In a webinar on intrapreneurship – ventures created inside companies by entrepreneurial employees to create positive societal impact – this week, I highlighted again the risk of burnout for those driving change, often alone. This is well captured in Gib Bulloch’s “The Intrapreneur”, recounting his personal journey of intrapreneurship at Accenture. COVID has increased the frequency of burnout. A recent IPSOS survey with 1000 US employees shows that 25% plan to leave their jobs post-pandemic due to burnout. The percentages are the highest for young workers and working parents with kids learning from home. Olga Khazan’s “Only your boss can cure your burnout” argues that burnout is a work problem. She says that company-sponsored meditation and yoga classes do not work. What is needed are changes in corporate culture to adjust expectations, working hours, and managerial support. 

I like good writing. I try to improve mine. My favorite book on the topic is “Writing that works”. Paul Graham’s “Write simply” [H/T Priyanka Vashisht] summarizes what works best. Keep it simple. Keep it short.  

The National Intelligence Council’s Global Trends report is published every four years. It reviews structural forces shaping demographics, the environment, economics and technology. It analyzes emerging dynamics at the societal, state and international levels. It offers five scenarii to help us think about the future. The graphs below captures one of the economic structural forces – the looming debt crisis.

My quote this week is from Tressie McMillan Cottom [21’08”]: “Part of being Black and being a woman in this country is that, even when you’re very successful, you just don’t control the terms of your success. My success is always limited by how well other people can imagine the possibility of me.”