is, an algorithm update is less likely to be the cause. Look for technical issues affecting crawling and indexing. Consider whether shifts in user behavior or industry trends are impacting search demand. And remember: If you blame algorithms for traffic drops without proper investigation, you should also credit them when traffic goes up. That probably won’t sit well with your boss when they ask what impact your SEO efforts have had lately. Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. Business email address Sign me up! Processing... See terms. 5. Basing decisions on flawed data Another major mistake is making other SEO decisions without solid data. Most SEOs understand that data is key to a successful strategy, yet errors in data handling are all too common. For example, poorly designed tests can lead to misleading conclusions. Running a test on meta descriptions to measure their impact on click-through rates is pointless if you don’t verify which descriptions were actually displayed in the SERPs. Similarly, evaluating sitewide performance metrics instead of analyzing specific pages, topics, or templates can obscure important insights. These issues often stem from: Using the wrong metrics. Relying on mislabeled data. Failing to segment data properly. A common error is pulling a Google Search Console report without accounting for variations in traffic by country or device. Averages can smooth out meaningful peaks and troughs, leading to flawed conclusions. Dig deeper: SEO shortcuts gone wrong: How one site tanked – and what you can learn 6. Assuming Google lies This mistake is surprisingly common in the SEO industry – the assumption that “Google lies.” But when you really think about it, that idea doesn’t make much sense. It would require a coordinated effort from every Google representative we hear from to deliberately mislead SEOs. For what purpose, exactly? I don’t believe Google lies about SEO. What would Google employees gain from misleading us about things like whether Googlebot respects robots.txt or if there’s a way to encourage Googlebot to crawl a site? More often than not, what people perceive as “Google lying” is actually a misunderstanding of extremely complex topics. Google Search is powered by intricate algorithms involving machine learning, information retrieval, and technical systems that most of us will never fully grasp. Naturally, some details get lost in communication. Google’s representatives try to simplify, explain, and troubleshoot an incredibly advanced system, which can sometimes lead to confusion. That’s why we should test everything Google tells us – not because they’re trying to deceive us, but because testing helps us better understand how to optimize our sites so Googlebot can find and serve our content effectively. 7. Using the robots.txt to control indexing Since we’re on the topic of helping Googlebot find and serve content, let’s talk about a common mistake – misusing robots.txt. Robots.txt is meant to guide bots on what they can and cannot crawl, not what they can index. A common misconception is that blocking a page in robots.txt prevents it from appearing in search results. That’s not how it works. If a search engine bot has never crawled a page, it won’t see its content and likely won’t rank it well. But that doesn’t mean it won’t index the page at all. If a search engine finds links to the page and the context of those links provides enough information, the page can still appear in relevant search results. If a page was previously crawled and indexed, and then a disallow rule was added to robots.txt, it can still rank based on the last version Google saw. Essentially, you’ve given search engines a snapshot of the page before blocking it, and that’s what they will continue to rank. A related mistake is adding a noindex tag to a page while also blocking it in robots.txt. If the page is blocked, Googlebot can’t crawl it to see the noindex tag – so the page may stay in search results despite your efforts to remove it. Dig deeper: 5 SEO content pitfalls that could be hurting your traffic 8. Using conflicting signals Sending search engines mixed signals can lead to indexing and ranking issues. This happens in several ways: Adding a noindex tag to a page while also canonicalizing it to another page. Linking to the non-canonical version of a page, making it unclear which URL should be indexed. Combining hreflang tags with noindex, preventing localized versions from being properly indexed. Pointing a canonical tag to a page that has a noindex tag, sending contradictory instructions. Learn from others’ mistakes These are just a few common SEO pitfalls, but there are many more. Experienced SEOs have often learned these lessons the hard way – by making mistakes. You don’t have to. By recognizing these issues early, you can avoid them and refine your SEO strategy for better results. Dig deeper: The top 5 strategic SEO mistakes enterprises make (and how to avoid them) View the full article

A one-day strike by workers at 13 German airports, including the Frankfurt and Munich hubs and all the country’s other main destinations, caused the cancelation of most flights on Monday. The 24-hour walkout, which started at midnight on Sunday, involves public-sector employees at the airports as well as ground and security staff. At Frankfurt Airport, 1,054 of the day’s 1,116 scheduled takeoffs and landings had been canceled, German news agency dpa reported, citing airport traffic management. All of Berlin Airport’s regular departures and arrivals were canceled, while Hamburg Airport said no departures would be possible. Cologne/Bonn Airport said there was no regular passenger service and Munich Airport advised travelers to expect a “greatly reduced flight schedule.” The ver.di service workers union’s strike also targeted the Bremen, Hannover, Duesseldorf, Dortmund, Leipzig/Halle, and Stuttgart airports. At the smaller Weeze and Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden airports, only security workers were called out. The German airports’ association, ADV, estimated that more than 3,500 flights in total would be canceled and about 560,000 passengers affected. The union announced the strike last Friday. But at Hamburg Airport, it added a short-notice walkout on Sunday to the strike on Monday, arguing that it must ensure the measure was effective. The so-called “warning strike,” a common tactic in German wage negotiations, relates to two separate pay disputes: negotiations on a new pay and conditions contract for airport security workers, and a wider dispute over pay for employees of federal and municipal governments. The latter already has led to walkouts at Cologne/Bonn, Duesseldorf, Hamburg, and Munich airports. Pay talks in that dispute are due to resume on Friday, while the next round of talks for airport security workers is expected to start on March 26. View the full article

