ReportWire

Tag: Leadership

  • The Time I Brought My Lunch to a Job Interview

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    I was a supervisor in a manufacturing plant. When a colleague was promoted to manager in another department, he wanted me to work for him.

    I hesitated. One, it would be a lateral move. Two, I had started at the bottom of my current department, and had the skills and experience to show for it. But I liked him, knew he would give me plenty of latitude as long as I got results, and decided adding a different functional area to my resume might make me a better candidate for promotion. 

    So I thought for a few seconds, and said yes.

    Then he told me I had to interview for the job: not with him, which itself would have been a waste of time since we had worked together for year, but with a team of shop-floor employees.

    That seemed only a little less of a waste of time. While I was a huge supporter of employee empowerment, being interviewed by the people who would report to me seemed odd. For better or worse, especially since in the past I had worked with every person on the panel, I was a known quantity. 

    To me, it was a case of you either want me, or don’t.  

    “What could they possibly ask me?” I said. He shrugged.

    “Honestly, I don’t know,” he said. “But it’s part of the process. So please do it.”

    Since working for a Fortune 500 company meant I was no stranger to doing things for show, I grudgingly agreed. 

    On the morning of the interview, one of my production lines had a major equipment breakdown. Then an employee injured himself. Then another crew had a mechanical problem, which I was able to help fix. But by the time I crawled out from under the equipment, it was nearly one o’clock. I was almost late to my “interview” and hadn’t had a chance to eat.

    So I took my lunch with me.

    When I sat down, I apologized for being a minute late, summarized my morning, and asked if they minded if I ate my lunch during the interview. I figured they would understand and maybe even appreciate that I was the kind of supervisor who put productivity first, and was happy to jump in. I didn’t know it at the time, but a study published in Journal of Business and Psychology backs up that assumption: 84 percent of respondents wanted a boss who helped them get things done, a boss with functional skills and task-oriented behaviors.

    Clearly they weren’t part of the 84 percent, because I didn’t get the job.

    Maybe I shouldn’t have eaten my lunch during the interview. (Or maybe I should have offered them half my sandwich, as Richard Branson once did for me.)

    But that’s probably not the reason they didn’t choose me. I wanted the job, but I didn’t want the job. I was agreeable, but I wasn’t eager, especially because the whole “interview” thing felt pointless. Every question implicitly assessed how I would be to work for and whether their values, which appeared to be a relaxed work environment where results weren’t stressed, aligned with mine. (They didn’t.) 

    Not that interviews conducted by people who will report to you can’t be effective. Soft skills are important, and research shows great bosses tend to score highly on those traits. But without a foundation of hard skills — without the ability to do the job, and the ability to help the people you lead not just do their jobs but steadily improve their capabilities — those soft skills can largely be wasted. 

    As the researchers write, “If your boss could do your job, you’re more likely to be happy at work.”

    This panel of employees? They didn’t assess whether I could do the job. They assessed whether I would “let them be them,” and not in a good way.

    Whether rightly or wrongly, though, the interview felt like a waste of time, and that’s the real point of this story. 

    Plenty of businesses hold multiple rounds of interviews: first with the person in charge of creating a short-list, then with a supervisor, then with other employees, and finally with the business owner.

    While that sounds thorough and comprehensive, a multiple-round process can feel off-putting to the candidate. Similar interview questions — especially the dumber interview questions — tend to get asked. The same behavioral interview prompts get floated.

    Eventually, the candidate starts to feel like a known quantity, one you either want or don’t want. 

    At that point you stop getting their best, and you might end up missing out on what could have been a outstanding employee.

    By all means, be thorough and comprehensive. But don’t create a process that works just for you. Create a process that also works for the candidate. Consider how the interview process can impact them, especially in how it feels.

    Because your interviewing process should help you identify the best candidate, but that can only happen if it ensures the best candidate will be at their best in every stage of the experience.

    The longer and more repetitive the process, the less likely that is to occur.

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Jeff Haden

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  • How Brain Science Powers Purpose-Driven Change

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    When Satya Nadella took over at Microsoft, he didn’t start with strategy or structure. He started with rewiring how people think. 

    Leaders know culture eats strategy for breakfast—but neuroscience is proving culture also sets the table.  

    A 2024 Gallup study shows only about 31% percent of U.S. employees are engaged in the workplace. Engaged employees are more likely to stay with their company longer, take initiative, and deliver better results for customers and colleagues. Gallup stated that its decades of employee engagement research indicates engaged employees produce better business outcomes than those who are not engaged, regardless of industry, company size or economic conditions. 

    What makes employees more engaged? Science suggests that for some people, their brains are simply wired that way. Yet regardless of an individual’s predisposition, creating a supportive corporate culture goes a long way towards boosting all employees’ engagement and helping them navigate change. 

    How employees react to change 

    Different employees react to change in different ways. David Rock’s SCARF model (status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness, fairness) describes the factors that affect how people find some changes threatening while others feel stimulated and empowered. Leaders can increase engagement for long-lasting performance gains when a person’s needs are met and that should focus on the five SCARF components above to boost employee engagement and motivation. 

    Another critical factor to creating an engaged workplace is providing employees with more control over how they perform tasks and make decisions. Paula Davis  recently wrote that autonomy means more than flexibility in when and where you work. It includes more independence in how team members perform tasks, how much decision-making freedom they enjoy, and personal freedom to set and pursue career goals. A lack of autonomy can decrease engagement, motivation, and lead to burnout.  

    You can increase autonomy by:  

    • Providing context for corporate goals and rules so employees understand the backstory. 
    • Empowering employees to make more decisions. 
    • Making sure everyone is on the same page concerning roles, priorities, and strategic direction. 

    3 research-based neuroscience strategies to boost culture 

    Research applying neuroscience to the workplace indicates that leaders who design purpose-driven change can engage their employees’ biological levers, the biological factors including hormones and neurotransmitters, that influence behavior, to improve organizational outcomes.  

    Here are three ways leaders and organizations are applying the principles of neuroscience to modify culture and boost results. 

    1. Nadella’s “Growth Mindset” at Microsoft 

    When Satya Nadella became Microsoft’s CEO in 2014, he inherited a company facing a stagnant, siloed culture, decreased innovation, and a poor competitive position in emerging technologies. Changing the culture was fundamental to turning the company around, and he focused on developing a culture that prioritized curiosity, collaboration, and adaptability.   

    In 2018, Nadella told Inc. that Carol Dweck’s book Mindset inspired the changes he introduced in Microsoft’s culture. Nadella became known for an empowering and empathetic leadership style that created a shared sense of purpose at Microsoft. He embedded the “growth mindset” concept into every leadership conversation, and backed that approach with training that rewarded experimentation.  

    Nadella is recognized as positioning Microsoft as a successful technology company because he promoted inclusiveness, cooperation, and lifelong learning to help overcome the internal resistance to change he faced when arriving at the company. 

    2. Aetna Leverages “Mindful Leadership” Programs  

    In recent years, major organizations such as Aetna, Google, Intel, and SAP, have adopted mindful leadership programs that leverage neuroscience research to improve employees’ and leaders’ productivity and well-being. At Aetna, then-CEO Mark Bertolini offered free meditation and yoga classes to all employees as part of a larger initiative to improve outcomes. Some 13,000 of Aetna’s 50,000+ employees participated. They reported reduced stress by 28 percent while boosting productivity by 62 minutes per week, equating to about $3,000 in annual savings per person.  

    Mindful leadership programs at Google and Intel have increased employee engagement and retention by 20 to 25 percent. Meanwhile, SAP’s mindfulness training achieved 200 percent ROI driven by such factors as lower absenteeism and greater loyalty to the company. These companies, plus Verizon, Facebook, and others, reported programs rooted in neuroscience also boosted client engagement, employee satisfaction, and ultimately their bottom lines. 

    3. Structuring announcements to maximize autonomy cues 

    Recently I worked with a consumer goods manufacturer that needed to restructure their inefficient regional operations and expand their market share in key overseas markets. Their organization redesign created an integrated organizational structure that streamlined decision-making and reduced redundancies. The company moved from siloed teams to a matrixed organization, improving communication, speeding response times, and boosting revenues.  

    For example, the previous organization structure was country-based and did not share product innovations with the region or globe. It also served low strategic value work in a decentralized manner which added cost and inefficiencies. When the right work was centralized and decision rights were made clear at the local and regional level, the organization saw more sustainable wins. 

    With so many changes in the works affecting hundreds of employees, our client wanted to ensure their communications were transparent and effective. They relied on science to help structure their change announcements to maximize autonomy cues. Those targeted communications helped drive faster adoption of those changes. 

    Executive takeaways

    Real-life examples and academic research leaves little doubt that successful executives and entrepreneurs can apply the findings of neuroscience to boost employee engagement and the bottom line. Leaders can use these principles to design change like a behavioral architect: amplify autonomy, reduce uncertainty, and use connection as a force multiplier. 

    Rebecca Ellis is a principal at AlignOrg Solutions.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Rebecca Ellis

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  • CEOs, You Can’t Afford to Delay on AI Any Longer. Here’s How to Embed It Into Your Business

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    ChatGPT made its public debut in November 2022. Before then, artificial intelligence was largely a corporate buzzword or big tech slang. A little more than three years later, AI is no longer jargon; it’s ubiquitous. Everyone uses it everywhere, for everything. Looking down the road at 2030, AI is on track to dominate every aspect of business, from internal operations to external execution. Its potential to holistically transform how work gets done is endless. 

