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The psychological contract hasnt just shifted around where we work. It has shifted, and continues to shift, around the entire relationship between organizations and employees. That shift in expectations feels most dramatic when we look at Gen Z, the latest entrants to the workforce. More than 40% of Gen Z employees have refused a work assignment because of ethical concerns. Nearly four in 10 have turned down a job with a company that doesnt align with their values. In the workplace, they are driving the conversation around social justice, mental health, and work-life balance. More than 90% of workers say theyve been influenced by Gen Z on issues of meaning at work, and more than six in 10 say Gen Z has made them more likely to speak up when they dont approve of something at work. Career Stage vs. Generational Differences Some of the generational differences were experiencing are just career stage differences. While the Three Cs of meaningful workcommunity, contribution, and challengeare important for everyone, different people will value different sources of meaning more highly. In particular, those newer to the workforce tend to want opportunities to learn and grow. Jennifer Deal, who has studied generational changes at work for many years, says, When people talk about generations, what they do is they think about lumps of people cohorts that were born at a particular time, and that doesnt really have as much of an effect in the workplace as does life stage, career stage, and level in the organization. Young people want to be challenged. While you should focus on all Three Cs for everybody, you might want to put more weight on challenge for people who are new to the workforce and weigh things differently for people who are middle or later career. Other generational differences, however, represent a shift in employees expectations of organizations and their leaders. Arthur Brooks shares, Every year I teach Harvard MBA students about happiness and its unique relationship to leadership. These students are almost all destined for tremendous success as measured in worldly terms: money, prestige, and power. To most people in our society, this seems like a dream come true and the secret to happiness. Yet each year, when I speak to my MBA studentsboth in class and in private office hoursmany are concerned. Are they truly on the path to happiness because of their near-certain success? They talk to alumni who complain about workaholism, broken relationships, and trouble finding passion. This provokes a lot of anxiety about meaning. What Gen Z can teach In our consulting work, were frequently called in to help leaders navigate the divide between younger and older employees. We commonly hear things like, These kids just dont want to work. We find it more accurate to say, These kids dont want to work the way you did. While younger employees of course have a lot to learn, we believe this generation also has some things to teach. As we move toward a new, better model of work, this rising cohort is challenging many long-held ideals and broken structures. They arent encumbered by the old system because they havent invested in it. Kahlil Shepard, a Gen Z worker, says, I want to do things that matter. I want to feel like Im constantly evolving. I want to work at a place where leaders are facilitating not just my growth broadly but also my ability to live out my values in the world. Leaders can, and should, challenge this cohort to temper their ideals with practical realities. At the same time, leaders have an opportunity to take their aspirations of a better model and help bring it to life. This requires leaders to unlearn some of the meaning-killing behaviors that are a part of the old model and adopt better ways of working. The future holds the promise of better work for all of us. We all want meaningful workwork that builds community, that contributes to others, and that challenges us to grow. As a leader, you have far more influence than you think in creating this meaning for others. Small moments of meaning can create ripples that reach our families, friends, and neighbors. The impact of these moments can extend far into the future. We believe that now and into the future every job can, and should, be meaningful with the help of a great leader. We believe that leader is you. What if all jobs were meaningful? Imagine a world where every job is designed to be sustainable and fulfilling. Where jobs offer not just a paycheck but also a sense of contribution. Imagine work environments that prioritize relationships and connections over mere transactions. What if every employee was valued not as a temporary fix or a number on a balance sheet but as a crucial, long-term contributor to the organizations success? Imagine a world where earning a living did not come at the cost of living a meaningful life. How would this shift in work impact our organizations, our society, and our personal well-being? Making work meaningful is not an item to check off your to-do list. Its the critical lens through which you must view every decision, interaction, and task. Meaning is createdor destroyedin daily moments. Every conversation in which you truly listen, every piece of positive feedback you give, and every project you assign that encourages learning and growth dont just add upthey multiply. Excerpted from Meaningful Work: How to Ignite Passion and Performance in Every Employee. Copyright 2025 by Wes Adams and Tamara Myles. Available from PublicAffairs, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc.