Over the past 20 years, the Walt Disney Company has spent billions acquiring the world’s most recognizable intellectual properties, including Star Wars, Marvel, and Pixar. It’s not just putting those assets to use on the big screen. Increasingly, those properties are an ever-larger part of the company’s theme parks, including Disneyland in California and Disney World in Florida. Last August, Disney announced an expansion of its parks, and now, at the annual South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin this month, Disney has provided more details about new experiences and rides coming to those parks—and yep, the upcoming theme park experiences are all about Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar. Here’s what to expect. Fly like Iron Man at Stark Flight Labs Disney’s most valuable property in recent years has been Marvel. One of the cinematic franchise’s most popular and recognizable characters is Iron Man, made famous by Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal in numerous films. It’s no wonder then that Disney is getting ready to launch a new Iron Man-themed experience at its Avengers campus in Disney California Adventure Park. The new experience is called Stark Flight Lab, and it will allow people to try out some of Iron Man’s toys. Walt Disney Imagineering reveals newly unclassified details for the new Stark Flight Lab attraction, inspired by Tony Stark's beloved robotic friend DUM-E, setting up shop in Avengers Campus at Disney California Adventure. 🦾 https://t.co/Wkvnq0C01X pic.twitter.com/lvrz1qDnJO — Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) March 8, 2025 Part of the experience will see guests “sit in ‘gyro-kinetic pods’ and roll along a track before stopping in front of a giant robot arm,” says Disney. “This robot arm will hoist you into the air where you’ll make several high-speed maneuvers inspired by Iron Man and some other Avengers.” Mandalorian and Grogu movie tie-in One of the biggest Hollywood tentpoles of 2026 is expected to be The Mandalorian & Grogu—the first new Star Wars film in nearly seven years by the time it debuts on May 22, 2026. Disney, never one to miss a cross-promotional opportunity, will also launch a new experience at its Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run attraction in Disneyland. JUST ANNOUNCED! The new Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run adventure featuring Mando and Grogu will debut May 22, 2026 at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney Parks! https://t.co/RRNZ9lsYBm 💫 #SXSW pic.twitter.com/SYY9aO23pE — Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) March 8, 2025 While details were scarce, Disney said the attraction will be based on scenes from the film. “This isn’t going to retell what happens in the movie – it’s more like participating in something that’s happening just off-camera from what you see in the film,” Mandalorian & Grogu director Jon Favreau said. Pixar’s Cars and Monsters get new rides, too Finally, Disney previewed two new Pixar-themed experiences at its parks. First up is a Cars attraction coming to Disney World that the company first announced last August. The company showed concept sketches of some of the race cars that will be part of its off-road racing ride. A closer look at early concept sketches and new race car personalities designed by @Pixar for the brand-new Cars attraction coming to Frontierland at @WaltDisneyWorld. https://t.co/RXOT36XOod #SXSW pic.twitter.com/2hGdhQXJBp — Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) March 8, 2025 But perhaps the most exciting for amusement park thrillseekers is the new ride based on Monsters, Inc. The ride, based on one of Pixar’s most popular films, will feature a first for Disney theme parks. “The upcoming door ride will feature the first-ever suspended coaster at a Disney Park, and the first-ever vertical lift,” the company said in a blog post. Walt Disney Imagineering shares a new look at the Monsters, Inc. coaster loading area and first-ever vertical lift that will hoist riders in the air like never before as they zoom into the door vault! https://t.co/9Rwf0YtRGX 🚪🎢 #SXSW pic.twitter.com/fnTaDIA6AR — Disney Parks (@DisneyParks) March 8, 2025 While Disney previewed the experiences above at South by Southwest, it has not announced a release date for any of the above attractions besides the new Mandalorian and Grogu experience, which opens in May 2026. View the full article

The US’s tariff policy evokes bafflement as well as fearView the full article

Consolidation of subscale operations comes as Big Four firms re-examine operating modelView the full article

Saturday, March 8, was International Women's Day. March is a whole women's month, even if Google erased it from its calendar. So I'm taking a look at young women—and not in a creepy way. I want to know: what's up with young women? What are they about? What are their dreams? How are they feeling deep in their hearts? So I'm checking out Reddit's woman-centric corners, listening to Doechii and "Call her Daddy," and consulting some "coochie doctors." The state of young women in two subredditsTo try to get some insight on young women between the ages of 18 and 25 or so, I took a look at some Reddit communities ostensibly made for, by, and about women. I started at Reddit's TwoXChromosomes. at over 13 million subscribers: This is by far Reddit's largest woman-centric community, and it's bleak. The top posts of the week are dominated by tales of creepy dudes, sexual violence, violence-violence, and more creepy dudes. There's an occasional "here's something funny/cute that happened" to lighten the mood a little, but overall, it's bad out there: "Growing up is realising how much the world hates you" is how redditor gaycat21 puts it. For a way less depressing and way more interesting women's subreddit, check out NSFW meme subreddit R/LetGirlsHaveFun. At only around 100,000 subs, it's much smaller than TwoX, but it's proof that crudeness and no-censorship vibe of online culture doesn't have to be misogynistic, and it's much funnier that way. According to its creator, Let Girls Have Fun is a place for "girls to post their deranged thoughts, from a girl perspective," because "Girls can also like edgy and crude humor." Posts like this, this, or this seem like open rebellion against society's endless set of rules and expectations for women, expressed in the most explicit way possible. Alex Cooper's Call Her Daddy is the biggest podcast among young womenAlmost everyone who listens to the Call Her Daddy podcast is a young woman. According to research firm Edison Research, 70% of CHD's audience are women, and 70% of them are under 35. A full 93% of its listeners are under 45. The podcast made news when it scored an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris in October, but politics isn't the show's usual subject matter. Host Alex Cooper has been described as "Gen Z's podcast queen" and "the female Howard Stern" by The Hollywood Reporter, tends to focus on sex and relationships when she's not interviewing celebrities like Miley Cyrus and John Mayer. Like Stern, Cooper is frank, open, and raunchy. In the early days of her show, she focused more on sex, but the subject matter has expanded into topics like female empowerment, self-love, and pop culture. Unlike boy's top podcaster Joe Rogan, Call Her Daddy's host doesn't regularly fall victim to believing in crap that isn't true. AI-generated "coochie doctors" invade TikTok When someone describes themselves as a "coochie doctor," it's probably safe to ignore any medical advice they offer, especially when they're online and they're not actually human. For the last few months, weirdos and/or algorithms have been using an app called "Caption" to spam TikTok with hundreds of videos featuring lifelike, AI-generated avatars who call themselves "coochie doctors," "booty doctors," "tata surgeons," "booby doctors," and "Korean butt doctors" followed by terrible medical advice. These videos generally start with a variation of the phrase, "13 years a coochie doctor and no one believes me when I say this," followed by some questionable health tips geared toward women like "rubbing fig seeds on your breasts will make them go from saggy to perky" and "sea moss is a great way to cleanse your gut." It's worth noting that these tips are about neither coochies nor butts, so these medical professionals are working outside their area of expertise. These videos generally end with exhorting viewers to search out a specific "wellness" product on Amazon. It's like all these medical professionals are only offering advice to get money out of the gullible! “Dating a GM,” and the mystery of what “GM” means A few weeks ago, TikToker @myak.tt posted the video you see above, a short, random clip with the caption "Dating a GM." It's been viewed over 11 million times since then, and sparked an online debate over what a GM is. My first thought is "game master," the more inclusive form of "dungeon master," but I'm a damn nerd, and that's almost definitely not what Myak.tt meant. Others have suggested "gang member," "gun man," or "grand master." It's frustrating because the video gives no information, and as of yet, the young woman who posted the video has offered no explanation. The video has inspired "99% accurate" reenactments like this one: and this one: But these give no indication of what a GM is either. Maybe as big a mystery is: Why did this video get popular? Why did the TikTok algorithm choose to share this over the millions of other short, meaningless clips posted all day on the site? I have no answers. (For a glossary of slang words I'm pretty sure I do know the definition of, check out 'Mewing,' 'Sigma,' and Other Gen Z and Gen Alpha Slang You Might Need Help Decoding') Viral video of the week: Doechii's “Anxiety” Rapper/singer/songwriter Doechii, born Jaylah Ji'mya Hickmon, has been blowing up over the past couple months. Aided by a legion of fans using her song "Denial Is a River" on their TikTok videos and a stand-out performance at the Grammy Awards, Doechii has become so popular that her older songs are being dug out of mothballs and getting huge. This week's viral video, Anxiety (Visualizer), was posted on Doechii's YouTube with no fanfare, and almost three million people watched it in its first two days online alone. The original video for the song was posted back in 2020, and features COVID-era Doechii rapping in her bedroom over Gotye’s “Somebody That I Used to Know." But part of Doechii's "Anxiety" was also sampled on a track from rapper Sleepy Hallow, for his song called "Anxiety." You know what: Here's Doechii explaining the deep lore around this song: This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. View the full article