    While there is no question that AI will have a significant impact on the future of work, precisely what AI will look like in four years is yet to be determined. Many futurists suggest what’s to come, spanning grim visions of robots replacing humans to more optimistic images of AI improving the employee experience and providing more work/life balance. As always, the reality probably lies somewhere between the two, in a world where jobs look different.  

    People, however, are still the linchpin to organizational success. Either way, AI will impact every line on the P&L—revenues, costs, operations, people, and investments. It will affect every business leader’s ability to provide their product and/or service competitively. It will also impact their customers and competitors. 

    AI strategy 

    According to Vistage research, nearly three of four small- to midsize-business CEOs use an internally developed strategic planning process. However, these legacy frameworks often fail to accommodate new and emerging technologies. Leaders who don’t have a deliberate approach to integrating AI risk will be left behind and unprepared for the market and economic realities of an AI-powered 2030. 

    Adding AI to strategic planning can be daunting. Its uncharted and quickly evolving nature means there is no playbook or clearly defined destination in place. Add the dynamics of an AI-anxious workforce that is tasked with leveraging tools that they fear will eventually put them out of a job—in effect making people feel as though they are digging their own graves—and it’s no surprise many business leaders are wary about adding AI to their tried-and-true planning processes. However, AI is happening now. CEOs must begin embracing AI rapidly and intentionally to remain competitive—both today and down the road. 

    How to embed AI into your business’s strategic planning 

    Business leaders can begin embedding AI into their strategic planning by focusing on the following key areas: 

    • Market analysis. How is AI reshaping the marketplace, including competitors, pricing, and capabilities? 
    • Competitive advantage. How does it change your unique value proposition that customers will recognize and reward in an environment of rapidly changing customer requirements? 
    • Financial planning. How does it impact your ROI and investment models? 
    • Operational execution. How does it impact your productivity as an organization? How can you leverage employees’ individual productivity gains and how can you automate existing workflows to capitalize on the power of AI? 
    • Skills and tools. What are the skills that your workforce will need to develop. What are the tools they’ll need to thrive in the future? 
    • Governance. How can you ensure you have the right security protocols, data protection, and ethical considerations in place? 

    By diving deep into these six areas, CEOs can begin honing their long-term vision and tactical approach to integrating AI into their business. By developing a strong point of view and blueprint for implementing AI, CEOs can position themselves for long-term gains. Overcoming the hesitation to integrate AI is challenging, and taking AI from experimentation to mastery is no small—nor speedy—task.  

    Make no mistake. AI is here, and it is already actively transforming business. Those who take a proactive approach to AI will be primed for success, whether it’s in 2026, 2030, or beyond. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Joe Galvin

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  • Steve Jobs Said This is When Great Bosses Say ‘I,’ Not ‘We’

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    Imagine you’re standing in front of your team. You would never say “my company.” You say, “Our company.” You would never say, “My sales are up 30 percent.” You say, “Our sales are up 30 percent.”

    You’re all in it together — and you definitely want your team to think you’re all in it together — so you always say, “we,” not “I.”

    But not to Steve Jobs. Here’s John Rossman in his book Think Like Amazon:

    Steve Jobs told employees a short story when they were promoted to vice president at Apple. Jobs would tell the VP that if the garbage in his office was not being emptied, Jobs would naturally demand an explanation from the janitor.

    “Well, the lock on the door was changed,” the janitor could reasonably respond. “And I couldn’t get a key.”

    The janitor’s response is reasonable. It’s an understandable excuse. The janitor can’t do his job without a key. As a janitor, he’s allowed to have excuses.

    “When you’re the janitor, reasons matter, “Jobs told his newly minted VPs. “Somewhere between the janitor and the CEO, reasons stop mattering

    “In other words, when the employee becomes a vice president, he or she must vacate all excuses for failure. A vice president is responsible for any mistakes that happen, and it doesn’t matter what you say.”

    Rossman calls embracing that level of responsibility owning your dependencies: taking absolute responsibility for every possible dependency under your purview.

    You need supplies to complete an order, and the shipment from your supplier is delayed? You should have made sure commitments were clear, and put contingencies and redundancies in place. The delayed shipment may be the supplier’s fault, but making sure critical parts are on hand is your responsibility. 

    There’s a quote often credited to Ignatius: “Pray as if God will take care of all; act as if all is up to you.” When you’re in charge, the same premise applies to personal responsibility.

    Many people feel success or failure is caused by external forces, and especially by other people. If they succeed, other people helped them or supported them, other people were “with” them. If they fail, other people let them down, didn’t believe in them, didn’t help them. Other people were “against” them.

    To an extent that is, of course, true. No one ever does anything worthwhile on their own. 

    But great leaders don’t totally rely on others. Great leaders shoot for the best, and plan for the worst. They set clear expectations. They communicate, a lot. They follow up. They mentor and guide and train. They lead and work through others… but they accept final responsibility.

    Why? Because the only thing they know they can control is themselves. They act as if success or failure is totally within their control. If they succeed, they caused it. If they fail, they caused it.

    As Jobs would say, “Reasons stop mattering.” You’re in charge. You’re responsible.

    When things go well, even if you did all the work? Stick to “we” and “our.”

    When things go wrong, say “I” and “my.”

    Because when you’re in charge, it really is up to you.

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Jeff Haden

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  • The Strategic Advantage of Reflection and Stillness: Why the Most Compassionate Leaders Listen Before They Lead

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    Leadership tools abundantly exist in a world where speed is worshipped, yet one of the most underutilized of them has become the intangible wealth of stillness.

    Continuous and relentless cycles of meetings, data metrics, and mental noise tend to be resident in the founders or executives I have encounter in their pursuit to lead and impact others. The subtle cues that are signaled reveal an unspoken fear that if they stop moving, they will fall behind. Experience has shown me the potency of the pause can separate good leadership from great leadership. Clarifying that there are certain environments that the delta for this pause is narrower than others.

    Introversion is an anchor, and four years ago I was presented with the opportunity to attend my first Inc 5000 Conference, I nearly declined. But this single “yes” to attending led to countless connections made over the years has further deepened my belief that the stage or spotlight isn’t what stays most from these events…it’s what follows over time. The strategic clarity gained in pausing to reflect on the quiet conversations elevated my wisdom and who I was becoming. A wisdom that could not be gained through analytics or acceleration alone.

    Few leaders speak on the restoration over momentum, which the latter often appears to be the appealing lean in to weigh one’s impact. Yet the former has its intangibles from grounding your decision-making in stillness before making the next move and is worth the embrace. In this stillness is where you can gain insights into the unseen risks, assess the temperature of your company, and come to remembrance that behind every data point is a human being. In high stakes environments, I have learned this listening to silence can sometimes be the gaining foothold to complete a mission or project.

    Reflective Discipline

    Moments in reflection that continue to aid in my growth come from what I internally reference as “strategic solitude”. This can come after major contract wins, even losses, where I ask: What was learned? Should there be changes in how we serve? Could I communicate more efficiently? These patterns to recognize have shown beneficial as it allows for me to predict patterns for burnout, identify inefficiencies, or reveal insight on untapped potential in team members who have stepped up to execute well.

    Recalibration from this reflection isn’t passive, it’s a high-performance discipline that can produce tangible results from a more refined decision-making process. 

    In an era where human discernment seems to run second to rapid advancements in how information moves, it has been my experience that the most effective leaders I know are often the ones who are not the loudest in the room.  Their prudence for making space for others to think allows them to know when to pause, listen, and let insight emerge before execution.

    Why Stillness Matters

    Operational tempo has been accelerated by artificial intelligence as it can generate options yet shows limits in the generation of wisdom. In my opinion is that the danger doesn’t reside in AI outthinking us but rather the path to deeper thinking limited or ceasing because of it.

    When leaders pause to reflect, they move towards a path that embraces the potency of stillness to support a reclaiming of depth in a shallow era. It helps them anchor intangible traits of compassion, purpose and empathy to be woven within their innovation centers.

    Human centered decision making positively impacts lives in business as well as in defense.

    The Competitive Advantage of Reflection

    Those who embed reflection into their culture to move in rhythm with their purpose may be well positioned to thrive facing the known and unknown over those companies who foster actions that support those who seek retreat from taxing or toxic environments. Exploring human dynamics from trauma informed leadership is meaningful to embrace. It has elements that team members collectively ask: Who carried the invisible emotional load, where empathy and compassion was utilized as an accelerator for performance? Were there any points of broken communication that we can improve on? This is a refining process that doesn’t slow things down but rather elevates and empowers teams from feeling seen and heard. It allows for higher trust and precision. In sectors like aerospace and defense where the margin for error is essentially zero, this precision becomes a competitive advantage.

    The Language of Listening in Leadership

    Psychological safety prompting dialogue from truth to surface is powerful. Embracing active listening allows one to identify signals of misalignment become they become internal and external crises.  I have found the quiet ones in the room often possess the wisdom to help prevent the next failures. Having an attentive ear and being attuned to the subtle cues in others influences impact. Having encountered innovators, athletes, diplomates, founders and storytellers, I am further convinced that if one is leading a company today, one is likely facing uniquely positioned mixes of economic uncertainty, technology disruptions, and emotional fatigue across teams.

    There is wisdom inviting a pause while limiting the instinct to push others harder. This stillness isn’t to be mistaken for slowing down one’s ambition but rather sharpening it. It is a call to the modern leader that there is power in reflective stillness to bring equilibrium back to companies and turn chaos into choreography. In doing these leaders may allow for living and thriving in a modern era, embracing one of my favorite quotes from John Bunyan, “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Paul L. Gunn, Jr.

