A mid-December batch of links
Since the most recent batch of links went out, paying subscribers received an essay about pairing up with better peers, then a reflection on caring for loved ones as they age. This coming weekend, they’ll enjoy a meditation on not allowing as much to stick to you, which requires scaling back on social media consumption.
Below, you’ll find a batch of links that represent the themes of this newsletter: career development, community building, and self care.
Are ‘ghost engineers’ real? Seeking Silicon Valley’s least productive coders.
Early in his career as a software engineer, Krunal Patel experimented with ghosting, not out of laziness but to give his manager a reality check. For one week, he and a co-worker gave their manager detailed twice-daily updates on engineering tasks that obscured the fact they were accomplishing nothing. Their boss didn’t notice the pair were slacking — until they confessed.
Why the Coolest Job in Tech Might Actually Be in a Bank.
Putting Your Marathon Time on Your Résumé: Healthy Fun or Cringey Flex? I laughed when I saw this article because it arrived a day after my nieces told me that their high school tells graduating seniors not to write in their college applications about what sports taught them about leadership. It’s too cliche, too narrow.
Firms Outperform When There Are More Women on Boards, BI Says.
This trend is already evident among younger generations, who are increasingly pursuing alternative career paths. Many prefer to remain middle managers or individual contributors, while others opt for entrepreneurial or influencer careers over traditional corporate roles.
Spying on Student Devices, Schools Aim to Intercept Self-Harm Before It Happens.
“Damaged goods”: Being unemployed for months takes a toll. I feel for the people who have been out of work for a year. It’s been an awful year to be looking. The best thing that people with jobs can do is make sure that if they are let go that they have begun the networking necessary ahead of being in such a position.
The slippery appeal of RFK Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again movement.
How to Launch a Successful Consulting Business in Retirement. I think this is going to be increasingly common moving ahead, to see people who no longer want to carry a full roster of clients to shift to one or two, the ones who they enjoy and who pay them handsomely for their expertise.
Why out-of-office messages matter.
The Dying Language of Accounting.
Second, some believe accounting is boring. My 40-year career as a CPA has been anything but. No profession goes deeper into understanding the nature, risks and opportunities of an industry than public accounting. Accountants have a courtside seat, with behind-the-scenes access, to a business landscape constantly changing thanks to globalization, artificial intelligence, climate change, cyber security, and more.
8 ways to take charge of your life when it feels too chaotic to manage. This is what I’d recommend: “Feiler says these periods of transition often make us involuntarily shed something, such as a relationship or a way of being, for example, but they can also be an opportunity to shed something that we don’t like or which is holding us back.”
Why the Return to Office Saga Remains So Gripping.
Two hours reading opinions on sprinkles: How online reviews devour our lives.
Many people told me they spent more time reading online reviews for trivial products like sunscreen and flyswatters than they did researching big purchases like a dishwasher or a new car. Buying big-ticket items is less confusing because these products are often reviewed in vetted guidebooks and there are fewer options available. Basically, there are simply fewer hybrid, all-wheel-drive hatchbacks than there are brands of no-slip socks.