Canada’s next prime minister has helped run two Group of Seven economies in crisis before and now will try to steer Canada through a looming trade war brought by U.S. President Donald Trump, a threat of annexation, and an expected federal election. Former central banker Mark Carney will become prime minister after the governing Liberal Party elected him its leader Sunday in a landslide vote with 85.9% support. Carney, 59, replaces Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who announced his resignation in January but remains prime minister until his successor is sworn in in the coming days. Carney is widely expected to trigger an election the coming days or weeks amid Trump’s sweeping tariff threats. Canada ‘didn’t ask for this fight’ “We didn’t ask for this fight. But Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves,” Carney said. “The Americans, they should make no mistake, in trade, as in hockey, Canada will win.” Carney said Canada will keep its initial retaliatory tariffs in place until “the Americans show us respect.” Carney navigated crises when he was the head of the Bank of Canada and when in 2013 he became the first noncitizen to run the Bank of England since it was founded in 1694. His appointment won bipartisan praise in the U.K. after Canada recovered from the 2008 financial crisis faster than many other countries. He helped managed the worst impacts of Brexit in the U.K. The opposition Conservatives hoped to make the election about Trudeau, whose popularity declined as food and housing prices rose and immigration surged. Trump’s trade war and his talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state have infuriated Canadians, who are booing the American anthem at NHL and NBA games. Some are canceling trips south of the border, and many are avoiding buying American goods when they can. Canadian nationalism surges The surge in Canadian nationalism has bolstered the Liberal Party’s chances in a parliamentary election expected within days or weeks, and Liberal showings have been improving in opinion polls. “The Americans want our resources, our water, our land, our country. Think about it. If they succeed they would destroy our way of life,” Carney said. “In America healthcare is big business. In Canada, it is a right.” Carney said America is “a melting pot. Canada is mosaic,” he said. “America is not Canada. And Canada will never, ever will be a part of America in any way, shape, or form.” After decades of bilateral stability, the vote on Canada’s next leader now is expected to focus on who is best equipped to deal with the United States. “These are dark days, dark days brought on by a country we can no longer trust,” Carney said. “We need to pull together in the tough days ahead.” Trump has postponed 25% tariffs on many goods from Canada and Mexico for a month, amid widespread fears of a broader trade war. But he has threatened other tariffs on steel, aluminum, dairy, and other products. Carney picked up one endorsement after another from Cabinet ministers and members of Parliament since declaring his candidacy in January. He is a highly educated economist with Wall Street experience who has long been interested in entering politics and becoming prime minister, but he lacks political experience. Trudeau previously offered to make him finance minister. Carney has said former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper also offered to make him finance minister. Former Goldman Sachs executive Carney is a former Goldman Sachs executive. He worked for 13 years in London, Tokyo, New York, and Toronto, before being appointed deputy governor of the Bank of Canada in 2003. In 2020, he began serving as the United Nations’ special envoy for climate action and finance. The other top Liberal leadership candidate was former Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who received just 8% of the vote. Trudeau told Freeland in December that he no longer wanted her as finance minister, but that she could remain deputy prime minister and the point person for U.S.-Canada relations. Freeland resigned shortly after, releasing a scathing letter about the government that proved to be the last straw for Trudeau. Either Carney will call an election in the coming days or weeks, or the opposition parties in Parliament could force one with a no-confidence vote later this month. Trudeau urged Liberals supporters to get involved. “This is a nation-defining moment. Democracy is not a given. Freedom is not a given. Even Canada is not a given,” Trudeau said. —Rob Gillies Associated Press View the full article

Dive into three trends for YouTube that matter most for marketers and discover ways to leverage them for success. The post The Top 3 YouTube Trends To Pay Attention To Right Now appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. This is a website about hacks, so you know I'm not going to advocate for a cleaning product unless it really gets the job done. Lifehacker has years' worth of archives explaining how, for the most part, common things like hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and vinegar get the major cleaning jobs taken care of, and all you need is a rag or a sponge to go with them. Still, there are some more specialized products that are worth having on hand. These are what I use to make cleaning easier and faster. Useful cleaning tools you might not haveFirst up, you need a little squeegee. In fact, I think you should have a few. The first one should be stored in your shower and, after you finish washing up, you should use it to get the fog, scum, and water off your shower doors and walls. Doing this every time you bathe takes just a few seconds, but drastically reduces how much and how often you need to clean the tile and glass in the shower. Get one with an adhesive holder so it dries straight up and down, then stick it to the shower wall. This one is $9.59. Second, you should keep one in the kitchen. Use it to scrape wet messes off your countertops or to gather spills on your floor. Why waste a bunch of paper towels or dirty up a rag when you could just push the wet mess off the counter and into a container, then put it in the trash? Pick up a two-pack for $13.99. We aren't finished with squeegees, actually. You also need a gigantic one for your floor. This will replace your broom and I'm serious. It's $29.99 (though you can apply a 30% coupon on Amazon right now) and it solves all the annoying little problems you face with a regular broom. There are no bristles, so hair and dust don't get caught in anything and there are no gaps for dirt and debris to slip through. To wash it, you just wipe down the silicone. What's even better is that, unlike a standard broom, you can tackle wet messes with this, dragging all the droplets and rivulets into a more concise puddle that is a lot easier to wipe up. Magic Air Broom $29.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg Shop Now Shop Now $29.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg Next, consider some soap-dispensing brushes. You may have seen these for dishwashing, which is great, but they're also perfect for scrubbing floors, tile, and hard-to-reach spots, all without having to fill up a whole container of soapy water and drag it around. Obviously, keep the one you use for household cleaning away from the one you use for the dishes, so get at least two. Better yet, this one for $9.89 comes with detachable heads, so you only need one handle. Speaking of brushes, it's time to upgrade to an electric one. Stop getting on your hands and knees, putting too much elbow grease in, or over-exerting yourself when you could outsource the strenuous part of your labor to technology. You can get an electric spin scrubber with a telescopic handle and eight different brush heads for $49.99, then use it as a handheld or long-reach solution when you just don't want to scrub. My favorite cleaning solutions and productsThe wide array of tools and gadgets available to address needs you didn't realize you had is great and all, but what about cleaning solutions and products? It might seem like, hey, an all-purpose cleaner is an all-purpose cleaner, but that's not true. For instance, I recently tested out "double concentrated" solutions from Pine Sol and Fabuloso and found both of them to be way more effective than their standard-concentration predecessors. Did you know floor-cleaning solutions were innovating? Well, now you do. Another innovation I really like counts as both a tool and a product. Yes, you probably have a melamine sponge, like a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, on hand and yes, you probably also have some kind of foaming soap you use around the house. But now they've been combined into one product: It's called the Mr. Clean Ultra Foamy Magic Eraser and I can no longer live without it. You get five for $8.94 and with them, you can clean a lot faster and easier. It takes me far fewer passes of the eraser over any kind of grime to remove it than it does when I use the original version. Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Ultra Foamy Multi Purpose Cleaner, Foaming Magic Eraser Sponge Multi Surface Cleaner, 5ct $8.94 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg Shop Now Shop Now $8.94 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg And the last unexpected product that has really changed how I clean is this set of coatings from spotLESS. Three bottles of coating cost $24.99 and you get one for glass and mirrors, one for toilets, and one for sinks and fixtures. I spray these on their respective surfaces after cleaning and have definitely noticed I need to clean those areas again more infrequently. The coating works to keep grime from accumulating and makes it easier to wipe off when it eventually does appear. The glass spritz has proven especially helpful for the glass table I got a few months ago. Again, I didn't realize I had these problems until I found a product that fixed them. We're truly living in the future. View the full article