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  • Collaboration Is the New Currency

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    There was a time when success was measured by how much you could control. The corner office. The solo byline. The patent. The mic. But the tides have shifted. In today’s interconnected world, success is measured by how open you are to cocreating a future that’s bigger than any one vision, title, or brand.

    In boardrooms, community centers, faith spaces, and creative studios alike, we’re witnessing a quiet revolution. The old playbook—built on competition, hierarchy, and scarcity—no longer holds the answers. Power is shifting from institutions to ecosystems, from dominance to partnership, from “mine” to “ours.” And the leaders who will shape this next era? They understand one undeniable truth: Collaboration is the new currency. And those who build together will define what comes next.

    Collaborative capital

    Recently, I was honored to participate in the launch of the Leadership Council for Healthier Communities (LCHC)—a groundbreaking initiative powered by CHC: Creating Healthier Communities. This wasn’t just a meeting of minds; it was a bold reimagining of how change gets made. The council brought together a mosaic of voices: corporate leaders, nonprofit champions, government partners, faith-based organizers, and grassroots community builders. I didn’t just feel like I was in the room—I felt like I was in the right room.

    Not because of status, but because of synergy. CEOs sat beside community organizers. Health system executives made space for local advocates. Philanthropists and policymakers leaned in—not with power plays, but with shared purpose. No one came to prove ownership. We came to build alignment. And in that alignment, something powerful emerged: the realization that the most valuable form of capital in that room wasn’t financial. It was relational.

    This is what I call collaborative capital. It’s a force more powerful than funding. Collaborative capital accelerates trust. It multiplies impact. It builds legitimacy. It fuels innovation much faster than money alone. It’s what happens when people choose partnership over posturing. And when that kind of energy fills a room, it’s magnetic.

    Collaboration is a discipline

    We’re living in a time where the myth of the solitary genius is fading. The notion that one person or one institution can drive transformative change alone no longer fits the complexity of the world we live in. Real progress isn’t built by the loudest voice or the most polished brand. It’s built by the boldest collaborators—the people willing to move from ego systems to ecosystems.

    Because the real flex? Isn’t owning the table. It’s being brave enough to build a new one.

    And this shift isn’t just philosophical—it’s strategic. In a world full of overlapping challenges and interdependent solutions, the organizations that thrive will be those that master the art of collaboration.

    But let’s be clear: Collaboration isn’t a buzzword. It’s a discipline. It’s a decision. And it requires structure. Shared data. Transparent goals. Aligned incentives. Far too often, we treat collaboration like a press release instead of a practice. But the work of partnership is operational, not ornamental. The magic doesn’t come from the announcement. It comes from accountability.

    Cocreation, not competition

    What I experienced during the LCHC launch reminded me that we don’t need more talking heads—we need more proving grounds. More brave spaces where business, philanthropy, and community can cocreate—not compete. Spaces where trust is the new driver of change, shared purpose is the new profit, and alignment is the new advantage.

    Wealth, in this new ecosystem economy, isn’t measured in dollars. It’s measured in the depth of your partnerships. The strength of your trust networks. The credibility of your collaborations. Every shared insight, every relationship built on integrity, every mission-aligned partnership becomes a compounding asset. This is the new balance sheet of leadership.

    And so, I leave you with this: The question of this era is no longer, “Who has the most influence?” It’s, “Who can move the most people together toward something greater?” That’s the real currency. That’s the future. LCHC didn’t just launch an initiative; it launched a movement. A movement proving that collaboration isn’t the opposite of ambition—it’s the evolution of it. One that says we don’t have to compete to be relevant, but we have to collaborate to be revolutionary.

    The next generation of visionaries, disruptors, and changemakers won’t lead alone. They’ll lead together. And when history looks back on this moment, it won’t ask who led the loudest. It will ask who led with others. Because the boldest thing a leader can do right now is collaborate.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Angel Livas

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  • 4 Leadership Principles For Lasting Success

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    I often see entrepreneurs fall into the trap of believing success means working harder than everyone else and chasing every single opportunity that comes their way. After two decades of running a business, I’ve learned that short-term wins are easy, but lasting success is what truly sets leaders and businesses apart. Real impact is about much more than temporary gains or flashy metrics.

    Four leadership principles have guided my team, shaped our culture, and helped our business find success—not just for a quarter or a year, but over the long haul. I believe these practices deliver real results, create sustainable results, and separate leaders who achieve lasting success from those focused only on immediate results.

    1. Invest in relationships and trust

    Success is rarely achieved alone. The leaders who last understand that success always comes back to the people around you—your team, partners, and customers. Build strong teams who take ownership, support your partners with integrity, and listen to the customers you serve with genuine empathy.

    At our software company, we consistently invest in building relationships with like-minded organizations in our industry. Our leadership team regularly partners with our regional Rental Owners Association to present to members on key topics, generating dozens of client referrals right here in our home state. We’ve also cultivated lasting partnerships with other technology providers to integrate new features for our clients, which drives a steady influx of mutual referrals. These referral streams—both of which directly impact our bottom line—wouldn’t exist without these strong relationships we’ve built over time.

    Relationships rooted in transparency, reliability, and mutual respect will outlast any short-term gain or quick win. These connections are what will carry you through the challenges, spark loyalty, and open doors to opportunities that no single strategy or tactic could ever replicate. By prioritizing your people, collaboration becomes your competitive advantage—standing the test of market shifts and turbulence.

    2. Adapt while staying true to your core values

    If I’ve learned anything in two decades of running a business, it’s that change is the only constant. Markets shift, technology evolves, and communities transform. Leaders who adapt with discipline, rather than chasing every new trend, will thrive in any environment by adjusting strategies while staying anchored in core values. Agility matters, but values are what give your decisions meaning, consistency, and staying power.

    I have a handful of guiding principles—personal connection, organic growth, exceptional service, and continuous innovation—that shape how I lead and how my team operates every day. Staying true to these values for all these years hasn’t limited our growth—it’s fueled it. They’ve allowed me to adapt thoughtfully, grow sustainably, and make a lasting impact on both our industry and community.

    3. Prioritize impact over activity

    As a leader, especially in the early stages of building a business, it’s easy to get caught up in being busy and mistake it for progress. The most effective leaders don’t just work harder; they work smarter. Learning to delegate strategically will be one of your most powerful tools, freeing you to focus on initiatives that deliver measurable results and truly move the needle.

    Whether it’s innovating your product, scaling your organization, or creating meaningful change in your community, prioritizing the projects and decisions that drive real impact creates momentum that builds over time. Every action should align with a clear purpose, positioning your business for long-term, sustainable success. 

    One of my priorities is to turn customer feedback into new software features that deliver real value for our clients. Recently, I was thinking about how we could measure impact more effectively. True to my developer roots, I spent a weekend writing new code to track client feature requests, calculate how many users each new feature would affect, and flag specific accounts so our team can personally update customers on progress. This small investment of effort ensures that every development decision directly benefits our clients and that our team focuses on what truly matters. 

    4. Make giving back a habit

    As you start to find success as a business leader, it’s the perfect time to start thinking about how you want to give back to the community you’re a part of. Your community might be your neighborhood or city, a niche within your industry, or a cause you feel passionate about.

    At our company, we’ve built philanthropy and community engagement into the core values of our business. We support several local organizations that will, in turn, help the people who live in our region. Our company and team are headquartered in Southern Oregon, and we’re always looking for new ways to support the community that supports us. On a larger scale, we also share our research, data, and knowledge through hundreds of free articles, guides, and educational resources—helping strengthen the entire industry we serve. 

    Giving back builds trust, inspires loyalty, and ensures that the success you’ve worked so hard to build benefits more than just your bottom line.

    Short-term wins might feel exciting, but building a business that endures is a long game. Creating a foundation that can weather challenges drives meaningful growth and leaves a lasting impact on your team, industry, and community. Lasting success isn’t by chance; it’s intentional.

    Nathan Miller is the president and founder of Rentec Direct.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Nathan Miller

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  • Guillermo del Toro Reveals the 1 Creative Skill AI Can’t Replace

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    Romance, fairy tales, and gothic horror don’t seem like they belong together, but filmmaker Guillermo del Toro skillfully weaves them into stories unlike anything audiences have seen before. The legendary director has applied his magic touch to a new Netflix adaptation of Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein. The film is an international hit for the streaming network, debuting as the top English-language film in more than 70 countries. 

    The secret ingredient behind del Toro’s success is an approach to storytelling that AI can’t replace. If you build a business presentation the way del Toro constructs a film, your audience will lean in and become emotionally invested in the journey you’re taking them on. 

    Use technology to complement your story 

    You might not be developing an epic two-hour film for the screen, but every pitch or presentation is still, at its core, a story. Your audience doesn’t just want to hear information. They want to feel something. Since AI lacks emotions, feelings, goals, and aspirations, it can’t motivate people to act—only you can. 

    When an NPR reporter asked del Toro for his stance on using generative AI for filmmaking, del Toro said, “I’d rather die.” 

    Del Toro has a strong opinion on AI because he believes that digital tools—especially generative AI—should be used only to enhance a story, not to replace a human’s authentic voice. “Otherwise, why not buy a printer, print the Mona Lisa, and say you made it,” del Toro added. 

