The Creativity Suite. Episode 164: Harnessing Creative Energy.
Canva’s Regional People Lead for Southeast Asia, Alvanson So, explains that creative output hinges on employees’ energy—defined as work in action. He stresses that leaders must uncover each person’s energy drivers and eliminate drainers, using weekly one‑on‑one meetings and a “Kam Ching” philosophy of heart‑to‑heart connection. So’s personal story of helping his retired father illustrates how purpose restores energy. The interview frames energy management as a core leadership responsibility for sustaining productivity.
What If Happiness Isn't The Goal? New Research Points To Something Deeper
New research in The Journal of Positive Psychology finds that autonomy—the sense of making one’s own choices—outweighs momentary happiness in predicting life satisfaction. Analyzing survey data from over 1,200 adults aged 18 to 80, the study shows autonomy drives satisfaction...
Women Aged Between 40-65 Say Clubbing Benefits Their Mental Health, Study Finds
A University of Leeds study published in April 2025 surveyed 136 women aged 40‑65 who regularly attend electronic‑music events. Over 92% reported that clubbing lifts their mental health, while 81.6% have been part of the scene for more than two...
Digital Wellbeing: Breaking Free From Screen Overload
The article defines digital wellbeing as the balanced, intentional use of technology that supports mental, physical, and emotional health. It highlights the harms of doomscrolling and social‑media addiction, citing recent research linking these habits to higher stress, anxiety, and reduced...
Is Command-and-Control Leadership Back in Fashion?
A wave of articles and podcasts is championing a comeback of command‑and‑control leadership, dubbing CEOs as “wartime” leaders and praising authoritarian coaching. The narrative gains traction because volatile markets make decisive, centralized authority feel reassuring. Yet scholars note that top‑down...
The People Who Remember Everyone’s Birthday but Quietly Hope Someone Will Remember Theirs without a Reminder
The article examines people who habitually remember everyone’s birthdays and life events, often using spreadsheets and calendar alerts, while hoping their own milestones are noticed without prompting. It reveals that this relational labor is a form of emotional work that...
What Is ‘Friction-Maxxing’ and Should Leaders Embrace It?
Businesses are discovering that generative AI tools, touted as productivity boosters, are actually intensifying work and eroding critical‑thinking skills, according to studies from UC Berkeley and MIT Media Lab. In response, some employees are deliberately re‑introducing inconvenience—a practice dubbed “friction‑maxxing”—by...
Demi Moore, 63, Says Her 'Life-Changing' Nighttime Routine Helps Her Wind Down
Actress Demi Moore, 63, told Elle that an intentional evening routine has become a "life‑changing" part of her wellness regimen. She starts each day with meditation, journaling, movement, hydration and sleep, and she now treats nighttime skin‑care and a calm...
The Conversation that Could Change a Founder’s Life
Burnout in startups often goes unnoticed until it threatens performance, with nearly half of people leaders reporting severe fatigue, according to Wiley Workplace Intelligence. As teams grow from five to fifty, informal support erodes and leaders become stretched across hiring,...
The Surprising Ways Love Opens Our Minds
Lewis Raven Wallace’s new book *Radical Unlearning* argues that love, connection and community—not facts alone—are the primary drivers for shedding bias and trauma. Drawing on neuroscience, the work shows how oxytocin‑fueled neuroplasticity rewires the brain when people feel safe and...
From Hospital Volunteer to AI Innovator: Melodious Isanda’s Inspiring Journey
Melodious Isanda, a Kenyan community‑health graduate, entered the University of Nairobi’s Engage program and, despite no prior coding experience, created a blood‑sugar prediction app for a local hospital. Engage delivers tiered AI and data‑science residencies to high‑school, diploma and university...
Leaders Have Better Lives but Worse Days
Gallup’s 2026 State of the Global Workplace report finds that managers of managers—defined as leaders—are more likely to rate their lives as thriving and report higher work engagement than the employees they supervise. At the same time, these leaders experience...