Google Ads scripts have long been a powerful way to automate account management, improve efficiency, and reduce manual work. Whether it’s managing search terms, optimizing bids, or generating reports, scripts allow you to scale your efforts while maintaining control over your campaigns. Now, with generative AI, particularly GPT, scripts are becoming even more accessible and adaptable. Advertisers no longer need to write every line of code manually or rely solely on predefined automation rules. GPT can generate, refine, and enhance scripts based on simple prompts, allowing even those with little coding experience to build powerful automation tools. At last year’s SMX Next, I walked through three ways advertisers can use GPT to improve Google Ads scripts in ways they might not have considered before. 3 ways GPT enhances Google Ads scripts 1. Generating a script from handwritten notes or a whiteboard sketch One of the biggest barriers to using Google Ads scripts is the perception that you need to be a developer to write them. However, with GPT, the process becomes much more accessible. You don’t need to start with a fully written code outline. GPT can create a functional script from: Rough notes. A simple process description. Even a whiteboard flowchart. Example: Automating negative keyword conflict detection A practical use case for this is detecting negative keyword conflicts. With Google’s recent changes to how negative match types work, advertisers might unintentionally block important keywords. This can lead to lost impressions and reduced ad visibility. Instead of manually reviewing every negative keyword for potential conflicts, you can use GPT to generate a script that: Retrieves all negative keywords from your account. Identifies possible typo variations that Google might treat as the same term. Cross-checks those variations against active campaign keywords. Flags potential conflicts in a spreadsheet for easy review. This approach eliminates guesswork and manual auditing, ensuring negative keywords do not unintentionally restrict relevant searches. To see how this works, here’s the script that automates this process: Negative keyword conflict script Dig deeper: 6 ways GPT Operator is changing PPC automation 2. Improving GPT’s accuracy by feeding it your own Google Ads data One of the biggest problems with AI is that it will hallucinate when it doesn’t have all the information to help it respond accurately. GPT generates more useful results when it has access to specific, relevant data, but the challenge is how to give it this data when that lives in another system, like Google Ads. Google Ads scripts can help because they pull the right data. There are two main ways to integrate GPT with your campaign data for more accurate and relevant outputs: Direct integration in a Google Ads script GPT can be incorporated into a Google Ads script that pulls real-time account data, such as search terms, ad performance metrics, or budget trends. The AI can then analyze this data and provide customized recommendations. Exporting data to Google Sheets and using AI within the sheet Instead of modifying scripts, advertisers can export Google Ads reports into a spreadsheet. The GPT for Sheets add-on allows AI to process this data, detect patterns, and suggest optimizations. This method is particularly useful for generating ad copy variations or identifying underperforming keywords. This approach ensures that AI-driven insights are based on real campaign data rather than general knowledge, leading to more effective recommendations. Dig deeper: Top AI tools and tactics you should be using in PPC Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. Business email address Sign me up! Processing... See terms. 3. Modifying and expanding an existing script instead of writing a new one Often, the best way to enhance automation isn’t to start from scratch but to build on what you already have. Instead of creating entirely new scripts, GPT can modify existing ones to add new features, improve efficiency, or repurpose them for different tasks. Example: Turning a search trends script into a newsletter content generator One example is repurposing a script designed to analyze trending searches into a content idea generator for newsletters and blogs. The original script pulled emerging search queries from Google Ads reports to help advertisers adjust their bidding strategy. By modifying it with GPT, I transformed it into a tool that: Identifies high-interest topics based on search trends. Suggests blog and newsletter content ideas tailored to current market interests. Automates the brainstorming process, making content planning easier for advertisers and marketers. This type of adaptive automation helps advertisers get more out of their existing tools by applying them in new, creative ways. Dig deeper: This Google Ads script uses GPT to summarize account performance Conclusion GPT isn’t a replacement for traditional automation tools, but it serves as a flexible building block that enhances existing processes. Whether you’re using it to generate scripts from simple notes, refine AI recommendations with real data, or modify scripts for new applications, integrating generative AI into your workflow can unlock new levels of efficiency and innovation in Google Ads. [Watch] Leveraging generative AI in ad scripts for Google Ads optimization To explore these strategies in more detail, you can watch my full SMX Next 2024 session. View the full article

Among the resignations are Mark McArdle, who was instrumental in creating the Qualified Mortgage rule, and Operations Chief of Supervision David Bleicken. It is unclear if the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will hire anyone to succeed them. View the full article

No surprise here - Google will be testing and experimenting with ads in Google AI Mode. Google told Adweek that they will be "explore bringing ads into" Google AI Mode.View the full article