    I share a similar message with business communicators: AI-based writing and design tools should complement the story, but the story comes first. Your ideas are the star. 

    Plan presentations in analog 

    When I wrote the first book on how Steve Jobs created and delivered his awe-inspiring presentations, I devoted a chapter to “planning in analog.” Jobs built cutting-edge technology but talked about it like a storyteller. For example, Jobs didn’t begin presentations by opening a slide deck. Instead, he and the team brainstormed ideas, took notes, gathered stories, built props, and sketched scenes on a whiteboard. 

    Del Toro, too, is an advocate of starting in analog. In a video titled “Anatomy of a Scene” for The New York Times, del Toro walks the viewer through a pivotal scene when Dr. Victor Frankenstein, played by Oscar Isaac, is defending his experiments at the Royal College of Medicine. He pulls the drape off a corpse that terrifyingly comes to life. 

    “That’s completely done in analog,” del Toro explained. “There’s no CGI. It’s a puppet, with puppeteers pulling the strings.” 

    The puppeteers are later bluescreened out of the scene—that’s where technology comes into play. However, the technology is used in the service of the story, which must be as authentic as possible in del Toro’s world. 

    Steve Jobs liked to pull drapes off things, too. In January 1984, Jobs kept the audience in suspense as he talked about Apple’s first Macintosh. He started talking about the product without showing it. Then came the big reveal. Jobs walked to the center of the stage, where the Macintosh was sitting on a small table, hidden beneath a black cloth. Like a magician, he lifted the cloth with a flourish, revealing the beige box that would change computing forever. 

    Jobs played the role of storyteller whenever he stepped on stage. 

    It’s hard to imagine that ChatGPT would have come up with the idea for a product launch as theatrical as Jobs did. AI is a tool, not a source for original creative ideas. It doesn’t have a unique personality, experiences, perspectives, or worldviews. Those belong exclusively to you, not to an algorithm. 

    Write the script before building slides 

    A great presentation has engaging visuals, graphics, photos, and animations, but those embellishments should serve the story. Writing down your ideas is a good starting point. Del Toro fills notebooks with sketches and words before he picks up a camera. He once advised content creators to write the stories they want to tell and put them on paper.  

    “I write a biography for the characters that is eight pages long,” he explained. “It has everything about them: what they like, what they eat, what they read, what they listen to, what they don’t like, etc.” 

    Once del Toro has a fully baked idea of who the characters are, he gives the idea to the design department so they can “articulate the biography with visuals and sound.” Once again, technology complements the story, but the story comes first. 

    AI can take what already exists and reproduce, analyze, and remix it. However, that’s not creation. Creation begins with your voice, your imagination, and your unique lived experience that no algorithm can replace. 

    If you want your presentations to stand out and keep your audience glued to their seats, don’t think like a presenter. Think like a movie director. Shape the story you want to tell and let technology play a supporting role. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Carmine Gallo

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  • How ‘Micro Joy’ Can Help You Feel Happier Every Day

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    In a world of hustle culture and stressors of all kinds, joy can seem both illusive and impossible. But despite barriers, you can create the conditions for happiness.

    Well-being and joy are critical issues today, with 69 percent to 77 percent of Americans feeling stressed about factors like the economy, current events, violence, and lack of connections, according to the American Psychiatric Association. In addition, a global mental health study of 17,000 people across 16 countries by Ipsos/AXA found that 64 percent face stress, 43 percent are suffering from depression, and only 25 percent of people are flourishing.

    But strategies for “micro joy” can be a solution to the struggles and a way to build both well-being and resilience. Micro joy is made up of the small moments of happiness, presence, and mindfulness that we can find in the midst of challenge or difficulty. It is about embracing the power of little delights in the everyday.

    How can you create micro joy in your life? Here’s what works best.

    Take action

    Perhaps most important to micro joy is realizing that you have power over your actions and reactions. There may be a lot that is getting in the way of your happiness, but you can take action to contribute to your mental health as well. Even if you can’t change your situation, you can adjust your thinking and your habits.

    Remind yourself of all you’ve achieved and all you’re capable of. Reframe problems as opportunities to learn. When you’re faced with a new opportunity, instead of resisting it, motivate yourself to move out of your comfort zone by saying “Why not?” Take a walk, spend time outside enjoying nature, get enough sleep, and stay hydrated. Also consider keeping a gratitude journal.

    These kinds of actions have positive effects, according to a study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research of almost 18,000 people in 169 countries. They contribute to improved emotional well-being, greater positive emotions, feelings of empowerment, reduced stress, increased health, and better sleep. 

    Taking action contributes to happiness because it helps you feel empowered, and it reinforces your agency. It also gives you an opportunity to learn. When you attempt to solve a problem or you address a challenge, you get feedback about what works, what you can improve, and the best ways to keep going.

    Focus on small wins

    You can also create moments of micro joy by focusing on small wins. It’s natural that work may include good days and not-so-good days. But in a study of 12,000 people over three years by Harvard, the people who tended to be the most motivated were those who felt like they had made progress on any given day. It wasn’t always the big achievements that created satisfaction, but simply the feeling they had moved things forward. Another study published in Health Psychology found that frequent, small experiences (think: small steps) had measurable positive impacts on emotions and physical health and reduced depression and anxiety. 

    Small acts like keeping a gratitude journal or tracking your progress on a project at work can help you reinforce small wins. You can also track small wins in your personal life like monitoring your streaks—including the days you meditate or the times you go to the gym or take the dog for a walk.

    Focus on others

    When we’re seeking happiness, it can be natural to focus on our own needs, but ironically, focusing on others can help us even more. In fact, a surefire way to achieve happiness through micro actions is to do small kindnesses for others. We all have an instinct to matter, and when we help others, we not only help them but also ourselves.

    Based on a survey by BioLife, when people helped others, 45 percent felt a greater sense of purpose, 36 percent felt happier, 26 percent experienced greater mental well-being, 20 percent improved their self-esteem and self-confidence, and 11 percent said they were less stressed. And fully 49 percent volunteered because they expected to feel personally fulfilled.

    Set a goal that every day you’ll actively help another person, visit a friend who needs support, or reach out to a neighbor who is sick. Do a random act of kindness for a stranger.

    Focus on the present

    You can also increase happiness with moments of micro joy that are focused on the present. If we ruminate too much on the past or worry too much about the future, we can exacerbate mental distress. Of course, you want to reflect and learn and you want to plan for the future, but when you keep enough focus on the present, you also stay grounded.

    One way is to focus on your senses. Smell your freshly brewed coffee and enjoy that first cup in the morning. Step outside and notice the sun on your face or enjoy the new crispness in the fall air. Listen to the children playing in the yard down the street or pause to hear the trickle of the stream as you walk through a park on the way to work. Any of these will help you pause and enjoy where you are.

    You are also wise to focus on what you’re grateful for. When you think consciously about the people and experiences you appreciate, or the skills and capabilities that you celebrate in yourself, you’ll reinforce what you have, rather than what you’re yearning for. When you express more gratitude, you’ll also tend to feel happier, according to research conducted by the University of Montana.

    In a 1991 movie called The Fisher King, Robin Williams plays a man who is without a home and who has had a psychotic break. Despite his suffering, he says that he has all he needs and holds out his hand to show a few stones. Each one represents a memory or special moment. They are his touchstones for healing, redemption, and a new beginning. And they remind him of parts of his life he’s grateful for.

    Micro joys are like this as well. You can tap into micro joy with strategies to focus on small things in the present, as well as your own ability to embrace moments and memories with gratitude and fulfillment.

    By Tracy Brower

    This article originally appeared in Inc.’s sister publication, Fast Company.

    Fast Company is the world’s leading business media brand, with an editorial focus on innovation in technology, leadership, world changing ideas, creativity, and design. Written for and about the most progressive business leaders, Fast Company inspires readers to think expansively, lead with purpose, embrace change, and shape the future of business.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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  • Fix Your Management System, and You Might Realize You Have More Good Managers Than You Think

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    There are seven brutal truths that separate good managers from bad—trust, clear boundaries, courage under pressure, and so on, according to a recent Fast Company article. Helpful, yes. But here’s the bigger truth leaders often miss: Great management systems turn mediocre managers into good ones—and good ones into great ones. 

    This matters because the manager is the single biggest lever on engagement. Gallup has long shown that managers account for the majority of variance in team engagement. 

    Look at Toyota. Decades of analysis point to a disciplined management system—clear standards, fast feedback loops, and structured problem solving—that produces reliable performance across plants and leaders. The excellence isn’t a personality. It’s a process, as touted by this Harvard Business School perspective on TPS resilience. It’s not unlike the Southwest Airlines I knew. 

    Beyond the manager 

    If one team is bleeding talent, then you probably have a manager problem. That is something you can deal with in a pointed way—the exit interviews should give you some direction. However, if many teams show similar turnover patterns, you likely don’t have many bad managers. You have one weak system. If your management system is bad, you can hire all the good managers you can find, but your results won’t change. 

    That’s the distinction I see repeatedly in our economic engagement work. Systems that align everyone around customers, transparency, and shared success raise the ceiling and the floor of managerial performance.  

    A real-world turnaround 

    Consider a company I helped lead out of bankruptcy—a South Carolina manufacturer that recycled nylon from used carpet into pellets for automotive parts. The fundamentals looked promising (rising oil prices and sustainability tailwinds), but the business was failing when it was acquired out of bankruptcy in 2008. 