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E-Commerce
Things are tough right now, with complexity and uncertainty in the world driving stress and worry. Youre probably trying to stay positive and muscle through. But theres an important difference between keeping appropriately optimistic and acting with toxic positivity. If youre faced with toxic positivity in yourself or others, its probably based on good intentions that have run amok. But it can actually create a negative spiral that can make things worse. Staying positive during trying times According to a survey from MyPerfectResume, people are reporting record levels of exhaustion, anxiety, and stress with 88% who said they were burned out. In addition, 32% of respondents reported they felt anxiety, including 30% who had headaches and 25% who had muscle pain related to their burnout, according to the data. Attempting to stay optimistic is a reasonable response, but toxic positivity is what happens when that goes too far. It involves ignoring reality, suppressing negative emotions, and trying to be overly positive in every situation, regardless of reality. Those with toxic positivity may also try to impose their attitudes on othersto the annoyance of those around them. Toxic positivity has multiple negative effects. First, when people demonstrate toxic positivity, it can result in denying reality, and undermining their ability to respond constructively to negative situations. Second, an unwillingness to express real emotions can result in feeling isolated from others and can cause mental health challenges for the person expressing toxic positivity. Third, when someone is acting with toxic positivity and denying others emotions, it creates barriers to forming a trusting relationship, because others may feel devalued. Fourth, when someone is perceived as inauthentic, others may question their honesty or integrityagain getting in the way of building relationships. So, how can you be positive without embracing toxic behavior? There are some strategies that work. Be aware and be realistic You can avoid toxic positivity by staying aware of whats going onincluding the bad news or challenges that emerge. Repressing or avoiding difficulties or uncomfortable facts is a classic characteristic of toxic positivity. Avoid burying your head in the sand. Instead, seek information, stay in the know, and be aware. You dont have to overdo negative thinking or marinate in bad news, but you will want to keep your eyes open to real situations and circumstances. Its also important to be realistic. You dont need to overcorrect toxic positivity by catastrophizing or anticipating all the worst outcomes, but its constructive to be clear about whats going on and face up to the need for solutions. Put energy into responding to problems instead of investing energy in sealing them out. As youre working through disappointment or discouragement with yourself or others, also avoid using insincere positive statements or gimmicks. A study published in Psychological Science found that most people believe positive statements can help their mood and their self-esteem. But in the experiment, people who struggled with low self-esteem and who also repeated positive self-statements like, Im a loveable person, felt worse than they did before using the self-statement. The bottom line: Sometimes inauthentic or superficial solutions like hollow self-talk are worse than an honest assessment of whats difficult and an intention to deal with it. Encourage and empower yourself and others, but stop short of using superficial feel-good statements that get in the way of authenticity or action. Be empathetic At the same time youre aware of situations and realities, youll also need to stay in tune with people and be empathic toward them. Consider what theyre going through, ask questions, and listen to their points of view. By validating what people are going through and by being present with them in tough times, you can both support them and empower them to work through difficulties. This is helpful to them and it also builds the relationship, which is good for both of you. Also avoid imposing your attitudes on others. If youre naturally an optimistic person, thats fine, but avoid attempting to change others. Youll want to support them, but if you try to convince someone that everything is okay despite all theyre going through, youll just irritate them and drive a wedge in the relationship. Its okay to be optimistic While youre avoiding a toxic approach to positivity, you can be optimistic. Look to the future and be hopeful about itand take action to find solutions for the issues that are important to you. Optimism can lead to positive outcomes. In a study of over 70,000 people researchers from Boston University surveyed respondents about their optimism and compared it to their health data, over a 10 to 30 year period. They found that those who were more optimistic boosted their longevity by 11% to 15% and increased their chances of living to age 85 by 50%. These effects on longevity were in spite of participants age, education, diseases, or depressionand regardless of habits related to alcohol use, exercise, or diet. Researchers believe that optimism is so powerful because it may help people bounce back from stress and regulate emotions. The difference between toxic positivity and healthy optimism is a matter of degree. If you deny reality, you may be tipping into toxic territory. But if you can be empathetic and avoid imposing your positivity on others, you reach a reasonable balance and connect more deeply with others.