Before leaving office, former President Joe Biden declared the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) “the law of the land.” The 28th Amendment, which declares that “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex,” is operative, according to ERA advocates. “Now that Biden acknowledged the ERA, the next steps are celebration and implementation,” says Kati Hornung, cofounder and executive director of VoteEquality!, a nonpartisan group promoting equal rights for all. The American Bar Association passed a resolution in October 2024 affirming the 28th Amendment achieved every requirement for ratification under Article V of the Constitution. ABA’s resolution “urges federal, state, local, territorial, and tribal governments to support implementation of the Equal Rights Amendment” and “urges all bar associations and the legal community as a whole to support implementation of the ERA.” However, there are skeptics. “When Congress proposed the ERA in 1972, they made it a conditional proposal to add language to the Constitution, if and only if, it was ratified within seven years,” says Stephen E. Sachs, the Antonin Scalia Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. The original deadline for ratification was 1979 but Congress voted to extend that to 1982. Virginia became the 38th state to ratify the ERA in January 2020. “If people are supportive of it, they need to go back to the beginning, they should propose it again and we’ll see if the country wants to ratify it,” Sachs says. Despite skepticism by opponents, ERA advocates say they are moving forward with implementation. Federal, state, and local jurisdictions should begin reviewing their laws for sexism and sexist language because any statute contrary to the ERA would be unconstitutional. Meanwhile, plaintiffs can cite the 28th Amendment in discrimination cases. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), an outspoken advocate for the ERA, is working on a bill that would require a review of federal laws to eliminate any sexism or sexist language. “If this administration wants to go after women’s rights, we’ll see you in court,” says Sen. Gillibrand. State ERAs could provide more protection Yet, for there to be broad-based acceptance of the ERA, advocates will need politicians and judges to endorse this idea, says Ting Ting Cheng, director of the ERA project at Columbia Law School Center for Gender and Sexuality Law. Given all the upheaval happening in Washington, D.C., Cheng admits the ERA might not gain any additional political champions at the moment. But, Cheng says, that doesn’t mean the ERA isn’t the 28th Amendment. “No executive order will undo the ratification of 38 states,” she says. Executive orders cannot override the United States Constitution, federal statutes, or established legal precedent. Instead, Cheng believes there may be more opportunity for success in the current political climate at the state level because 28 states have their own ERAs with language that is more inclusive and expansive than the language in the 28th Amendment. Most state ERAs include a broader definition of sex to include sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression, she says. For instance, New York State recently passed an ERA that states, “No person shall, because of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, creed [or], religion, or sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy, be subjected to any discrimination in [his or her] their civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state, pursuant to law.” State ERAs have been used to challenge and overturn abortion restrictions. In Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico, state ERAs were used to protect public funding for abortion. In addition to protecting women, state ERAs can be used to push against federal policies targeting trans youth healthcare and immigration, Cheng says. “People are not thinking creatively about state ERAs,” Cheng says. The passage of these state ERAs are not under dispute and, in many cases, they can provide more protections than the federal ERA, she says. “States could become gender justice laboratories,” she adds. States are finding their statues are biased against women Several states without ERAs, including Arizona and North Carolina, have completed reviews of their state statutes to find potentially outdated or discriminatory language in anticipation of the 28th Amendment’s enactment. ERA Task Force AZ issued a 652-page report Equality for All that proposes changes to state statutes to comply with the federal ERA. Many suggested changes include adopting neutral terms such as “person” instead of masculine terms such as “men” or “chairman,” says Dianne Post, cochair of ERA Task Force AZ. “The most serious problems we found were in criminal law, in healthcare related to abortion, and family law,” she says. A copy of the report was sent to every state legislator but, so far, none of the proposed changes have been made, Post says. She anticipates several bills will be introduced this legislative session. Meanwhile in North Carolina, the ERA-NC Alliance conducted a review of its state statutes and found more than 21,000 gender specific terms that needed further review, according to Audrey Muck, the alliance’s copresident. One of the most concerning is the term “femme coverture, ”which means a married woman has no independent legal rights and cannot enter contracts or own property without her husband’s permission, and is still in the state’s code of law. The Alliance brought that issue to the North Carolina General Statutes Commission and the Commission is seeking a technical correction. “With or without the ERA, any state would want to make sure their statutes apply equally to men and women,” says Greg McConnell, chief pro bono officer at Winston & Strawn LLP, the law firm that helped the ERA-NC Alliance review its state statutes. View the full article

Google has updated its manual actions documentation around site reputation abuse, to expand on the next steps and actions you can take if you receive this manual action. Google now more clearly says that you should not block that content with your robots.txt file, if you use the noindex rule.View the full article

The US president has provided the biggest stimulus towards European integration since the end of the cold warView the full article

Google's VP of Product at Google Search, Robby Stein, has responded to concerns from publishers around the new AI Mode. Specifically, the concerns around this new AI search interface not being all that encouraging for users to click over to publishers' sites.View the full article

Google is testing a knowledge panel that includes a places card that can be expanded to show a map and local pack results. I cannot replicate this, which makes me think this is a test. I do see the places section below the knowledge panel, but not one that you can click to expand.View the full article

Google is now using a much larger font for the knowledge panels shown in Google Search. The font size looks jumbo and it does not seem to be test, it seems to be live - I think.View the full article

Google Search is testing a feature to quiz you on the product you are looking for and then to give you more tailored recommendations for product suggestions. This box is titled "get tailored recommendations" and it reminds me of the AI powered recommendation ads, but these are different.View the full article