    This was the “before” picture: Commercially, the sales group had no shared focus. In one egregious case, a salaried rep spent much of his time selling for a competitor. We changed personnel, but the deeper issue was no system—no unified strategy, no clear customer or employee voice, no operating rhythm. It was a company of hired hands. 

    First, we divided responsibilities—operations drove throughput and cost discipline; sales and marketing drove customer value and product approvals. We installed an annual strategy cycle, monthly operating reviews, and transparency scoreboards. This way, managers could see and understand cause‑and‑effect and act fast. 

    Bottlenecks surfaced quickly. Upstream, our collection partner couldn’t scale reclaimed carpet volume. Instead of squeezing them, we partnered with them. We let them focus on collection, while we built and staffed regional distribution centers and ran logistics to the plant. Each party played to their strengths. It all came down to system design. 

    Downstream, approvals from big automakers, especially Ford, were slow. So, we extended the same partnering approach. We invited Ford’s engineering, quality, and purchasing leaders to tour our 600‑acre site and then join our weekly strategic planning meeting that afternoon. They saw our capabilities firsthand, told us exactly what mattered, and helped shape priorities for our highest-value product line. Their leader closed by saying he’d never been invited into a suppliers’ strategy session and that Ford needed more partners like this. 

    Now for the “after” picture: With clarity on what customers valued most, transparent key metrics, and aligned incentives, line managers began making better decisions. Operations could respond to demand in real-time, and commercial teams targeted the right accounts. After five years, the company sold for more than five times the purchase price. We also shared value with employees because they were true partners in the system. 

    Systems that work 

    A strong management system, like economic engagement, can engage every leader in the same mission: serving customers profitably. Here’s how: 

    1. Customers define a company’s value, so managers don’t manage by personal opinion. To drive customer engagement, consider what your customers are thinking right now.
    2. Economic understanding—how we make money, what drives profit—aligns all employees in a common understanding of what defines winning for the company, making management easier and more effective. It is critical to empower employees to think like owners. 
    3. Transparency reinforces good behavior and exposes bad behavior early.  
    4. When compensation ties to performance outcomes, managers and employees are economically aligned, and everyone has a stake in the company’s success. Empirical work on profit‑sharing shows measurable boosts.  
    5. Employee participation leads to lower turnover, better relationships, and shared learning. 

    The manager uplift 

    In 30 years of doing this work, I’ve watched three predictable paths unfold when you solve the management system problem: 

    • Good managers get even better, because the system amplifies their strengths. 
    • OK managers level up, because the system teaches what true engagement looks like and rewards it.
    • Poor managers either improve or opt out because the system won’t tolerate persistently bad behavior. 

    Before you blame your managers for dwindling engagement or results, examine the management system you’ve placed them in. Fix the system, and you’ll likely discover you already have more good managers than you think. Managers will come and go. Great management systems endure—and compound greatness. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Bill Fotsch

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  • 5 Ways AI Empowers Hybrid Teamship

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    This article was written by Keith Ferrazzi and Henry Finkelstein, a Stanford GSB Sloan Fellow who works at the intersection of Transformational AI and Go To Market (GTM). Finkelstein works with senior leadership to implement agentic strategies for marketing, sales, customer success, and operations. He currently manages a hybrid team of 86 humans and AI agents that earn millions of incremental revenue and cost savings. Below, they share how AI empowers hybrid teamship.

    I’ve spent the past decade inside the guts of elite teams, from Fortune 100 giants to scrappy startups. Here’s the truth: teamship still rules. But the rules are changing. Co-elevation, my term for teammates lifting each other higher, is still the engine of breakthrough performance. But now we’re building that engine with AI.  

    Recently, I hosted a dinner in New York City for 70 of the top CIO and CHRO executives from Fortune 100 companies. The question that dominated our conversation wasn’t whether to adopt AI agents. It was how to integrate them into teams without losing the human connection that drives innovation. Over the past year, working with companies from coaching startups at a venture capital firm to partnering with the executive team at Anthropic, I’ve discovered that AI isn’t replacing human teamship. It’s amplifying it. 

    Think of AI as a force multiplier for human intuition, creativity, and capacity. The challenge: we can’t treat AI agents like human teammates. They don’t need recognition, career growth, or emotional support. Instead, they show up in five specific roles that make hybrid teams more effective than either humans or AI could achieve alone. 

    Here is how AI empowers hybrid teamship: 

    The Facilitator 

    Your meetings are too long. Your decisions are too slow. AI fixes that. AI excels at orchestrating collaboration in ways that would overwhelm even the most organized leader. It drafts agendas by synthesizing async inputs, prompts conversations at the right cadence, and flags disconnection before they become crises. In our diversity and inclusion work with executive teams, we’ve seen how AI can quietly monitor whose voices are heard, then prompt async input so all perspectives surface. It removes the “remembering to be inclusive” burden, letting humans focus on the relational work that builds trust. 

    The Reviewer 

    Think of this role as your continuous improvement engine running 24/7. AI watches meeting transcripts, tracks project management tools, and monitors relationship quality scores. When I work with startups at venture capital firms, this reviewer function often becomes the first integration point because the ROI is immediate. 

    At household name unicorns, we’ve explored how AI manages relationships across five concentric circles: from exec team to clients to entrepreneurs. AI tracks hundreds of connections systematically, delivering insights like “Your client relationships are averaging 2.3, down from 3.1 last quarter.” It surfaces patterns before they become crises. The alignment systems we’ve built, including accountability grids and commitment tracking, benefit from this longitudinal perspective. 

    Stop guessing where you’re off-track. Start letting AI show you. 

    The Coach 

    Coaching turns out to be a perfect AI use case. AI operates at multiple levels: aggregating 360 feedback, facilitating empathetic conversations when properly designed, organizing input from many peers into actionable insights, and briefing managers with synthesized information. 

    For team resilience, AI prompts systematic check-ins and identifies patterns over time, so no one falls through the cracks. Humans still do the emotional lifting. However, now they’ve got backup. 

    The candor work shifts in interesting ways. Our “Power of Three” practice becomes “Power of 3+1” in hybrid teams: three humans plus one AI agent explicitly trained for candor. You have to actively prompt out sycophancy to get a genuine challenge. But once you do, AI identifies “what’s not being said” in ways that ensure peers have access to the best opinions, human and AI alike. 

    The Cheerleader 

    Seventy-nine percent of people who leave jobs cite lack of recognition as a key factor. AI doesn’t need celebration itself. Frankly, celebrating AI is a waste of tokens, energy, and water. But AI elevates human recognition in powerful ways. It tracks who hasn’t been appreciated, identifies under-voiced contributions from transcripts, and prompts managers to surface celebrations at the right moment. 

    AI can prompt gratitude circles and peer celebrations with predetermined regularity, surfacing specific appreciation opportunities that would otherwise stay invisible. The “remembering to celebrate” problem disappears, freeing humans for genuine appreciation. 

    The Contributor 

    In rigorous workflows, AI truly shines. Our agile methodology becomes dramatically more powerful with AI contribution. AI handles task decomposition, creates estimates, conducts stress-test reviews before human meetings, and tracks progress to flag delays before they cascade. 

    One startup I’m coaching saw sprint planning time drop from four hours to fifteen minutes while estimate accuracy improved. Caution: Avoid “falling asleep at the wheel” through over-reliance on AI thinking. AI should remove the friction that prevents creative and strategic thinking, not replace it. 

    Building your ecosystem 

    Here’s what the top 70 CIOs and CHROs told me in New York: the AI moonshot is a myth. You win by deploying sniper-focused agents, not Swiss Army knives. You can’t build one super-agent that does everything. The teams seeing real results build individual agents that do one thing extremely well, then create an orchestrator agent that knows when to invoke specific sub-agents. 

    Yes, there’s a learning curve utilizing AI to empower teamship. Yes, there is fear of displaced jobs at every level. Many executives worry about AI’s impact on company culture. Those fears are understandable. But what we’re seeing in practice tells a different story: AI serves as a force multiplier for human capacity, not a replacement for creativity and intuition. 

    Teamship still matters. The “what” and “why” remain, but the how is evolving as teams blend new tools with human strengths. The teams that lean into this modern way of working are moving faster, making better decisions, and unlocking levels of performance they simply couldn’t reach before. 

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Keith Ferrazzi

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  • 5 Blind Spots That Sneak Up on Successful Entrepreneurs

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    This article was written by Evan Nierman, an Entrepreneurs’ Organization member in South Florida and the CEO of Red Banyan, a global PR firm specializing in brand building, communications training, and crisis management. Below he shares about the prevalence of leadership blind spots and how addressing them can help you unlock a higher level of success.

    As an entrepreneur, you quickly realize that leadership demands more than vision. It requires navigating complex challenges, making difficult decisions, and guiding your team as the company grows. But here’s the thing: Even the most experienced leaders can fall into traps that hinder their ability to lead effectively. They are often blind spots—areas that are hard to see when you’re in the thick of things, but that can make or break your company. 

    The truth is that leadership mistakes are more common than most entrepreneurs want to admit. Even with years of experience, you can easily overlook nuances that can derail your growth. What sets the best leaders apart is their ability to anticipate challenges before they arise. 

    Here are five common leadership blind spots that even the most seasoned entrepreneurs miss and how to address them. 

    1. Failing to delegate effectively

    It is easy to get caught up in the do-it-all mindset. As entrepreneurs, we are wired to solve problems, fix issues, and keep our hands in every part of the business. But the problem? You can’t scale by doing it all yourself. 

