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Let’s ditch the monthly unemployment report.

On January 20, 2021, Joe Biden assumes the U.S. Presidency. But, right now, Mr. Biden focuses time and energy on forming task forces to mitigate the spread of COVID. He will also put in place the supply chain necessary to deliver a vaccine to some 330 million Americans.

COVID will consume the new president’s early days and months in office. But, the economic pain of American workers also factors. Already, President-elect Biden’s transition team is thinking about how to get people who want to work, and who need to work, back on the job.

For over 100 years, the U.S. government published monthly stats on unemployment. That report must update to one that factors the health and wellness of all workers, especially underemployed ones.

Important considerations:

• As of October 2020, 11 million full-time American workers remain unemployed. That’s down from the high water mark of Spring 2020 (23 million workers);
• That 11 million-member cohort does not include self-employed contract talent, gig workers, part-time employees, or under-employed people;
• Payscale.com’s survey indicates that 46 percent of American workers say that they are under-employed. That’s 71 million people!

Not all workers seek full-time employment. So, when we ditch the monthly unemployment report, we better reflect the changes in how American workers seek and do work.

Benefit Portability would help all workers.

The Biden Administration should allow American workers to take their hard earned benefits with them. Benefit Portability would enable them to port their 401k investments and other things from job to job, and over their lifetimes. Currently, when someone leaves a full-time job, their retirement assets cash-out. And it often becomes the responsibility of the worker to manage those assets parked in an IRA. Often, that doesn’t work out well.

First things first: let’s ditch the monthly unemployment report, to tell a truer story of the health and well-being of American workers.

EPISODE DATE: October 13, 2020

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Subject-matter expert Edythe Richards explains the connection between Emotional Intelligence and Hybrid Work. 

Emotional intelligence or EQ helps people to be aware of, control, and express their emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically.

As the pandemic continues into a tenth month, nearly 8 out of every 10 full-time workers have shifted to remote or hybrid work settings. EQ helps them to seek a clear understanding of others who also work in separate locations.

In this episode, Edythe discusses:

• Her insights about the dramatic shift to remote and hybrid work. Starts at 2:17
• The special challenges faced by her clients experiencing workplace transitions. Starts at 6:10
• How people who use Zoom for work can benefit from EQ. Starts at 8:17
• Employing EQ while working remotely to achieve emotional presence. Starts at 16:52

Edythe explains how Emotional Intelligence and Hybrid Work relate to our current stress-packed reality:

“[There is an] EQ element called stress tolerance, which is essentially our ability, and tendency, to manage stressful situations. For many of us, our stress levels are going to be amplified during this time.”

About our guest:

Edythe Richards received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Delaware and a Masters of Arts degree in Counseling from Seton Hall University. Her nationally recognized career counseling consultancy, A Top Career, is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: November 6, 2020

Social media:

– Website

– Myers Briggs Question Corner Podcast

– LinkedIn Page

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Workforce expert Adrienne Shoch joins the podcast to encourage us to create hybrid workplace presence.

“[We are] constantly helping people get comfortable with certainty. It likes the same thing. It likes routines and all kinds of things. And, we don’t live like that, anymore.”

Adrienne Shoch of five to one in Washington, D.C. is a brilliant thought-leader in workforce and the future of work.

A frequent guest, she returns to The Dan Smolen Podcast to help us make the hybrid workplace model, that splits time between home and traditional office settings, more meaningful. To that end, Adrienne wants us all to create hybrid workplace presence. When we do that, we will get more out of our work experience.

Actually, we will thrive.

In this episode, Adrienne discusses:

• Key insights of clients who have migrated to hybrid workplaces. Starts at 2:20
• Steps that hiring managers and people take to make hybrid successful and enabling of presence. Starts at 6:20
• How people may be paired with others to work remotely or at the office. Starts at 13:24
• Helping people thrive where and when they want to work. Starts at 19:59

Adrienne gets to “why” we should create hybrid workforce presence:

“So the game is, the trick is, to help people get comfortable with uncertainty. It is not about being agile or resilient; it is about being adaptive. And that takes different skills and intentions.”

About our guest:

Adrienne Shoch is the founder of five to one and an expert on workforce engagement. She received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Towson University and studied at University of Paris – Sorbonne, and, the Neuroleadership Institute. She lives and works in Washington, D.C.

EPISODE DATE: October 30, 2020

Social media:

– Website

– Adrienne Shoch LinkedIn Page

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One key outcome in how we work and where we work is fast emerging: a workforce revolution supports hybrid work.

The radical shift in our podcast’s branding inspired us to explore deeply the suddenly changing nature of work. Not surprisingly, we found that hybrid work has emerged as the way many of us will operate, splitting time each week between home and office.

“[The revolutionary forces] unleashed by the pandemic are numerous. But the-most notable paradigm shift is that people who work full-time are getting the tools they need to make work a successful part of their day.”

In this episode, we highlight fresh insight from SkillCrush which supports the workforce revolution to hybrid work. When remote work options are available:

• People become more focused on the job;
• Workers better manage their mental health, and;
• Introverts (half of the total workforce) gain solitude and control over interpersonal engagements, making them happier and more successful.