Why Leadership Traits Don’t Determine a Successful Leader
The piece argues that leadership success hinges on self‑awareness and context rather than a static list of traits. It highlights a Silicon Valley biotech CEO who, despite being praised for many classic traits, let them become blind spots, prompting senior...
The Loneliest People in Extreme Environments Aren’t the Ones Far From Home. They’re the Ones Who Return and Discover that...
Returnees from extreme environments—astronauts, submariners, polar crews, and combat veterans—often face a profound form of loneliness that persists long after they step back onto familiar ground. Researchers label this phenomenon reverse culture shock or re‑entry distress, a type of existential...
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Tapping for Anxiety: How It Works and Tips for Doing It, According to an Expert
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), also called tapping, blends acupressure with cognitive‑behavioral strategies to alleviate anxiety. Research cites roughly 100 clinical trials demonstrating reductions in stress hormones, heart rate, and blood pressure, with most users noticing benefits after 4 to 10...
HOW TO CREATE THE NEXT GREAT COMPANY
Salvatore D. Fazzolari’s new book, *The Nine Principles of Greatness*, tackles why many firms falter while a few achieve lasting success. He attributes failure to three "storms of change": leadership missteps, disruptive innovation, and severe external shocks. The book offers...
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"I’m Not Good at Anything:" How to Combat Low Self-Esteem
The Verywell Mind podcast hosted by therapist Amy Morin tackles the pervasive belief that "I'm not good at anything," linking low self‑esteem to anxiety, depression, and impaired performance at work and in relationships. The episode outlines how social‑media comparison, past...
Nicholas Mastriaco: Building Trust Through Service
Nicholas Mastriaco, a Business Customer Service and Sales Representative, attributes his disciplined work ethic and relationship‑focused sales style to a modest upbringing in Pleasant Garden, North Carolina. Early hobbies like building Lego sets and playing strategy games taught him patience,...
Obsessed With Being a Failure
The article examines how perfectionists obsess over avoiding failure, driven by black‑and‑white thinking and social‑media comparison. It highlights the "failure gap" study (Eskreis‑Winkler et al., 2026) showing people underestimate how often failures occur, which shapes harsher self‑judgments. The author argues that coping...
‘I Kept Going’: How the Final Official Finisher of the Boston Marathon Motivated Herself to End Strong
Boston’s 130th marathon saw the Boston Athletic Association extend the official cutoff from 5:30 p.m. to 5:36 p.m. after the last wave started late. Carlie Siegel, who battled low‑glucose episodes and finished in 6:13:29, initially believed she missed the Six‑Star medal but...
How Christine Barone Creates ‘Magic’ at Dutch Bros
Christine Barone, Dutch Bros' CEO, was honored as the 2026 Restaurant Leader of the Year. Since taking the helm in 2023, she has driven quarterly same‑store sales growth and lifted 2025 net income by roughly 80%. The company's stock has...
I Stopped Reaching for ChatGPT when Excel Could Do It Three Times Faster
In a recent MakeUseOf column, author Yadullah Abidi argues that Excel often outpaces ChatGPT for routine data tasks. He demonstrates how pivot tables, conditional formatting, Flash Fill, and macros deliver instant results without the back‑and‑forth of prompting an AI model....
Precommitment Can Lead to Healthier Food Choices Under Stress, Study Finds
A recent Psychoneuroendocrinology study shows that stress drives psychology students to favor tastier, less‑healthy foods, but a precommitment step—removing the unhealthy option in advance—significantly raises the share of healthy selections. Participants chose the healthier item in only 21% of unrestricted...
A Meditation to Meet Yourself Where You Are—No Matter What
Mindfulness instructor Cheryl Jones offers a ten‑step guided meditation designed to foster self‑acceptance regardless of circumstance. The practice walks participants through posture, breath awareness, and neutral observation of thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations. Jones, a two‑book author and award‑winning corporate...
Tim Cook Reveals the First Thing He Did as CEO Every Day. It’s a Leadership Habit Everyone Should Steal
After 15 years as Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook announced he will transition to executive chairman in September. In his farewell letter, he revealed that every morning he opens his email to read notes from Apple users worldwide. The habit...