    The more successful you become, the more critical it is to build a team you trust and give them the responsibility to take ownership. If you micromanage or hold on too tightly to certain areas of the business, you stunt growth and burn out your best people. 

    Delegate with intention and trust your team to manage key functions. Step back enough to let them make decisions. Start small, and when you see someone consistently meeting expectations, give them more autonomy. Your company cannot scale if you are the bottleneck in every process. 

    2. Neglecting company culture 

    When you are heads down, focusing on growth, sales, and bottom lines, company culture can slip through the cracks. A toxic culture, whether it involves passive-aggressive communication, lack of accountability, or unclear values, can poison your business from the inside out. 

    As an experienced entrepreneur, it is easy to think your business can survive without deliberate culture-building. Culture directly affects productivity, retention, and customer satisfaction. If your team does not feel aligned, they will not go the extra mile when it matters most. 

    Take an active role in shaping the culture. Be clear about your values, lead by example, and create a space where your team feels comfortable voicing concerns, offering feedback, and collaborating. A strong, healthy culture drives performance and sustainable growth. 

    3. Ignoring the importance of emotional intelligence 

    As a leader, your technical expertise and strategic vision are essential. But emotional intelligence is equally critical. Can you recognize when your team is disengaged? Can you sense when someone needs support or when a group is frustrated but does not speak up? Being emotionally in tune with your team is often the difference between success and failure. 

    Many leaders overlook how emotions, both their own and their team’s, affect decision-making, productivity, and morale. Recognizing and managing these emotions helps prevent conflict and builds stronger, more productive relationships with the team. 

    Practice active listening, empathy, and self-awareness. Take the time to understand how your team feels and how you are perceived as a leader. Developing your emotional intelligence is just as critical as business acumen. 

    4. Not investing enough in leadership development 

    As an entrepreneur, you are constantly growing your business. What about growing yourself? Once you reach a certain level of success, it’s easy to assume you have “arrived” as a leader. Leadership is a continuous learning process. 

    The best leaders continuously look for ways to improve. They seek feedback, invest in leadership development, and surround themselves with mentors who challenge them to grow. Leaders who do not invest in their growth risk limiting the potential of both themselves and their company. 

    Make leadership development a priority. Whether through books, podcasts, coaching, or networking with other leaders, continuous learning ensures that your skills evolve alongside your business. 

    5. Overlooking the importance of work-life balance 

    It’s tempting to think that hustle and long hours are the key to success, especially in the early days. Once you reach higher levels of success, work-life balance is essential to sustaining leadership effectiveness. 

    Burnout doesn’t affect only employees. Founders are also vulnerable. When you are burned out, your decisions suffer. Creativity, patience, and overall leadership effectiveness decline. 

    Prioritize your health and personal life alongside your business. Take breaks, delegate effectively, trust your team, and schedule time to recharge. A well-rested, focused leader makes better decisions and guides the team with greater clarity and energy. 

    Even experienced entrepreneurs encounter leadership blind spots. Awareness and deliberate action are essential to address these gaps. The best leaders recognize their weaknesses and take steps to address them. 

    To continue growing your business, focus on strengthening your leadership skills. Recognize your blind spots, implement changes, and empower your team. You have reached this level of success because you are a capable entrepreneur; refining your leadership will empower you to take your business further. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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  • 4 Ways to Turn Your Front-Line Employees Into Innovation Scouts

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    Most business owners say they want innovation, but in many companies, new ideas come only from the top. The problem with that approach is easy to understand: Leadership is often too far from the daily action to see what really needs fixing. 

    Your most powerful source of innovation is not your executive team. It is the people on your front line — the ones talking to customers, solving problems, and navigating your systems every single day. When you turn your front line into innovation scouts, you create a company that never stops improving. 

    Here is how to make that happen. 

    1. Redefine what innovation means. 

    Innovation is not limited to big breakthroughs or expensive new technologies. In a small or midsize business, it often looks like a smarter process, a faster response time, or a better customer experience. 

    Start by broadening the definition. Tell your team that innovation simply means “finding a better way.” It could be a new way to handle a recurring customer issue, a shortcut that saves time, or an idea that improves communication between departments. When innovation feels accessible, people are more willing to contribute. 

    2. Build a simple feedback loop. 

    You do not need a complicated platform or lengthy proposal system. The key is to make it easy for employees to share ideas quickly. Create one simple channel for collecting feedback, maybe a shared document, a Slack thread, or a five-minute segment at the end of team meetings. Ask everyone to submit at least one improvement idea per week. 

    The rule is that no idea is too small. Some will be winners, some will not, but the habit itself builds a culture of awareness and continuous improvement. When employees see their ideas acknowledged and acted upon, engagement skyrockets. People stop thinking, “That’s not my job,” and start thinking, “I can make this better.” 

    3. Reward progress instead of  perfection. 

    If you celebrate only ideas that save millions, you will stifle creativity. The goal is not perfect innovation, but consistent innovation. Reward the act of contributing, testing, and learning. Give public recognition to team members who try something new or improve a process, even in small ways. 

    Progress compounds. When everyone in your organization is looking for ways to make things 1 percent better each week, the results add up to massive improvements over time. 

    4. Give ownership to the innovators. 

    Once a good idea surfaces, let the person who proposed it help implement it. This creates accountability and pride. It also ensures that the person closest to the problem plays a role in the solution. Offer guidance but resist the urge to take over. Let your employees pilot their ideas, evaluate the results, and present what they learned to the team. When people see that their input leads to real change, they become even more motivated to participate the next time. 

    Innovation thrives when it belongs to everyone. It is not a department but a mindset. Your front-line employees are your built-in research and development team. They know where the friction points are, what frustrates customers, and which small changes could make the biggest difference. 

    Empower them to think, contribute, and improve. Over time, you will create an organization that adapts faster, operates smarter, and grows stronger from the inside out. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    David Finkel

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  • Authentic Leadership Does Not Mean Bringing Your Whole Self to Work

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    Do you remember during Covid, logging on to online meetings, sometimes wearing pajamas, often with family members showing up in the background? Perhaps, this is what triggered the mantra to “bring our whole selves to work.” Authentic leadership is celebrated. Everyone should seek to be transparent. Right? Not exactly. 

    As a communication coach, I encourage my clients to consciously distinguish between transparency versus authenticity. Authenticity means being real, consistent, and true to your values. Transparency can lean into sharing everything. 

    I’m always authentic, but I don’t share everything I’m thinking, or everything I’ve experienced. Neither should you. Why not? Because being fully transparent can be interpreted as oversharing, which can be overwhelming and unprofessional. 

    The consistency of professionals

    A few years ago, I interviewed marketing guru and author Seth Godin for my Talk About Talk podcast.  

    “I have a whole rant about authenticity, as you know,” he said, highlighting the common assumption that authenticity means full transparency. “I do not know each other well. So I have no idea if you’re having a good day or not because you’re a professional. Professionals are consistent.”   

    Academic research supports Godin’s position. In a 2024 study from the European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, researchers assessed 64 leaders and 162 followers over five days. The results proved that consistency was a key factor in predicting positive outcomes, such as work engagement and reduced emotional irritation. 

    Along with authenticity and transparency, professionalism and consistency have entered the debate. How can leaders consider this in a way that demonstrates effective leadership? Here are three things that I share with my clients to help them navigate the authenticity versus transparency tightrope: 

    1. You are always authentic. 

    Your words and your behaviors are valid and represent your true self. You do not misrepresent your opinions. 

    2. You are not fully transparent. 

    You do not share everything. Oversharing can be overwhelming for other people. It can also come across as unprofessional. Remember what Godin highlighted. “What’s most important is being professional.” In our interview, he provided some vivid examples. Regardless of whether “your cat had just thrown up behind the refrigerator, you had athlete’s foot, and you were cranky about all those things,” you still show up consistently.  

    3. You filter. 

    You consciously consider what parts of your thoughts and identities you share at work. I call this filtering. Researchers who conducted a 20-year review of academic research on authentic leadership call this bounded authenticity. You show up as consistent and professional. 

    Here’s the bottom line: Be authentic, but curate what you share. Consistently protect your professionalism and your boundaries. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Andrea Wojnicki

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  • 5 Toxic People Who Holding You Back at Work

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    It doesn’t matter how nice or well-meaning you are—there’s always going to be that toxic person in your life who wants to vampire the energy right out of you. While toxic people can be anywhere you go, many of them end up in the workplace. According to one study, 80 percent of employees report that their workplace is toxic. 

    You probably already have a good sense of who the toxic people in your life are, but for clarity’s sake, there are five you should seriously consider cutting out of your life now and forever. These toxic people are only standing in the way of your success and well-being. 

    1. The person who never listens to you 

    This isn’t the person who disagrees with you or criticizes you—it is the person who never hears a word you say. You may be excited to hang out with them because they tell such entertaining stories or you just love the conversation, but they never remember the littlest fact about you despite having known you for years. It’s just the way they are and not because they have a problem with you or because you are a bad person. This person just doesn’t care, and that is a problem. 

    2. The person who always brings you down 

    This person could be your neighbor, colleague, or even your friend. They are constantly putting you down, usually just to make themselves feel better. It’s not that they complain all the time, or that they are a negative person in general, though they may well be. The issue is they need you to feel bad about yourself to make themselves feel better. This negative person must be cut out of your life because that kind of person eats away at your self-confidence. 

