The best leaders stay close enough to the work to understand how it gets done, but far enough away that they're not micromanaging or hovering.

The narrative around career pivots focuses on what you lose: title, salary, status. The more interesting story is what transfers. Your old career becomes "the thing" that makes you different.

If a team doesn't work well together, it's impossible to do the best work possible. The entire team's potential is dragged down.

When you're running a solo business, do you think about branding? It sounds like something only big companies need to worry about. But solopreneurs should consider how branding impacts their businesses also.

We're taught that a corporate salary is the safe path and self-employment is risky. But with an employer, you can go from 100% income to zero overnight. With multiple clients, losing one isn't losing everything.

Starting over at mid-career feels like going back to zero. But it's not zero. Your expertise doesn't disappear! The gap between "I left" and "I landed" is shorter than you think.

Without constantly adapting to internal and external forces, a business can find itself Irrelevant Behind Fighting to catch up or no longer in business.

Communication has to be clear. Even if it's directed at *current clients.* Don't overlook how your company appears in the eyes of your customers (i.e. don't send out stuff that is poorly written, confusing, etc) All communication matters and reflects on your brand.

"Stay loyal, put in the time, and you'll be rewarded." I don't think people believe that anymore. The social contract has been broken.

Supportive work environments - those that understand when "life happens" - are the best.

The fear of leaving a steady paycheck is real. But sometimes, we tell ourselves that's the barrier when really it's something else (like a fear of failing or that we "can't make it" as a solopreneur).

Before I went solo, I spent years as a product manager at a tech company. I had a *ton* of experience making decisions. If you find yourself struggling to make decisions in your solo business, here's a framework to use.

When you see someone doing a fun, creative job, you might think, "I could do that." Don't dismiss that thought! Dig into it.

Turning the page is the best feeling in the world. Because you realize there is so much more to the story than the page you were stuck on. (True for books. Also true for life. ❤️)

Your inner critic is trying to keep you safe. But you're actually going to be okay. ❤️

The tools for manufacturing a *very convincing* unreality have gotten exponentially easier to use.

Toxic work culture leads to Burnout Gaslighting Erosion of mental health And the impacts aren't contained to the workday. And sometimes employees don't realize how bad it is from the inside...

People need space and support to do high-quality work. Otherwise, they'll feel like they're stretched too thin. Or that the work they're doing isn't important.

Your career experience is more portable than you think. Systems thinking. Project management. Navigating ambiguity. Those skills don't evaporate when you leave the industry that taught them to you.

For generations, careers have been a ladder to climb. Linear career paths are a thing of the past. Non-linear careers are the future of work.

A lot of people aren't leaving bad jobs right now. Not because they're happy where they're at. Because they're thinking, "Where else could I go? Would the next place be any different?" That's a different kind of stuck.

Before I went solo, I spent more than 15 years in a corporate environment - including several years as part of an executive team. Turns out, many of those skills have served me well in my solopreneur life.

Silence at work isn't always giving up. Sometimes it's the first step of figuring out what's next. A lot of solopreneurs can trace their exit back to the moment they stopped trying to fix a workplace that didn't want to be fixed.

Our minds are like crows. They're drawn to shiny objects. Don't let your nest become too cluttered.

You don't have to quit your job to explore a creative career. Start small. Build the muscle. Prove to yourself you can "make it" for a short period of time. Then keep going.

When a company says "AI replaced 10 people," ask: How does the quality compare? What's the error rate? (Most of the time, they don't share the data because the data doesn't exist.)

Stop the glorification of busy. Being busy isn't the same as producing results. People can be insanely efficient and good at their work without being "busy" all the time.

You know what stops the infinite scrolling? Content that resonates. People who throw lofty ideas into the world are inaccessible. Give me something I can relate to.

Career changers are overwhelmingly happy on the other side. The initial phase is hard. (I know! I've done it!) But the people who treat their careers as fluid can always figure out how to make it work.

The employees who push back are usually the ones who still care. They want the work to be better. They want the company to be better. When they go silent? That's when you've lost them.

Let the best ideas come forward. Not just from the loudest or most senior voices. Sometimes the best ideas come from those who think more slowly or prefer written expression. That’s why I value async collaboration. It gives everyone a chance to share.

I do *not* think solopreneurship is for everyone. It's great for me, but definitely not great across the board. Here are some things to consider.

Be *very* skeptical of claims from people who have an incentive to demonstrate a specific result.

You can't do your best work when you're burned out. You might feel exhausted and like things are out of your control. It's not a true reflection of your capabilities. Recovering from burnout may mean a long break or a new job.

When employees stop complaining, most managers think they've won compliance. They haven't. Silence at work is rarely acceptance. It's usually the last stage before someone mentally checks out (or walks out).

I started using automation tools a *long* time ago. Even before that, relying on technology while working at a small community bank in Wisconsin. I thought about that a lot, and the throughline between "starting with automation" and "how I feel about AI today." www.workbetter.media/p/automation...

We act like misinformation started with AI. It didn't. The difference now is speed and scale.

It's normal to feel imposter syndrome in a new job or role. Ask yourself: What impact does my work have on my colleagues? On the business? On me?

People 𝙘𝙖𝙣'𝙩 do their best work if they're not given flexibility and trust.

I hired people for my team at a fully remote company. And because I wasn't limited by geography, I could hire the 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 person for the job.

Not everyone leaving tech is being pushed out. Some are choosing to go. More meaningful work instead of more money. More flexibility instead of a title at a company that might lay them off next quarter. At some point, the job isn't worth the sacrifice.

Change takes time to adjust to, even if it’s for the better. Whether in work or personal life, there’s a disruption. It might not feel great for weeks or months, and that’s okay.

The gap between what executives promise about AI and what workers *actually* experience is enormous. Employees are bearing the cost of a bet they didn't place.

Meaningful change can be hard. Quitting your job, career pivot, striking out on your own, etc. I know... I've been through it (twice!) But you'll also feel 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 relief when you finally break free.

Solopreneurs want to stay solo, but sometimes bottlenecks can arise - like if you've hired contractors or you simply can't get all the work done on your own. I wrote about this for Fast Company.

For a generation, the career advice given to anyone looking for stability was: get into tech. That advice made sense, as you often needed some specialized skills. As long as you acquired those skills, you were good. But that scarcity is being eroded by AI. What happens now?

Career pivots focus on what you lose: the title, the salary, the status. But the more interesting story is what transfers. The gap between "I left" and "I landed" is shorter than you think. www.workbetter.media/p/staring-ov...

What’s real anymore? I look back at the Sokal hoax in academia and AI’s confident hallucinations today. How do we trust the information we're given? www.workbetter.media/p/what-is-re...

What if the question isn't "how much are you willing to sacrifice?" But "what kind of success are you building — and will you have space in your life to enjoy it?"

The appropriate reframe to "success requires sacrifice" is that success requires clarity about what matters to you. And the discipline to protect it.