6 New Books That Treat Wellness Like the Business Strategy It Is
Entrepreneur‑focused publications highlight wellness as a core business strategy, presenting six new titles that blend science, recovery, nutrition, healthcare innovation, purpose and mental resilience. The list includes Brad Stulberg’s “The Way of Excellence,” Halle Tecco’s “Massively Better Healthcare,” Cynthia Thurlow’s forthcoming “The...
What Is a Midlife Reset? The 5-Domain System for Rebuilding at 45 and 50
The article introduces a "midlife reset," a proactive, multi‑domain rebuild for adults aged 40‑55 who feel life is misaligned despite outward success. It outlines a five‑domain framework—work, health, money, relationships, identity—and a 90‑day process of diagnosis, habit design, and installation....
Calero CRO Eric Martorano Knows Stories Can Be Our Most Powerful Tool
Eric Martorano, chief revenue officer at Calico, argues that storytelling is the most effective lever for scaling revenue operations. He explains how narrative frameworks help break down silos between sales, marketing, and finance, turning data into relatable outcomes. Martorano shares...
This One Reflection Technique Improves Brainstorming By 50% (M)
A brief, structured reflection exercise can lift both the quantity and quality of ideas generated during brainstorming sessions by roughly 50 percent, according to recent psychological research. The technique involves a short, five‑minute pause where participants review recent successes, obstacles,...
Shut Up and Do Something About It
Dave Tate’s "Shut Up and Do Something About It" argues that excuses are a habit of shifting blame, while real results come from personal responsibility. He illustrates the point with gym anecdotes, showing that every excuse ultimately traces back to...
5 Pieces of Advice for the Leader Inheriting the Mess
An incoming leader inherits a multi‑year program that has repeatedly failed to reach production because of systemic misalignment. The root causes were unmapped regulatory requirements, fragmented delivery across siloed teams, and evolving scope without clear ownership. By auditing integrations, redefining...
Jeff Dye on Sobriety, Connection, and Clarity
Comedian Jeff Dye, known from Last Comic Standing and TV appearances, has now been sober for over two years, approaching his third year. He says quitting alcohol has given him daily energy, mental clarity, and better physical health, allowing him...
This Free App Makes Journaling so Easy that I've Managed to Do It for 3 Months
ZDNET writer Jack Wallen praises Diarly, a free journaling app for macOS, iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, as the most effortless tool he’s used. After three months with the free version, he highlights its clean UI, mood tags, icons, and...
Three Daily Habits of Rich Accountants
The article outlines three daily habits that high‑earning accountants use to stay ahead: reviewing their client pipeline each morning, projecting confidence through body language and tone, and communicating pricing with clear value justification. It emphasizes that these routines help accountants...
The People Who Overexplain Themselves in Every Message Are Usually Apologizing in Advance for Existing in a Way Nobody Ever...
The article explains that over‑explaining in text messages is less about clarity and more a pre‑emptive apology for taking up space. Psychological research links the habit to self‑silencing, high guilt sensitivity, insecure attachment, and childhood exposure to volatile conflict. In...
Avoid These Sleep Mistakes That Are Sabotaging Your Performance
Entrepreneurs over 40 often treat sleep as a flexible resource, leading to subtle but cumulative performance losses. The article outlines five common sleep mistakes—irregular schedules, late‑night work, caffeine reliance, bedtime mental overload, and fragmented rest—that erode decision‑making, creativity, and emotional...
Want to Lighten Your Mental Load? First, Let Go of These Gender Myths
Leah Ruppanner’s new book *Drained* challenges entrenched gender myths that inflate women’s mental load and offers evidence‑based tools to trim it. Drawing on a survey of more than 3,000 U.S. parents, the research shows women shoulder over 70% of domestic...
New Psychology Research Shows People Consistently Underestimate How Often Things Go Wrong Across Society
A new study published in the Journal of Personality & Social Psychology reveals a pervasive "failure gap"—people consistently underestimate how often negative events occur across society. An extensive research program involving about 3,000 participants, real‑world data, and field experiments showed...