    3. The person who gets in the way of your taking risks 

    For growth and success, you have to take a few calculated risks every now and then. If you have someone in your life who is constantly trying to stop you from taking the necessary risks to reach success and is always putting the brakes on you trying something new, that person is getting in the way of your growth and, ultimately, your long-term success. 

    4. The person who always tries to defeat you 

    Shared interests are a great reason to keep people in your life. However, there has to be a line drawn between shared passion and constant unhealthy competition. Co-workers should support you, and you should support them. Friendships and work relationships that are all about competition and one-upping are exhausting and unproductive. 

    5. The person who always wants to hold you back 

    If you can’t change and grow with them, they will do everything they can to hold you back in the past, in both life and business. Cut them loose, as you should spend your present only with people you want to have a future with. Cleaning out your life of these toxic people will make room for the right people. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Peter Economy

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  • It’s Time to Bust the ‘Talent Gap’ Myth. Leaders Must Cultivate Talent

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    Finding entry-level talent with several years of experience is a riddle that few organizations have been able to solve. In a post-pandemic and AI-driven world, there’s little room for error, much at stake, and even less time for cultivating and training would-be capable people. When you add AI-applicant tracking systems to the mix, most entry-level applicants don’t stand a chance in today’s market.  

    However, the solution to this global paradox is not as complex as it seems. A client recently came to me at the end of her hiring rope, unable to find the magical combination of an eager new hire equipped with “human skills” who also had at least three years of experience under their belt. “I can’t find this person, but we need this person, and we can’t keep going without filling this position,” she said, half in tears.  

    I posed a challenging question: Which mattered more: years of experience or the human qualities she claimed to value most—empathy, curiosity, and eagerness? If she truly believed in those traits, would she be willing to nurture them herself? She didn’t hesitate. She dropped the experience prerequisite, hired for potential, and invested her time. Months later, that same hire became a cornerstone of her team.  

    You can’t afford to filter 

    My client was reluctant to hire someone without experience. The role had evolved into a fast-paced, high-pressure position, and she worried a newcomer might falter. Her hesitation made sense—leaders naturally want to protect their teams from disruption. However, the truth is that experience doesn’t guarantee performance. It’s a person’s emotional intelligence that determines how they learn, grow, and respond to stress.  

    Think of the adage that age doesn’t equate to true wisdom. The same can be said for experience and emotional maturity. If you’re filtering out prospective team members who don’t have work experience, you may be left with a pool of candidates who have longer resumes but are short on emotional intelligence. It’s much easier to cultivate and train a new team member with the right human skills to work within your culture than to retrofit cultural alignment into someone who lacks them. 

    A true investment in people 

    There’s not so much a gap in talent as there is a gap in patience. Leading means investing the time to develop the people who will advance your goals, culture, ethics, and legacy. It doesn’t mean treating people as a discretionary cost. Roles have shifted, and new skills are needed for positions that were once much simpler. But skipping over a whole talent pool of people who may make your organization great is a massive mistake.  

    An entry-level position is part of the development stage and is necessary to find the people you want to lead and who want you as a leader. There’s also something to be said about building experience from the inside. The inexperienced person you hire today may be training a different entry-level hire in a few years and may, one day, become the person you choose to take your place.  

    Hiring someone who lacks experience but has all the right attributes means that you will have to invest in their development, but the payoff will be great. You have the opportunity to shape someone to be exactly the right fit for your company and culture. I can think of a few better returns on an investment.  

    It can feel like a lot of pressure to hire the perfect person, gain immediate results, and see your choice turn into profits overnight. However, that’s not how authentic eadership works. Leadership requires time, patience, and a desire to cultivate your team to uphold the organization you’ve worked so hard to build. Isn’t that the kind of legacy you want to leave behind? 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Jerry Colonna

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  • Why Focusing on Speed Alone Is a Losing Battle in Business

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    Businesses in all industries are taking a page out of the tech playbook. They are turning to product operating models (POMs) to expedite execution and enhance outcomes. This model, which originated in the fast-paced and highly competitive software industry, promises to streamline decisions by encouraging strong, top-down governance guided by a single strategic vision.  

    It’s a pretty thought for leaders. Faster decisions mean faster outcomes. That’s a priceless advantage in today’s market landscape, no matter the organization’s line of work. However, an emphasis on speed might hold businesses back as they seek full-scale optimization. 

    According to a recent report by my company, Planview, leaders are getting good at talking the talk of POMs, both internally and with customers. They’re proving less adept at walking the walk. Why? They’ve fallen into the exact type of misunderstanding of objectives that POMs are designed to help companies avoid. 

    Progress with a caveat 

    Though today’s organizations recognize the importance of efficient, goals-driven execution to their overall health, they’re struggling to turn awareness into effective action. It’s a breakdown of strategic execution at the change-management level.  

    Nearly half of strategic leaders and decision-makers surveyed for the “2025 State of Strategy Execution Report” strongly agree that they need to expedite decision-making and execution to be successful, a 10 percentage-point increase from 2021. The report showed a near-identical change in the proportion of decision-makers who consider major profit loss to be a significant risk of lagging agility during this period. It was 47 percent in 2025 and 37 percent in 2021.  

    Another key finding strikes right at the heart of the matter. According to the data, execution speed has increased and review cadences have accelerated. However, leaders are less likely to say they are prepared to adapt than they were four years ago. In 2021, 40 percent said that they were ready to adapt while in 2025, only 28 percent responded positively.  

    Essentially, the report reveals what long-time devotees of the POM already knew: Speed is a central benefit of the approach, but focusing on speed alone is a losing battle. Our research found that, despite improved speed, the average organization met only 62 percent of its strategic goals in 2024. Thirty-nine percent of complex approval processes and 38 percent of strategy-execution misalignment were identified as the top barriers to success.  

    Back to basics 

    Leaders focused first and foremost on speed have set the wrong objective and are tracking the wrong results. Speed without alignment just means moving fast in the wrong direction. To balance the scales and get on track, leaders must lay a foundation based on full digitalization and centralization of the following: 

    • Resources: to ensure that all teams have access to the tools, budget, and personnel they need to fulfill their roles quickly and effectively. 
    • Communication and workflows: to expedite feedback loops and reduce misunderstandings that can arise from siloed processes. 
    • Governance: to promote consistency in decision-making, best practices, risk management, and compliance across the organization. 
    • Information: to ensure contextualized, holistic, and up-to-date data is accessible and available to everyone who needs it.  
    • Roadmaps and plans: to keep everyone on track and focused on the organization’s overarching goals, desired outcomes, and progress toward them. 

    The power of alignment

    This isn’t just a hypothesis or musing from a champion of product-first thinking. Our research revealed that businesses, a.k.a. strategy leaders, that have managed to strike a balance between speed and outcomes are far more likely to report having complete or nearly complete centralization of execution management than those that haven’t, a.k.a. the laggards.

    Another key piece of the puzzle seems to be technology, which drives centralization capabilities in modern enterprises. Leaders are more likely to have invested in robust tech stacks to support their efforts and to have immediate access to accurate data. Fewer than half, or 40 percent, say they have access to timely, accurate data—a striking representation of the lack of centralization that’s hindering progress.  

    All factors considered, the performance of leaders is a testament to the power of alignment—both in core business areas and during change management initiatives. Leaders are 9.5x more likely to feel prepared to pivot, are 4.6x more likely to feel confident in their ability to manage change, and outpace the average rate of success by 10 percentage points.  

    Fast and effective 

    While the speed of decision-making is undeniably appealing in today’s environment, it is essential that organizations build toward it from the bottom up. That means letting holistic understanding and centralization guide both the transition to the new model and the strategic execution that follows. Challenges will, of course, continue to arise along the way. However, the foundation built amid this shift will help them navigate uncertainty with grace and confidence. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Louise K. Allen

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  • How Thanking Your Past Self Yields a High ROI in Leadership

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    I found a habit hack that takes two seconds, feels silly, and has become one of the most reliable mindset tools I use. After an air-travel-heavy fall speaking season, I was seated at one of my last events of the year, sipping coffee before heading onstage. I opened my phone to check the week ahead and spotted something in my calendar that made me squeal in delight. “I scheduled a massage on Monday. Hell, yes, Past Henna! Smashed that.” 

    The two women next to me at breakfast burst into giggles. “Do you always thank ‘Past Henna’ when you see stuff like that?” I paused and realized, yes. Yes, I do. I realized I’ve been doing it for years without ever hearing anyone talk about it. 

    This silly ritual—thanking my past self for making a good decision—might sound like cute self-talk, but it’s not fluff. It’s a surprisingly powerful mindset tool with real scientific muscle behind it. Recent research shows that when you acknowledge a smart prior choice, you strengthen three internal drivers that shape how you plan, follow through, and make decisions in the future. Think of it as habit architecture with a personal twist. 

    You strengthen your sense of future-self continuity 

    Most people assume their future self is simply them, but older. The research suggests something different. Studies at UCLA have shown for more than a decade that many people relate to their future selves the way they relate to a stranger: vaguely, abstractly, and without much emotional investment. 

    Newer research deepens that insight. A 2022 study found that short rituals that emphasize the connection between past, present, and future selves tighten this “identity bridge.” When that bridge feels solid, you make clearer long-term choices and delay gratification more easily. Thanking my past self for scheduling that massage, finishing a deck early, or prepping travel details ahead of time creates a loop: past me, present me, and future me. That loop is a continuity cue, and continuity cues reduce the psychological distance that usually sabotages long-view thinking. 