Everyone talks about how different social media platforms are, and it’s not hard to see why. X is treated as the town square. Threads wants to be the friendly alternative. Bluesky champions decentralization and user control. But when we analyzed 1.7 million posts, a surprising pattern emerged: posts on X, Threads, and Bluesky get the same median engagement. In other words, whether you posted on X, Threads, or Bluesky, the median engagement lands at exactly four interactions. At first glance, this might make these platforms seem more alike than we’d expect. But a closer look tells a different story. Beyond that baseline, their engagement dynamics diverge dramatically, revealing hidden patterns about virality, consistency, and audience behavior. The engagement patterns we’ve uncovered don’t just highlight platform differences — they show why a one-size-fits-all approach won’t work in 2025. Our data scientist analyzed posts from 56,000 users to uncover these trends, and what we found changes the way we should think about social media strategy in 2025 — especially if you’re deciding where to post and what to expect from each platform. Understanding the dataBefore we dive into engagement trends, let’s break down what we’re actually measuring and how we made sure these comparisons are fair. This analysis covers 1.7 million posts from 56,000 users across X, Threads, and Bluesky in early 2025. That’s a lot of data — but as with any social media study, context matters. What we’re measuringIn this analysis, engagements refer to the total number of interactions a post receives — likes, comments, reposts, all of it. We chose this metric because it’s the only one that can be directly compared across all three platforms. Now, if you’ve read our previous analysis comparing engagement rates on X and Threads, you might notice what looks like a contradiction. That study suggested that Threads posts tend to have higher engagement rates, while this analysis suggests that, on average, X posts receive just as many engagements as Threads posts. Both findings are true — because they’re measuring different things. Engagement rate measures how many people who see a post interact with it.Total engagements count all interactions, regardless of how many people saw the post.Neither metric is inherently better — it just depends on what you’re looking to measure. If you’re focused on how likely a post is to engage its audience, engagement rate matters more.If you care about how much total interaction a platform generates, total engagements tell a clearer story.This is a good reminder that platform comparisons depend on your perspective and that a single number rarely captures the full picture. What’s ultimately important to remember is that social media engagement data is inherently skewed, and some people will get more engagement than others regardless of the network they post to. We used a mixed-effects regression model in this analysis to control for those factors. How engagement patterns differ across X, Threads, and BlueskyThroughout 2024, the typical post on all three platforms performed the same way: Half of all posts on X, Threads, and Bluesky received four or fewer engagements. At first glance, this suggests that engagement levels are nearly identical across platforms. But looking a little closer, this isn’t always the case. For example, in February 2025: Threads increased to a median of 5 engagementsX remained at 4Bluesky dropped to 3These shifts may seem small, but they indicate that each platform is developing distinct identities and that external factors are always shifting, affecting how they perform. How engagement scales on each platformLooking at the median engagement tells us how a typical post performs, but it doesn’t capture what happens when posts take off. The large gap between median and average engagement means some posts go viral, pulling the averages up. This is similar to salary distributions, where a few high earners inflate the average, even though most people make much less. The average (baseline) number of engagements shows a dramatically different picture: X: 328 average engagementsThreads: 58 average engagementsBluesky: 21 average engagementsThe key point that explains these differences is that the variance in the number of engagements is much, much higher on X than on Threads and Bluesky. Engagements on X have a standard deviation of over 5,000, meaning there is a very wide spread in engagement. The median is lower than the average because the distribution of engagement is skewed towards 0. What is a standard deviation, and why does it matter?A platform’s spread (or standard deviation) tells us how far posts can climb beyond the baseline. A larger spread means any given post to the platform has higher viral potential, while a smaller spread means that posts get more predictable engagement. Basically, the three platforms are on a spectrum from Wild Virality → Predictability. Here’s what we discovered about the different spreads on each platform. X is high risk, high rewardX has the widest engagement spread, with posts deviating by 5,159 engagements from the baseline. Most posts still receive four engagements or fewer, but when a post takes off, it can go viral in the extreme. This makes X the best platform for viral reach, even though posting there means you run the 'risk' of modest engagement. The massive spread potential on X means that when a post breaks out, it can go viral in a way that’s nearly impossible elsewhere. Here’s how to play to X’s strengths: Post consistently. Since virality is unpredictable, regular posting increases your chances of landing a breakout post.Experiment with highly shareable content. Memes, hot takes, and news-driven posts thrive on X’s fast-moving algorithm.Expect inconsistency. Most posts will get little engagement, but the potential payoff is high.Threads offers consistent and predictable growthThreads has a moderate spread, with posts deviating by 628 engagements from the baseline. Its bump to a 5-engagement median suggests that engagement is stabilizing at a higher level. Unlike X, where virality is unpredictable, Threads rewards creators who post regularly with steadier audience growth than any other platform. To succeed on Threads: Focus on conversation-driven content. Posts that encourage replies and discussion tend to perform better than one-way broadcasts.Build a community. Unlike X, where virality is the goal, Threads supports more long-term, engaged followers.Bluesky offers niche but reliable engagementBluesky has the smallest spread, with posts deviating by 279 engagements from the baseline. While its median engagement has dropped to 3, the lower spread means engagement is more predictable. Growth on Bluesky is slower but steadier, making it better suited for niche, community-driven content rather than viral reach. Here’s how to approach Bluesky: Create for a specific audience. Bluesky isn’t about mass engagement — it’s about focused, community-driven content.Expect steady but slow growth. Engagement is more predictable than on X but less explosive.Use it for deeper conversations. Thoughtful, discussion-heavy posts perform better than viral-style content.Do you need a cross-platform strategy?The recent divergence in median engagement and engagement spread on X, Threads, and Bluesky tells us something important: These platforms are no longer interchangeable. Each platform now offers unique advantages depending on your goals. You can choose to focus all of your efforts on growing one social network, or you can work on a multi-channel strategy. If you go with the multi-channel approach, remember to tailor your strategy to each platform. You can still use strategies like cross-posting across platforms; we'd recommend you do so thoughtfully. To cross-post smarter in 2025: Customize for platform strengths. With a few tweaks, the same post might go viral on X, get steady engagement on Threads, and spark discussion on Bluesky. Adjust captions, formatting, or tone accordingly.Use scheduling tools to stay efficient. Posting manually across platforms is unsustainable. Use Buffer to note your ideas, draft your posts, and edit them for each platform, then post everywhere without extra work.Analyze your own engagement trends. While these patterns are platform-wide, your audience might engage differently. Use data from your own posts to refine your strategy.Most of all, stay flexible. Platforms and the trends that they create change fast. The key is adapting to how engagement evolves over time. 💡Check out Crossposting 101: Everything You Need to Know to Crosspost on Social Media EffectivelyWant more data?📚 Threads Drives 73.6% More Engagement Than X — Here’s What You Need to Know 📚 Data Shows Instagram Reels are Best For Reach — But Not Engagement 📚 From Instagram to Bluesky: How Social Media Use Has Evolved Since 2022 View the full article

Hello and welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week this newsletter explores inclusive approaches to leadership drawn from conversations with executives and entrepreneurs, and from the pages of Inc. and Fast Company. If you received this newsletter from a friend, you can sign up to get it yourself every Monday morning. During December 2024, Workday CEO Carl Eschenbach and his leadership team, including cofounder and executive chairman Aneel Bhusri, arrived at a big decision: the software company would restructure itself to free up operating dollars for investment opportunities tied to artificial intelligence (AI). The move would involve shedding hundreds of jobs, marking the biggest layoff in the company’s history. Even though the plan was finalized, Eschenbach says he was “not at peace” because he had not had a chance to share his thinking in person with Dave Duffield, Workday’s other founder and its largest individual shareholder. So, Eschenbach met Duffield at the Jax Truckee Diner near California’s Lake Tahoe—the very diner where Duffield and Bhusri decided to start Workday, and offer cloud-based software to human resources and finance departments—to lay out his rationale. “Dave said, ‘Carl, I support you. We brought you in to scale the company and we’re supporting you 100% in this very difficult decision,'” Eschenbach recalls. “The only thing he asked, which was obviously a ‘yes’ on my part, was that we take care of our employees who were moving on.” Humans vs. AI: Finding the balance In early February, Workday announced it was cutting 1,750 employees, or 8.5% of its workforce, with U.S.-based employees receiving a minimum of 12 weeks of pay with additional severance based on tenure. Workday is just one of many tech companies, including Salesforce, Microsoft, and Meta, announcing layoffs this year. Workday CEO Carl Eschenbach [Photo: Workday] But even as Eschenbach restructures his company to make room for more AI investments, he insists AI will not result in mass unemployment. In fact, he says of Workday’s layoffs: “If you fast-forward one year later, we’ll have the same, if not more people in the company because we’re going to rehire as we invest in [the AI] opportunity.”  The workforce more broadly will “peacefully coexist with the technology, we’ll leverage it, and we’ll become more productive as humans and as employees because of the technology,” he says. “It’s not just a replacement.” AI for CEOs I asked Eschenbach what kinds of AI agents or automation tools CEOs should embrace. He says all executives would benefit from agents that help with day-to-day “mundane” tasks (this is a common AI talking point) such as managing calendars or summarizing email messages. But he also noted that Workday is starting to roll out agents that can summarize financial data ahead of earnings calls and monitor transactions to help with audits. Aneel Bhusri [Photo: Workday] It’s a perspective echoed by Bhusri, who has served as CEO of Workday at various times over the company’s 20-year history. “Every CEO should be thinking about how to integrate agents that enhance their ability to think strategically and make informed decisions faster,” he says. “There are two primary types of agents: task-based and role-based. Task-based agents can create some efficiencies but can become easily siloed. Instead, I’d encourage executives to adopt role-based agents that can transform entire workstreams to free them up to focus on more strategic, impactful work.” But AI also has the potential to free up leaders to do more of the meaningful, person-to-person work that’s become an increasingly important part of the job. In 2018, Michael Porter and Nitin Nohria published research in Harvard Business Review that showed CEOs spend 61% of their time in in-person meetings. And while the study predated the pandemic and the rise of remote and hybrid work, there’s no question that face-to-face interactions—like Eschenbach’s meeting with Duffield at the Jax Truckee Diner—will continue to be part of the CEO playbook in the age of AI. How is AI helping you? Are you a CEO using AI to help you manage your time or run your business? Send your best examples to stephaniemehta@mansueto.com. Your responses may form the basis of a future newsletter. Read more: overcoming CEO challenges 4 ways top CEOs are making AI work for them The 4 most common problems for founder-led startups From founder-led to founder-inspired View the full article

