Less Than Half of Employees Trust Their Leaders. Here’s How to Be Different.
Less than half of employees trust senior leaders, a gap that hampers performance and change readiness. The article outlines five concrete actions—showing up in person, embracing transparency, holding regular 1:1s, living core values, and granting autonomy—to rebuild trust. The author reports a 5% rise in engagement after unfiltered Q&A sessions and notes that 85% of his staff feel comfortable being authentic. These practices aim to improve retention, accelerate decision‑making, and enable rapid initiatives such as AI adoption.
The Trip That Changed Me: How Running the World’s Biggest Marathons Pushed AnneMette Bontaites’s Limits
AnneMette Bontaites, a Danish expatriate in Boston, entered the New York City Marathon on a spontaneous bet and subsequently tackled the world’s most prestigious marathons. Over the next few years she completed the Abbott World Marathon Majors, racing in Berlin, Boston,...
What’s Your Chronotype? How Brain Science Can Boost Performance
A joint study by the Wharton Neuroscience Initiative and Slalom examined how individual chronotypes—natural sleep‑wake rhythms—affect creative performance. Using the Morningness‑Eveningness Questionnaire and a divergent‑thinking task, researchers found that employees generated more ideas and higher‑quality concepts when work aligned with...
The Uses of Equanimity
The article explains that equanimity, while appearing as calm concentration, can conceal subtle attachment and delusion. It warns that staying absorbed in a state of equanimity without probing can prevent genuine insight. Practitioners are urged to use equanimity as a...
3 Science-Backed Ways to Practice Optimism at Work (that Aren’t Phony or Forced)
Optimism often feels forced in corporate settings, leading to heightened stress and reduced cognitive performance. Clinical research shows that suppressing negative emotions keeps the nervous system in a threat state, limiting prefrontal cortex activity essential for planning and decision‑making. The...
Rethinking Equanimity: Margaret Cullen on Equanimity and Quiet Strength
Margaret Cullen’s forthcoming book Quiet Strength delves into equanimity as a distinct, teachable virtue, filling a gap in the crowded mindfulness market. After rejecting a workbook proposal, she pursued a deep‑dive manuscript that positions equanimity alongside mindfulness, compassion, and love....
What Happens When Faith Leaders Try to Force Forgiveness?
Amanda’s experience of being pressured by a biblical counselor to apologize to her abusive father highlights how some faith‑based counseling programs prioritize doctrinal conformity over survivor safety. Researchers document that coercive forgiveness often arises from unequal power dynamics within churches,...
The Hidden Productivity Goldmine: How Bookending Your Day Transforms Your Workflow
The piece introduces "bookending"—dedicated opening and closing routines—to structure the workday and sharpen focus. It cites measurable gains, including up to a 29% sales lift for entrepreneurs who review daily performance. A step‑by‑step framework shows how even one‑minute habits, supported...
Why Visibility Has Become the New Test of Leadership
In professional‑service firms, quiet excellence has given way to visible leadership. Partners now must demonstrate impact through LinkedIn posts, client reviews, and internal dashboards, turning transparency into a credibility metric. MIT Sloan’s research identifies three levers—internal recognition, external reputation, and...
The Sound of Silence
The essay explores how incessant internal dialogue functions as a form of noise pollution, clouding clarity and driving dualistic thinking. It presents chanting the name of Kanzeon—or any pure, intention‑free sound—as a pathway to a pre‑conceptual awareness that transcends mental...
Does Mindfulness Help Kids? There’s A Better Question to Ask
Recent large‑scale school studies in the UK and Denmark found that ten weekly mindfulness sessions delivered by teachers produced little measurable improvement in adolescents’ mental health, sparking doubts about the efficacy of universal programs. The author argues that these findings...
Why Personal Strategic Planning Is Your Secret Weapon
The article introduces personal strategic planning as a framework to turn vague aspirations into actionable results. It adapts corporate practices—clarity, gap analysis, and quarterly strategy—to individual goal‑setting. Real‑world examples show how identifying current constraints and reallocating time enables achievements like...
Helping Employees Find “Meaning” Improves Performance and Narrows Gender Gaps
The LSE study by Oriana Bandiera and co‑authors evaluated a “Discover Your Purpose” (DYP) program among 2,976 white‑collar employees at a multinational firm. The purpose‑focused intervention, which blends self‑reflection exercises with a workshop, cut the share of low‑performing workers from...
How to Quash Your Fear of Messing Up
Fear of messing up (FOMU) is a newly identified anxiety that drives excessive caution, especially among early‑career professionals and senior leaders who must take risks. Kellogg professor Ellen Taaffe explains that FOMU stems from self‑judgment and concerns about reputation, relationships,...
Self-Discipline Can Be Your Worst Enemy
Val Blair’s near‑fatal mountain incident revealed how relentless self‑discipline can become a health liability. Executives and athletes alike often equate tighter control with higher performance, yet research links over‑control to depression, OCD, and burnout. Psychologists and coaches observe that high‑achievers...
Happiness Break: A Meditation For Connecting In Polarized Times
The Science of Happiness podcast released a "Happiness Break" episode featuring author Scott Shigeoka leading a guided visualization that trains listeners to approach contentious conversations with curiosity. The practice combines breathwork, mental rehearsal, and vivid imagination to reframe tense moments,...