    You reward identity, not just behavior 

    Most habit frameworks focus on a cycle of cue, routine, and reward. Helpful, yes, but the thing that truly takes root is identity-based reinforcement. “I’m the kind of person who follows through.” 

    A 2020 study found that small internal acknowledgments strengthen what researchers call self-congruence rewards. In summary, when your actions align with the type of person you believe you are, the brain treats it like a meaningful win. 

    When I say, “Thanks, Past Henna!” I’m not patting myself on the back. I’m reinforcing the belief that I am someone who plans. Someone who reduces friction for future me. Someone whose decisions line up with her values and goals. Identity rewards carry far more motivational weight than behavioral rewards. They shape how you act next time without needing a pep talk. 

    You reduce the mental drag of regret 

    Regret is a sneaky tax on your cognitive bandwidth. Not the dramatic kind—more the low-grade, “ugh, I wish I had set this up sooner” version that slows you down. When you acknowledge something past you did well, you’re sending a message to your brain: This kind of prep pays off. That tiny internal nod feels good, but more important, it reinforces the mental association between foresight and relief. Your mind starts keeping a friendlier scorecard, “Good planning helps me.” That kind of reinforcement is what people actually repeat. 

    You build self-compassion that improves follow through 

    Most of the time, the way you talk to your past self is unkind. Why didn’t I do this earlier? Why did I make that choice? Why wasn’t I more disciplined? 

    Flipping the script builds a soft skill with hard benefits. Kristin Neff’s work on self-compassion continues to show that treating yourself with care (even retroactively) strengthens resilience, increases follow-through, and protects against burnout. Gratitude toward your past self reinforces capability rather than deficiency.  

    Why this matters right now 

    In a world of compressed timelines, more change than clarity, and competing demands on your attention, anything that reduces mental friction is a strategic advantage. As planning horizons shrink—especially for Millennials and Gen-Z—tools that reinforce long-view thinking become even more valuable. 

    Even tech platforms are experimenting with this idea. New studies in human-AI interaction show that prompting people to message a future-self avatar increases feelings of calm, improves planning, and reduces anxiety spikes during tough decisions. Translation: Your brain loves continuity, and you don’t need an app to build it. 

    A quick example in practice 

    Earlier this year, I made a call six months ahead to decline a low-paying speaking engagement so I could free up space for a project that mattered more. When that project paid off, I whispered to myself, quietly but sincerely, “Thanks, Past Henna.” 

    That moment did three things: It affirmed the identity. It reinforced the timeline bridge, and it reminded me that caring for my future self is a high return-on-investment habit. 

    Find one thing—just one—that past you set in motion. Maybe you prepped for a meeting, blocked your calendar, saved a lead, or declined an invitation that would have drained your focus. Pause for a second, acknowledge it, and say thanks. It may feel a little awkward at first, but you’re doing it for clarity, not comedy. (It doesn’t hurt that it makes people smile, though!) 

    Try it once and watch what happens: Your past self might be the teammate you’ve needed all along. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Henna Pryor

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  • Ethics: My Direct Report Is Countermanding My Instructions. What Do I Do?

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    A reader writes: I started a new job and inherited a completely demoralized staff. A transformation was in order, and I began working through it. One director, however, apparently disagreed with some policy changes I requested, but didn’t tell me so herself.  A member of her team came to me in confusion because Julie (fake name) had told him to ignore my requests and do things the old way.

    Confused myself, I sat down with Julie and asked her about the situation.  She hemmed and hawed, apologized, and then said she’d make everything clear to her staff.  I thought we were done, but the same thing happened a few weeks later, and my assistant told me Julie was still actively telling her team to ignore my directions.

    Minda Zetlin responds:

    What a frustrating situation! And how awful to have a team member outright lie to you. Julie has put you in a really tough spot.

    As a newcomer to the organization making some big changes, you were bound to come up against resentment from some who were accustomed to doing things the old way. If things hadn’t been so dire, you could have taken some time to build relationships with longtime managers like Julie. You could have taken their input into account when you started changing things. That might have resulted in more buy-in, or maybe not. Change is never easy and there will always be some who resist it, even if the current situation isn’t working.

    There are, obviously, some very big drawbacks to terminating someone who’s been in the organization for so long, especially at a time when you’re still learning your way around. But, ultimately, you can’t do your job if the people who report to you are countermanding your instructions and lying to you about it.

    You should begin documenting every instance of this behavior that you learn about. And you need to let Julie know there will be consequences if she keeps this up. You might also want to start building relationships directly with her team. You could let them know there’s been some understandable confusion over the new policies and procedures and invite them to talk to you directly if they have any questions or issues. With someone actively undermining you, it’s smart to stay as informed as you can.

    Update:

    The reader was understandably upset, and took a few days to calm down and think things through. Then this reader began thinking about the fact that Julie and her team were also working very closely with a different department within the organization. “There was a new leader of that team, and he was looking to expand the group,” the reader explains. “I took him out to lunch, and we both realized that Julie would be perfect for a slot he wanted to fill. After further discussion, the organization’s leadership decided it would be best for Julie’s entire team to move.”

    It turned out to be a great solution. Both Julie and the new group were happy with the move. And with Julie’s team now part of another department, the reader was able to hire new employees, taking some of the burden off their own overworked employees.

    “She’s a person with low emotional intelligence.”

    I asked the reader how they felt about Julie, in effect, being rewarded for dishonest behavior. They said it did not bother them. “She’s a person with low emotional intelligence, and if she felt she got one over on me, that’s fine,” they write. Julie had been in her job for many years, and the company’s leaders knew the real story.

    In the end, after the reader had moved on to their next job, karma seems to have caught up with Julie. “I just looked her up in the directory, and she seems to have lost her director position,” the reader writes. “She’s still there, but in a manager role rather than an executive role. So, in the end, it all worked out.”

    Today’s ethics question came from a member of my text community, a growing audience of Inc.com readers who receive a daily text from me. Interested in joining us? Here’s some information about the texts and a special invitation to a two-month free trial.

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Minda Zetlin

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  • Are Women Trading Leadership for Lifestyle? Here’s What to Know About the Great Downshift

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    A quiet career movement has been underway, from tech companies to service industries and beyond, called the great downshift. I started to notice this trend with colleagues first, and then with friends and professional connections, all in different industries but with the same goals in mind. Surprisingly, I could not find a term for this change, though the trend showed similar patterns.  

    The great downshift is when professional women intentionally step back from leadership or upper management, opting instead for a return to individual contributor positions. This downshift is a direct response to persistent barriers women face in corporate leadership and a growing desire for professional fulfillment that doesn’t demand personal sacrifice. 

    Take the case of a 38-year-old former director of product development who moved from a demanding executive role back to a senior product manager position. The director role meant more ownership, meetings, and administration, with less of the creative work she enjoyed as an early employee. Her downshift meant a 20 percent reduction in pay, but she gained back time. In her new individual contributor role, she is focused on strategic execution without the burden of constant people management and budgetary politics. 

    The plateau: Data shows the struggle at the top 

    Despite decades of dialogue about gender equality, the path to the C-suite remains frustratingly slow for women. Data from LinkedIn’s 2025 Women in Leadership report illuminates this persistent bottleneck. While women enter the workforce at healthy rates, they hold only 30.6 percent of leadership positions, and progress has stalled. While this study does not dive into the why, it dives into the problem being displayed on a global scale. The U.S. fares better than most other countries polled. However, the number of women in the C-suite is well below the 30 percent average above. 

    Key industries stand out, which are not surprising, such as construction and oil, gas, and mining. However, in others like technology, information, and media, the numbers are well below average.   

    Trading titles for time: Burnout drives decisions 

    The decision to downshift is rarely about a lack of ambition. It’s about redefining what success truly means. 

    Women are burnt out. It’s partially because of the mix of demands of leadership and demands of the home, which drive mental loads as well as physical. Women are also expected to work in places that do not support every stage of their needs. They face a lack of material leave, long working hours for those with children, and a lack of menopause support.  

    Burnout, among other things, is being supported by a new wave of technology. These tools are focused on women’s holistic well-being and flexible work. One example is Soula, an app originally designed to support women through AI-assisted mental health coaching. Platforms like Soula, while they are not direct career apps, provide women with personalized mental health tools, community support, and expert guidance on managing stress and life transitions. When offered through employers, they provide cost assistance and ease to adopt.  

    Another example of workplace assistance is employer-driven menopause support, which was highlighted in the recent movie The M Factor.  

    “Women have reported that menopause symptoms interfere with their work performance and productivity. Many have considered quitting because of their symptoms. Research from Mayo Clinic found that American companies face menopause-related losses of $26 billion annually, including $1.8 billion of lost work time alone,” noted Priya Bathija, founder and CEO of Nyoo Health, an organization driving women’s health initiatives forward.   

    When employers take a role in understanding women’s whole journey, women can have improved chances of staying in the workplace.  

    Redefining the ladder  

    The bright side of the great downshift is that it could be seen as an alternative to women leaving the workplace. The reasons may vary. They might need the income, want to stay engaged, and even enjoy their contributions. So the downshift, while a decline, offers some respite for keeping women in the workplace. 

    Overall, the great downshift is not a mass exodus from the workforce, but a strategic re-engagement on one’s own terms. It’s a rejection of the traditional corporate ladder that often requires women to sacrifice their personal lives for a tenuous hold on power. Perhaps, it could become an option for future career pathing and design of work for all genders.  

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Parul Bhandari

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