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, but expensive options like coaching for fewer people. Or it could bring leadership development to more employees, but settle for cookie-cutter programs. But that conundrum is becoming a thing of the past. Scalability and quality can go together in leadership development—no matter the size of your training budget. To get both, though, you have to embrace an approach that’s both high-tech and high-touch. Why is scalability so important? Before we get into the nuts and bolts of scaling quality leadership development, let’s talk about why it’s such a big deal right now. For starters, there’s a real gap in leadership pipelines. Only 20% of companies feel confident that they have strong future leaders lined up, and this is something we hear from clients all the time. At the same time, companies are starting to recognize the power of informal leaders—the people who don’t have a leadership title but still play a huge role in driving teams forward. A recent Harvard Business Publishing report highlights how organizations are shifting toward flatter structures and more cross-functional collaboration. That means people who used to simply carry out tasks are now expected to influence stakeholders, make strategic decisions, and communicate business impact—in other words, to lead, even without a formal title. With leadership expectations evolving, the challenge isn’t just developing leaders—it’s making sure leadership skills reach everyone who needs them. With tech, think beyond AI That brings us back to the question of how to make leadership development more scalable while maintaining quality. With just about any issue in business, people seem to rush to AI as the answer. While exciting things are going on, AI isn’t a magic-bullet solution for leadership development yet. The lingering problem is getting people (and teams) to actually use and benefit from them. But AI can be part of your scalability solution. In the Harvard survey, 60% of respondents said they’re incorporating AI into their development programs. (As my own company trains an AI coach, we’re focusing on making sure that using the coach will fit into people’s busy schedules.) However, don’t let AI overshadow other useful technologies. Micro-learning platforms are another huge trend right now, with nine out of 10 L&D professionals saying that the employees they serve prefer them. I’ve seen firsthand with our own platform how busy professionals embrace using “snackable content” to get leadership insights when and where they need them. Technology can also extend the reach of other leadership development tools. If you’re used to thinking in terms of using a single leadership development program at your organization, this may require a shift in mindset. But there’s lots of potential. For example, my company is very excited right now about the potential of combining our learning platform with our coaching services to help companies stretch their budgets farther. Enlist your current leaders for development  As I touched on earlier, technology is only part of the story when it comes to scaling leadership development. Leaders will always need to learn from other leaders, no matter how advanced AI and other high-tech tools become. I’ve also found that most organizations haven’t fully tapped into the knowledge their own people have. Unleashing this knowledge makes it a whole lot easier to scale leadership development. One strategy I always recommend is teaching your current leaders (including the informal ones) how they can help develop others. Ensure that the development they receive includes both coaching and delegation skills. Employees whose managers are adept coaches are eight times more engaged. And delegation gives employees a chance to grow “in the flow of work”—I’ve seen firsthand that this approach amplifies engagement, innovation, and customer satisfaction. Another way to enlist current leaders in scaling development is creating a mentoring program or updating your current one. Some of your employees may already have mentors or mentees, but formalizing mentorship programs makes them more powerful. Mentorship doesn’t just impart the information your people need to develop as leaders. It also ensures that information is relevant—the “touchstone” of an effective leadership development program—and it helps build the relationships your future leaders need. What’s next? I’m optimistic about scalable leadership development and the possibilities it holds. Making leadership development available to more employees will affect productivity—and even small shifts in productivity across a large population of employees can lead to big results. So how do you want to get the ball rolling to integrate scalability into your organization’s approach?    View the full article

Changes may be happening to the government at lightning speed, but come April, tax season will still be in full swing. And this year, it might be advisable to file early. At the moment, the government has until March 14 to avoid a shutdown, while President Trump and Elon Musk are continuing their mass layoffs of federal workers, including potentially cutting the IRS workforce by half. This could very well lead to delays in getting your refund. Chye-Ching Huang, executive director of NYU’s Tax Law Center, predicted that federal government layoffs “will hurt everyday Americans who pay their taxes and count on the IRS to pay refunds on time while encouraging wealthy people and large businesses to cheat on their taxes.” Yet, even as this tax season seems particularly topsy-turvy, it’s still worth doing your homework to understand what’s the same and what’s different this year, in an effort to make 2025 “your” year financially. Here are a few things to keep in mind: Make sure your personal data is safe from DOGE Filing taxes inherently means turning over personal data to the government. While as of yet, DOGE doesn’t have access to the IRS, Musk is pushing for access to the IRS’s databases. In a recent article, Fast Company personal finance writer Emily Guy Birken shared tips on protecting your personal information and finances. This included freezing your credit, and opening accounts at my Social Security and IRS.gov to prevent fraudsters from accessing your tax benefits. Decide to DIY or hire out Paying taxes is already painful enough, but doing them requires choosing between time (filing them yourself) and money (paying someone else to file them). If you work for one employer and are taking a standard deduction, your taxes are probably straightforward enough that it’s worth filing them yourself. And if you earn $84,000 or less, you may qualify to use the IRS’s online Free File program. However, if you work for yourself or have gone through a major life change last year—such as getting married (or divorced) or adding a new family member, selling a major asset such as a house or stock, or having moved to a different state—it might be worth the several-hundred dollars to pay a CPA to make sure you minimize errors and maximize your refund. Get up to speed on which deduction is best for you Taxpayers can choose between the standard deduction and itemizing deductions. The former is a lump sum that is deducted from taxable income, the latter requires itemizing expenses, which are then deducted from taxable income. In 2017, Trump nearly doubled the standard deduction, making it the better option for most taxpayers. For the current tax year, the standard deduction is $14,600 for single people, and $29,200 for married couples filing jointly. Understand the 1099-K Roughly one-third of Americans are gig workers, freelancers, or independent contractors. If you’re one of them, heads up: You might be getting a 1099-K form this year. The 1099-K is used to report payments received through third-party platforms, such as eBay, Uber or Lyft, Etsy, and Venmo. Though the 1099-K has been around since 2012, it used to be for only those who earned $20,000 or more and had 200 or more transactions. This year, if you made $5,000 or more on third-party platforms, you’ll receive a 1099-K. Before starting your returns, review your 1099-K to make sure it doesn’t include nontaxable payments such as Venmo transactions from friends and family, or items you sold at a loss. If there is nontaxable income included on your 1099-K, the IRS has added a space on the Schedule 1 form where you can report all the nontaxable income. View the full article