Mastering the Eisenhower Matrix: Prioritize Like a Pro
Salesforce’s recent study shows small businesses that adopt a prioritization framework like the Eisenhower Matrix achieve a 20% productivity increase. The matrix categorizes tasks into four quadrants—do, decide, delegate, and delete—helping leaders focus on urgent‑important work while eliminating low‑value activities....
Stop and Smell the Roses: Mindful Garden Bathing
The Mindful Leader outlines garden bathing, a mindfulness practice that immerses users in the detailed sights, sounds, and scents of a garden. It positions this activity as a more accessible alternative to forest bathing, especially for urban dwellers and busy...
Psychology Says the Most Powerful Words You Can Learn Aren’t ‘I’m Sorry’ or ‘I Love You’, They’re ‘that Doesn’t Work...
The article argues that the five‑word phrase “That doesn’t work for me” is a powerful boundary‑setting tool, offering clarity without apology or over‑justification. Psychological research links assertiveness and the ability to say no with better mental‑health outcomes. Over‑explaining or apologizing...
The People Who Say ‘I’m Fine’ the Fastest Are Usually the Ones Who Learned, Very Young, that Nobody Had the...
The article explains how children who experience emotional neglect learn to answer “I’m fine” instantly, treating the phrase as a protective shortcut rather than a truthful statement. This rapid response stems from an early need to conserve emotional bandwidth in...
Your Leadership Style Will Shape Your Organizational Culture
Leadership style is the primary driver of an organization’s culture, shaping values, behaviors, and employee attitudes. Leaders influence culture through the decisions they make, the way they communicate, and the behaviors they model, creating either a climate of trust and...
What Sets Superteams Apart From the Rest
Ron Friedman’s research, based on surveys of thousands of workers, identified the top‑performing “super teams” – roughly 8% of all teams that earned perfect scores on effectiveness and industry comparison. These teams excel through three learnable strengths: superior management of...
Short Video Addiction Is Linked to Lower Life Satisfaction Through Loneliness and Anxiety
Researchers from Trakya University found that problematic use of short‑form video apps triggers a chain of psychological effects that erode life satisfaction. In a two‑wave study of 234 university students, higher short‑video addiction at the start predicted greater loneliness three...
An Accelerator for Leadership Performance: Executive Coaching
Executive coaching has shifted from a remedial tool to a strategic performance accelerator for high‑performing organizations. Research shows an average 5.7‑times return on investment and 99% of clients report significant performance gains. Structured, goal‑aligned coaching shortens new‑leader ramp‑up, boosts team...
Microbreaks: 1 Fast Tactic to Cut Stress, Boost Productivity | 2-Minute Video
HRMorning’s 3‑Point episode spotlights microbreaks—brief 30‑second to two‑minute pauses that reset the nervous system. Co‑CEO Jen Lee of Intradiem explains how deep‑breathing microbreaks interrupt stress accumulation and improve focus. She models the practice by starting meetings with a quick reset...
True Class Is Mostly About Knowing when to Stay Silent — the Gossip You Didn’t Spread, the Correction You Didn’t...
The article argues that genuine class is demonstrated through what you choose not to say, not through flashy actions. An anecdote shows that refusing to spread gossip earned the author a collaboration offer, illustrating the power of restraint. Small, everyday...
From 920lb Deadlifts to Marathons: 5 Lessons on Extreme Performance and Resilience
Pete Rubish, once famed for a 920‑lb deadlift, has reinvented himself as a marathon runner, underscoring a profound shift from raw strength to cardiovascular health. After quitting performance‑enhancing drugs, he grappled with heightened health anxiety, a 24 mm kidney stone that...
Experience Is Everything – Interview with Jeannie Walters
Jeannie Walters, founder and CEO of Experience Investigators, discusses her new book *Experience Is Everything* on the Punk CX podcast. She argues that customer experience must be proactively designed, anchored to organizational goals, and driven by clear mission statements. Walters stresses...