A workforce revolution that supports hybrid work is happening now.

Last week, we discovered that 80 percent of people who work full-time will opt for hybrid work.

“There is much to be worked out to make hybrid work a successful option. People who share time at home with children are still struggling to create a sense of balance.”

Still, when people who work full-time are allowed to work in a remote or hybrid fashion, they will become happier. What is more, hybrid work helps them make work part of a day, and not the day. Their relationships with co-workers and family members will become stronger and more fulfilling.

EPISODE DATE: October 23, 2020

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Workforce thought-leader Dan Smolen believes that the future of work is in hybrid work.

This week, we dig into fresh workforce market research sponsored by Owl Labs and Global Workplace Analytics. Their study provides a snapshot of a post-COVID workforce that splits its time between home and office.

“Now, as millions of people return to the office, they recognize that the office-only workplace has become a relic of the past. With more offices resuming operation, four out of every five [of their full-time workers] will pivot to hybrid work.”

Survey findings:

• 70 percent of full-time employees worked from home during the pandemic
• workers on average saved $473 per month in out-of-pocket expenses for commuting and other needs
• 20 percent of those working from home clocked more hours than they had in the office
• 77 percent indicated that a post-pandemic work-from-home option would make them happier
• about half of respondents have increased their use of Zoom and other conferencing tools
• working from home added on average 40 minutes to the day that had been used for commuting

KEY FINDING: 80 percent of full-time workers said that they expect to work 3 times a week from home, 2 times a week at the office

Clearly, the future of work is in hybrid work. And the ramifications of the shift in how we work, and where we work, will hasten sudden and seismic shifts throughout the economy, infrastructure, and workforce.

“The future will involve constant pivots and reassessments. And we will need to real-time reimagine a future of work doing meaningful work.”

EPISODE DATE: October 16, 2020

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Under any circumstance, a pivot for a future of work podcast is jarring. But for Dan Smolen, making a sudden pivot for his podcast, to a new identity, was absolutely necessary.

“Now, everything seemed fine until early September 2020 when we discovered that something was amiss. The Tightrope Podcast had inexplicably disappeared from the web and social media.

What happened?”

The sudden pivot for a future of work podcast is now complete. Today, we debut The Dan Smolen Podcast.

Some back-story:

One week ago today, on October 2, 2020, we discovered that well-known academic and social media pundit Dr. Cornel West launched “The Tight Rope Podcast.” Surprisingly, his podcast [with the same name as ours] redirected our listeners and prospects to his podcast hosting destinations. What is more, Dr. West aggressively promoted his podcast episodes to over 750,000 followers across social media; his podcasting campaign kicked into high gear during the first week of September 2020.

Looking back, it all makes sense as to why our listenership fell off of the tightrope.

We were astonished by our discovery. And we knew that we had to pivot our future of work podcast quickly to a new brand identity.

The re-branded Dan Smolen Podcast focuses on future of work and meaningful work topics. We will host experts in business, academia, public service, and workforce to benefit our future of work and meaningful work journeys.

Looking forward, we will “real-time reimagine” how the future of work presents in our lives. And right off the bat, we will tackle challenging issues that keep us up at night, like hybrid work arrangements and policies, so that we thrive in the face of sudden change and adversity.

The best minds in branding say that the process of re-branding a product, a service, or a podcast should take time. A re-brand should carefully consider the full array strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats to the podcast and its community.

But in our case, we had no time for careful and deliberate processing. Our re-brand from The Tightrope had to happen immediately. In fact, the sudden pivot for [our] future of work podcast happened in less than seven days.

Now, as The Dan Smolen Podcast, we know that our best days lie ahead. Please join us each week on this podcast for new episodes and an amazing journey to a future of work doing meaningful work.

EPISODE DATE: October 9, 2020

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Public relations executive Aimee Stern believes that bravery and meaningful work are purposely intertwined.

“When you heard the process that they went through to get there, it was painful and it was my process, too. It’s like putting aside everything you’ve ever been taught and saying: I’m really good at this. And, it all came down really to the biggest problem people have which is self-doubt.”

By all measures, Aimee Stern was a successful executive. Her business portfolio was profitable and scaling.

Regrettably, her high quality work often benefitted people she didn’t respect.

That’s when she channeled bravery from within to do good and do well in her professional career.

In this episode, Aimee describes:

• The first act of bravery. Starts at 2:13
• Why many people are not brave. Starts at 4:23
• How Generation Z became our bravest workforce cohort. Starts at 9:38
• The impact bravery has on a meaningful work career. Starts at 17:29

About our guest:

Aimee Stern is the Chief Bravery Officer of Brave NOW PR based in Washington, D.C. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Education from the State University of New York Oswego.

EPISODE DATE: October 2, 2020

Social media:

– Brave NOW PR Website

– Brave NOW Courageous Content Website

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:08 — 44.2MB)

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Anne Holton is a nationally recognized expert on career and technical education. Furthermore, she believes that we must invest in the future of work’s talent pipeline.