This story was originally published by ProPublica. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is considering taking a first step to using cryptocurrency, according to a meeting recording and other materials reviewed by ProPublica and three officials familiar with the matter. Two officials told ProPublica they believe the initiative may be a trial run for the use of crypto across the federal government. The discussions have sparked concern among some at the department, especially about the prospect of paying recipients of major federal grants in cryptocurrency, an uninsured digital asset associated with financial speculation, dramatic swings in value and transnational crime. The focus of the discussions so far has been experimenting with using the underlying technology that makes crypto possible — the blockchain — to monitor HUD grants. Blockchain advocates argue that the technology is valuable on its own for such purposes. But the primary use of blockchain, according to experts, is for crypto transactions. “It’s just introducing another unregulated security into the housing market as though 2008, 2009 didn’t happen,” one HUD staffer said, referring to the subprime mortgage crisis. “I don’t see any way this will help anything. I see a lot of ways this could hurt,” said the official, who, like others in this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. The HUD discussions have covered the potential use of a stablecoin, a form of crypto that is pegged to another asset to avoid wild swings in value, although such swings have happened in the past. The blockchain idea is being pushed, a HUD official told colleagues, by Irving Dennis. Dennis, the agency’s new principal deputy chief financial officer, is a former partner at the global consulting giant EY, also commonly known by its original name, Ernst & Young. EY itself is involved in the proposal as well: An executive of the firm discussed the idea with HUD officials last month. The crypto industry has found an ally in President Donald Trump, whose administration has tapped industryboosters to lead federal agencies, backed off investigations into crypto firms and created a “strategic Bitcoin reserve.” (Bitcoin plunged $5,000 within an hour of the news of the reserve’s opening on Thursday.) Trump himself has significant financial interests in crypto. On Friday, the White House is scheduled to host a “crypto summit” with leading figures from the industry. The proposal at HUD indicates a new way that the administration may seek to bolster the industry: by incorporating blockchain and possibly cryptocurrency into the routine spending and accounting practices of federal agencies. It’s a move that would align with the apparent desire of Trump adviser Elon Musk to use the blockchain to monitor federal spending. Dennis and HUD spokesperson Kasey Lovett both denied the accounts of their colleagues. “The department has no plans for blockchain or stablecoin,” Lovett said. “Education is not implementation.” Robert Judson, the EY executive involved in the conversations, confirmed that they took place. “We as a firm were having discussions with select individuals at that agency,” he said when reached by phone. Judson told ProPublica he would seek EY’s approval for a full interview, then didn’t call back. The White House, EY and Musk did not respond to requests for comment. HUD officials held at least two meetings about the blockchain proposal last month. A list of attendees to the first meeting included staffers from the offices of the CFO and Community Planning and Development. CPD administers billions of dollars in grants that support low- and moderate-income people, including funding to develop affordable housing, run homeless shelters, support disaster recovery, relocate domestic violence survivors and build parks, sewers and community centers. It was the CFO’s office that called for the meeting, one person told ProPublica. Also listed as a meeting attendee was Judson from EY. For years Judson has advocated for the blockchain, a digital ledger of sorts that creates an immutable record of transactions saved across multiple computers. Boosters of the technology cast it as a way to cut middlemen such as banks and credit card companies out of financial transactions and make those transactions more transparent and secure. Judson has written that the blockchain can help organizations prevent money from being siphoned off for unintended purposes. “As digital assets such as stable coins or digital currencies take hold, more powerful applications will emerge for integrated value exchange,” he wrote. Dennis, who served as HUD CFO in the first Trump administration, also wrote, in a 2021 book, that the agency should use technology such as “blockchain, robotics, and next-generation financial management systems.” Stablecoins are backed by reserves including traditional currency, commodities and Treasury securities. That is supposed to ensure that their value — unlike that of, say, Bitcoin — doesn’t fluctuate. However, on several high-profile occasions, the value of stablecoins has done just that. At the HUD meeting, attendees discussed a “proof of concept” project in which CPD would begin to track the funding going to a single CPD grant recipient and possibly subrecipients on the blockchain. The need for the project was “not well articulated,” one attendee later wrote in meeting notes. Following the meeting, a HUD official wrote and circulated a memo within the agency panning the idea. “Without exaggeration, every imaginable implementation of this at HUD appears dangerous and inefficient,” the memo reads. HUD has no difficulty tracking grant spending, the memo contended, making the new technology unnecessary. Incorporating it would be time-consuming, complicated and require extensive training. And, if the project involved paying grantees in cryptocurrency instead of dollars, it would inject volatility and unpredictability into the funding stream, even if the currency was a stablecoin. In subsequent discussions with HUD staffers, the memo’s author described the proposal as a “beachhead” at HUD for the introduction of cryptocurrency, which the author compared to “monopoly money.” CPD officials continued to raise concerns in a follow-up meeting, a recording of which was reviewed by ProPublica. (Judson did not attend this one.) Some attendees saw merit in the blockchain idea, suggesting it could reduce inaccurate data from grant recipients and enable real-time reporting and monitoring of their spending. “Maybe there is something that we could learn from it,” one said, “especially if we feel like the broader federal government is moving towards some sort of stablecoin option in the future.” One official asked why the agency was considering the project. “Because it’s sexy,” someone replied. Another said, “Irv has asked us to pursue blockchain, so that’s why we are looking at it,” referring to Dennis. Many details were left unexplained at the meeting, including, crucially, whether the proposal would involve paying grantees in cryptocurrency. But some signaled that it would. “You can do it with what would be attached to a stable currency. That would be up to Treasury, and I think they’re already going that way, for what it’s worth,” one official said. “It would simulate the dollar.” Another added, “It would basically be a cryptocurrency that is linked to the U.S. dollar on a one-for-one basis.” A finance official suggested the idea could be applied more broadly across HUD. “We are looking at this for the entire enterprise. We just wanted to start in CPD,” he said. The agency is also considering the idea for the Office of Public and Indian Housing, he said, for “tenant eligibility and stuff like that.” That office serves the millions of people who live in public and federally subsidized housing. This is not the first time that federal officials have considered incorporating the blockchain into the work of the government. Agencies including the Treasury Department, the Department of Commerce and even HUD have been involved in a study, a prototype and a working group in recent years. But those who monitor the crypto industry were not aware of as broad an application of the technology in the federal government as what HUD officials have recently discussed. Some crypto experts were dubious. “It’s a terrible idea,” said Corey Frayer, a former official at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, where he focused on the crypto markets and financial stability. “It is absolutely wild that anyone with any sense would consider this.” Frayer, now at the Consumer Federation of America, warned that HUD grants paid in stablecoin could fall in value. He expressed greatest concern about the notion that the proposal could expand to other parts of the agency. If that included, for example, introducing stablecoin into the $1.3 trillion in mortgage insurance provided by the Federal Housing Administration, a fluctuation in the value of the stablecoin could have a major economic impact, he said. “Imagine a world in which all of the government involvement in the housing industry, all of the funds circulating in that environment, dropped in value by 13%,” he said, citing a 2023 episode in which a stablecoin briefly fell 13 cents below the dollar. “It’s hard to imagine that wouldn’t be catastrophic.” Hilary Allen, a law professor at American University who researches financial regulation and technology, noted that some high-profile attempts to use the blockchain for purposes unrelated to cryptocurrency have failed. She expressed skepticism that the technology would fare better in the context of government grants, where bad outcomes could harm those who depend on HUD funding to survive. “Blockchain technology has been around for 15 years. No one wants to use it. And so now we have an attempt to force the government to use it,” she said, with “the most vulnerable people” serving “as guinea pigs.” Mollie Simon contributed research. View the full article

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