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E-Commerce
In the past week, I had “conversations” with two leaders who talked too much. They were good people with interesting stories to share. But they went on for far too long while I just sat and listened. Characteristically, they asked few questions and, when they did, didn’t seem to be interested in my responses. These two leaders were engaged but seemingly not curious or fully present. These encounters crystallized something I’ve observed repeatedly in my decades of executive coaching: A damaging leadership blind spot is the simple inability to stop talking. I call this a “leadership trap” because it ensnares otherwise effective executives in a paradox: The same verbal fluency that may have helped them rise through organizational ranks becomes a liability once they arrive in positions of authority. What got them noticed now gets in their way. The drivers of excessive talking As I reflected on these two leaders, I realized they reflected a pattern I’ve seen many times. Contrary to what many might assume, their excessive talking wasn’t rooted in narcissism or self-absorption. Instead, it flowed from more complex motivations they likely didn’t even recognize. The first executive, a fast-moving consumer goods leader, seemed driven by an underlying insecurity. Despite his considerable achievements, his need to recount every detail of his company’s growth story suggested he was still seeking validation. His monologues were attempts to prove his wortha verbal résumé delivered even when no one had questioned his credentials. The second leader, a newly promoted senior vice president in healthcare, displayed what I’ve come to recognize as “the silence phobia.” Whenever our conversation reached a natural pause, she would quickly fill the gap with another anecdote. This discomfort with silence is not uncommon among leaders, who often experience momentary quiet as a vacuum that must be filled. Why leaders often talk too much In my coaching practice, I’ve identified several other drivers that cause well-intentioned leaders to monopolize conversations: Some leaders talk excessively due to underdeveloped self-awareness. They genuinely don’t realize they’re dominating discussions. Without deliberate attention to their communication patterns, these leaders never notice the subtle signs of disengagement around themthe avoided eye contact, the phones checked under the table, the contributions that gradually diminish. Others feel intense pressure to appear intelligent and in control, especially those promoted based on technical prowess rather than leadership ability. They may dive into excessive detail, not realizing that their desire to impress often achieves the opposite effect, frustrating employees who prefer clear, concise direction. The organizational cost When leaders don’t create space for others’ voices, organizations pay a steep priceoften without realizing the source of their struggles. Both leaders I met last week lead sizable teams. I couldn’t help wondering how their communication styles were affecting their organizations. Were team members experiencing the same one-sided conversations? Were valuable insights going unshared because there was simply no space to offer them? This pattern creates what I think of as “conversational quicksand.” The more leaders talk, the less others contribute. The less others contribute, the more leaders feel compelled to fill the silence. Each interaction reinforces the dynamic, gradually pulling teams deeper into passivity. The business consequences extend beyond frustrating meetings. When employee engagement diminishes, team members feel their input is neither valued nor necessary. Innovation suffers as people become less inclined to voice their opinions, knowing they’ll struggle to find space in the conversation. Perhaps most damaging, leaders who talk too much paradoxically undermine their own influence. When someone speaks at length, their key messages get lost in the verbal deluge important signals drowning in noise. Team members start tuning out, missing crucial information as they struggle to maintain focus through lengthy monologues. In exit interviews, feeling “not listened to” consistently ranks among the top reasons talented people leave organizations. The efficiency of team operations also suffers, with long-winded explanations making meetings feel like endurance exercises rather than productive gatherings. Breaking the pattern One of the most difficult challenges in helping verbose leaders change their approach is that many don’t recognize the problem. The first step toward change is typically a wake-up callobjective feedback that makes the pattern impossible to ignore. A structured 360-degree feedback process often provides this necessary reality check. One leader I worked with was genuinely shocked when his feedback revealed that team members felt “steamrolled” in meetings. For leaders ready to address this challenge, I recommend a simple but powerful practice: the “talk time” journal. After each significant meeting, they estimate the percentage of time they spent talking. One executive I coached was stunned to discover he was talking 7080% of the time in meetings explicitly called to get input from his team. The “WAIT principle”asking oneself “Why Am I Talking?” before continuing to speakoffers another practical checkpoint. This simple internal question helps leaders assess whether their contribution adds value or merely takes up space. Today’s technology offers additional support. AI-driven meeting analytics tools can monitor speaking patterns, providing objective data on who speaks and for how longa communication fitness tracker where numbers tell the truth when perception might not. Many leaders benefit from enlisting a “communication buddy”someone they trust to provide honest feedback with subtle real-time cues during meetings when the leader begins to dominate. Perhaps the most powerful technique is practicing strategic silence. By consciously pausing after asking questions and resisting the urge to fill quiet moments, leaders create space for reflection and encourage more thoughtful contributions from others. An increase in influence After my encounters last week, I reflected on a leader I’d coached several years ago. He had initially displayed the same pattern of dominating conversations but had committed to changing his approach. After six months of deliberate practice, he had reduced his talking time from approximately 60% to 30% of team meetings. The results were transformativenot just more engaged employees but also better decisions, faster execution, and ultimately stronger business results. “I used to think leadership was about having all the answers,” he told me. “Now I understand it’s about asking the right questions.” This paradoxicalresultincreased influence through decreased talkingemerges consistently in my work with leaders. When they create space for others’ voices, they not only access more diverse thinking but also elevate the significance of their own contributions. The goal isn’t to make leaders talk less just for the sake of it. Instead, it’s about helping them become more effective communicators who create environments where every voice contributes to success. When leaders master this balance, their influence increases even as their word count decreases. As I left my meetings with those two leaders last week, I wished I could offer them this insight: Your greatest impact as a leader often comes not from what you say, but from what you enable others to say. Leadership communication isn’t about holding the floorit’s about creating the conditions for collective intelligence to flourish. The next time you find yourself dominating a discussion, ask yourself: Am I talking because it’s necessary, or simply because I can? Your leadership effectiveness may depend on your answer.
Category:
E-Commerce
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