Anne built a formidable résumé in workforce empowerment. Now, Virginia’s former Secretary of Education; George Mason University’s former interim president, and; current professor at GMU’s Schar School drives thought-leadership for career empowerment and the future of work.

“I want to research how students choose careers. [My hypothesis] is that students do what their parents do, or what their parents’ friends do, or what their friends’ parents do. But they don’t know career options outside of that. And now, with so many careers that nobody’s parents did, like cybersecurity, we have a real disconnect.”

Along with her husband, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, Anne leads the charge to provide world-class career and technical education (CTE) so that talent in the American workforce pipeline thrive.

In this episode, Anne discusses:

• What workforce stakeholders are doing, or should be doing, to help people succeed at work. Starts at 2:55
• How those workforce stakeholders should help people in disadvantaged communities. Starts at 5:02
• The role of community colleges in providing career and technical education (CTE). Starts at 7:52
• The efforts of colleges and universities to retain their graduates in the community. Starts at 17:24
• The importance of workforce agility and resilience. Starts at 24:51

Moreover, she believes this: stakeholders in business, academia, and public policy, must amply invest in the future of work’s talent pipeline so that people benefit with rewarding careers. And among the biggest future of work opportunities Anne sees are in middle skill jobs.

About our guest:

Anne Holton grew up in a family committed to public service. Her father, Linwood Holton, is a former governor of Virginia. During her successful career, Anne served as:

• Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Judge for the City of Richmond, Virginia (1996-98);
• Virginia’s First Lady when her husband, Tim Kaine, was governor (2006-2009);
• Virginia’s Secretary of Education (2014-2016), and:
• Interim President of George Mason University (2019-2020).

Currently, she is Professor of Public Policy and Education for GMU’s Schar School of Policy and Government.

Anne earned a bachelor’s degree from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs and a Juris Doctorate from the Harvard University School of Law. She and U.S. Senator Tim Kaine reside in Richmond, Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: September 25, 2020

Social media:

– GMU Schar School Website

– Twitter

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Dr. Dan Hill is employing learning pods, working groups of six people, to help organizations deliver content, develop critical skills, facilitate teamwork, and foster leadership. We believe that Dr. Hill’s learning pods will positively influence the future of work.

“So, I was already leaning towards this idea of six people. A [work team] should be no larger than can be fed with two large pizzas.”

The term learning pods trends high in social media, because many parents across the country are using them to teach and supplement learning for their children who are homebound because of the pandemic. Now learning pods are benefitting the workforce.

Learning pods may actually find their greatest utility with people who strive for the future of work doing meaningful work.

In this episode, Dr. Hill explains:

• The learning pod for people who work. Starts at 6:28
• How learning pods may become useful for people on Zoom. Starts at 11:46
• Why a team of six people in a learning pod is optimal. Starts at 14:00
• His thoughts on the future of meetings and conference attendance. Starts at 15:30
• How learning pods will inform the future of work. Starts at 20:20

Dr. Hill also describes his latest book writing project, The Devil’s Dictionary of Work Life. Starts at 28:22

About our guest:

Dan Hill, Ph.D. is a world recognized facial coding expert and founder and president of the consultancy Sensory Logic, Inc. He received a Masters in Creative Writing from Brown University and a Ph.D. in English from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Further, Dr. Hill earned Facial Action Coding Systems Certification from the Paul Ekman Group. He lives and works in St. Paul, Minnesota.

EPISODE DATE: September 18, 2020

Social media:

Website

– Faces of the Week Blog

–Famous Faces Decoded (Book Page)

LinkedIn Profile

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:28 — 30.9MB)

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Teaching in the pandemic age will certainly change how students learn and the future of work for teachers.

“I think that [the pandemic] has built a conversation of what public school will look like going forward.”

– Maggie Hansford, Prince William Education Association President

Maggie Hansford represents public school teachers, students, parents, and guardians in Virginia’s second-largest municipality.

Many schools are starting the year with remote or virtual instruction. Maggie thinks that many of the technological and operational changes put into use will remain after the pandemic is over.

In this episode, Maggie discusses how:

• “Going virtual” stresses teachers, students, parents, and guardians. Starts at 2:48
• New technologies like Zoom and Canvas will forever change the classroom. Starts at 4:43
• Seasoned teachers are considering early retirement. Starts at 7:10
• Attracting top talent to teaching remains a difficult challenge. Starts at 12:01
• Teaching pods are changing instruction. Starts at 14:00
• Teachers, parents, and guardians can overcome the tension caused by remote learning. Starts at 17:24

On the sudden popularity of teaching pods, Maggie says:

“So, it all boils down to life. Everybody is trying to balance work-life, teaching, and helping their students. We have a million things on our plates and now we’ve just added another element to help ensure that our children are successful. If [teaching pods] are what parents need then I don’t see an issue.”

About our guest:

Maggie Hansford is a teacher and speech pathologist in Northern Virginia’s Prince William County Public Schools. In 2020, she was elected president of the Prince William Education Association (PWEA). Maggie and her family reside in Prince William County, Virginia.

EPISODE DATE: September 11, 2020

Social media:

– Website

– Facebook

– Twitter