• MOST SMALL BUSINESS LEADERS DESTROY MORE EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE THAN THEY IMPROVE, through feedback approaches that “create defensiveness and damage relationships when they should be accelerating development.” The traditional annual or even quarterly Review process for most companies has become “a dreaded ritual, where vague platitudes replace meaningful development conversations, and constructive criticism triggers defensive reactions that damage relationships for months.” Moreover: (1) When feedback is delayed, generalized , or delivered without relationship context, it becomes counterproductive; (2) Waiting months to address issues, focus on personality traits rather than behaviors, or deliver criticism without context, creates environments where talent stagnates and turnover accelerates; (3) Emphasizing problems without acknowledging strengths, or creating conversations that feel punitive rather than developmental, triggers psychological defense mechanisms that prevent learning; and (4 )Failure to correlate performance with competitive compensation levels adversely impacts employee retention. DCG have decades of experience in designing and implementing effective Performance Evaluation programs; call Dennis for courtesy consult. https://deliberatedirections.com/how-to-give-better-feedback-at-work-managers-guide/

 

  • THE AI INVESTMENT BOOM RANKS AMONG THE BIGGEST IN MODERN HISTORY, with forecasts of up to $3 trillion being committed to developing infrastructure. And, with artificial intelligence models predicted soon to exceed average humans at most cognitive tasks, the first firms to achieve this could reap huge returns, but others may not. “With the AI boom having contributed up to 40% of GDP growth over the past year – a staggering figure for a sector that accounts for just a few percent of total output – if/when expectations for AI revenues are revised down, the flow of capital could slow, and some startups struggling under the weight of losses may tank, along with data centers, power-centers, servers and specialized chip developers. The bigger the boom gets, the bigger the knock-on consequences of an AI chill could be. If the technology ends up fulfilling the extravagant promises that have been made for it, a new chapter of history will open. However, the story of its frenzied pursuit will make the textbooks too.” [ECONOMIST]

 

  • “THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PEOPLE WHO ACHIEVE THEIR MOST IMPORTANT GOALS AND THOSE WHO STAY STUCK often isn’t talent, luck, or even opportunity. It’s mastering the invisible skill that makes everything else possible: intentional, directed attention. We’re facing an attention crisis today that previous generations never had to navigate – social media notifications, Slack messages, email alerts, and the endless scroll of information have created what researchers call ‘continuous partial attention’ – always on, but never fully focused, just perpetually scattered. Beyond mere inconvenience, a lack of full attention can actively sabotage our most important goals and make everything feel unsatisfying or insurmountable, because our attention simultaneously tracks five other ‘urgent’ priorities, all claiming to be the most important, with a result that all tasks can get nudged into the periphery of attention.” [BIG THINK]

 

  • ALL GENERATIONS COMPLAIN: Baby Boomers about uncertain retirement, Millennials about inability to buy a home, Gen Z about social media having ruined their childhood. But nearly a third of Gen X (born 1965 – 80, today age 45 – 60) say they are ‘not very or at all happy’ according to latest polls – the highest of any generation and consistent with a ‘U-bend of life’ theory: that “people are generally happy when young & old, but miserable in middle age.” Elements involve emergence of health issues, awareness of failure to achieve everything they’d hoped for, many having to look after both their children and/or parents, as well as having suffered the financial impacts of the dotcom bubble crash & subsequent decade financial crisis which stifled home ownership plans. “Reality bites.” [ECONOMIST]

 
THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK

  • Two-thirds of daily behaviors are initiated on autopilot – out of habit versus conscious choices, i.e. actions we are automatically prompted to do based on learned associations. So, to ‘break’ a bad habit, effective strategy involves disrupting triggers – like avoiding spots where one is used to smoking and creating new routines like chewing gum after a meal. However, latest studies have found that 46% of behaviors are also triggered by habits that support personal goals and intentions, which suggests that if one “sets out to create a positive habit, e.g. whether around better sleep hygiene, nutrition, or just healthier life styles, they can rely on an ‘internal autopilot’ to help maintain those habits.” [MEDICAL EXPRESS]

 

  • Many religious smartphone apps are now encouraging millions of users to ‘confess’ to AI Chatbots, with some “claiming to be channeling God himself, telling users seeking spiritual guidance that by simply turning to their Chatbot – which essentially just reshuffles holy texts by using clever statistical modeling – they are receiving direct guidance from the Lord. Experts worry that AI’s strong tendency to please the user in having found God may have unintended consequences, since using AI for companionship is driving some into dangerous spirals of delusion in the form of ‘AI psychosis.’ [FUTURISM]
  • SENIORS’ TEXTING CODES: LMDO- Laughing My Dentures Out, LOL- Living on Lipitor, ATD- At the Doctor’s, BFF- Best Friends Funeral, BTW- Bring the Wheelchair, BYOT- Bring Your Own Teeth, CBM- Covered by Medicare, DWI- Driving While Incontinent, FWIW- Forgot Where I Was, GHA- Got Heartburn Again, HGBM- Had Good Bowel Movement, TOT- Texting on Toilet, WAITT – Who Am I Talking To?