The 2025 Trust Barometer

I've been doing a lot of reading on the concept of trust lately.  For the last twenty-five years or so, the global communication firm Edelman has published an annual "trust barometer" that is freely available on their website.  The 2025 version is entitled "Trust and the Crisis of Grievance".  Richard Edelman, CEO of the company summarized this year's "trust barometer" as a "descent into grievance."  Over the years, Edelman and his team have witnessed "a progression from fears to polarization and now into grievance."  They believe that "grievance stems from a conviction that the system is unfair, business and government make things worse, not better, and the rich keep getting richer."

For the last 25 years, world events have put trust under significant pressure.  The widespread protests in Seattle, Washington against globalization in general and more specifically against the World Trade Organization in 1999 (the "Battle of Seattle") actually inspired Edelman to publish their first "trust barometer".  At that time, non-government organizations (NGOs) were found to be the most trusted institution.  Trust in government declined significantly in 2003, largely in response to the U.S. war in Iraq.  The wave of populism that powered Brexit and the election of several populist leaders around the world led to a significant decline in trust in media in the 2016 trust barometer.  Certainly the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to a greater declines in trust in government and NGOs.  More concerning, the COVID-19 pandemic created mistrust in science and medicine.  Greater polarization led to further declines in trust, which directly resulted in the "descent into grievance" that characterizes our world today.

The 2025 Trust Barometer reported survey findings from more than 33,000 respondents from 28 countries around the world.  Key findings from the survey include:

1. Nearly 2/3 of respondents have a moderate or high sense of grievance, which is defined by a belief that government and business serve a narrow interest (principally the wealthy) and make their lives harder.  Those individuals with a high sense of grievance do not trust any of the four institutions (business, government, media, and NGOs).

2. Fear of discrimination is widespread, with nearly 2/3 of respondents expressing concern about experiencing prejudice, discrimination, or racism in the last year (up by 10 percentage points compared to last year's survey).

3.  Fear that leaders lie is at an all-time high, with a majority of respondents agreeing with the statement that leaders in government, business, and the media purposely mislead people by saying things that they know are false or gross exaggerations.

4. Only 36% of respondents expressed optimism for the next generation, believing that things will be better for the next generation than the current one.  For example, many feel that their job security is threatened by globalization, a looming recession, and automation or artificial intelligence.  

5. Those respondents in the bottom income quartile trust business, government, media, and NGOs the least.  While this is not necessarily surprising, nearly 4 in 10 of the respondents in this quartile would approve of one or more of the following actions: attacking people online, intentionally spreading disinformation, threatening or even committing violence, or damaging public or private property.

These findings should be concerning to all of us, not just those in positions of leadership.  What is clear is that the solution to this problem (dare I say, wicked problem?) is going to take a united effort from all of us, not just our leaders in government.  The report concludes with the statement, "When institutions can't be trusted to do what is right, grievances fester and outlooks darken.  To dissipate grievance and increase optimism, prioritize and rebuild trust across your organization and local communities."  How to do that exactly remains far from clear...

"Eight Marines - not a single one detected..."

Chip Cutter wrote an article that appeared in The Wall Street Journal this past week ("More Big Companies Bet They Can Still Grow Without Hiring") that caught my attention, particularly in light of some of my recent posts (see, for example, "Will we get replaced by AI?", as well as an older post, "Fewer jobs, more machines").  The "quick summary" of the article states, "Companies are increasingly aiming to maintain or reduce workforce size, anticipating AI will automate tasks and boost productivity."  It seems that not a day goes by when I don't read an article or blog post or hear a conversation about how artificial intelligence (AI) is going to replace white collar workers in the not too distant future.  For example, just this morning in the WSJ "10-Point" daily news feed, I saw an article ("Tens of Thousands of White-Collar Jobs Are Disappearing as AI Starts to Bite") that started with the ominous sentence, "The nation's largest employers have a new message for office workers: help not wanted."

Artificial intelligence has even recently passed the Turing test, a test first posed by the English mathematician Alan Turing in the late 1940's that tests a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior equivalent to that of a human.  Notably, Turing originally called his test the imitation game (see the original manuscript, "Computing machinery and intelligence" that was published in the journal, Mind in 1950).  The 2014 film "The Imitation Game" starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley is a biographical drama about Turing, his famous test, and how a team of mathematicians helped crack the German Enigma code during World War II.

There's no question that AI is a game-changer.  I've barely scratched the surface on using AI tools such as Microsoft Copilot or ChatGPT, and I've already noticed significant benefits in productivity.  However, just like any tool, we should be cautious about how much we rely upon AI to do our work.  I've posted in the past about the potential dangers of automation and technology in general (see "Are smart phones making us dumb?", "The Glass Cage").  And I've also posted about how AI at times may not be as good as a real human (see "Artificial Intelligence?").  So, of course a recent post I saw on LinkedIn caught my attention.  I wasn't sure whether it was true or not at first.  However, after some more research, I came to the conclusion that the story was, indeed, legitimate.

Apparently the story first gained prominence after it appeared in Paul Scharre's 2023 book, Four Battlegrounds: Power in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.  The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the U.S. Department of Defense's central research and development organization, was first established in 1958 to help fund cutting-edge research that has often lead to transformative technologies, such as stealth technology, GPS, night vision, and the precursor to today's Internet (ARPANET).  The Economist magazine called DARPA "the agency that shaped the modern world."

DARPA conducted a set of field tests in 2019 to determine if a squad of eight U.S. Marines could outwit an AI security robot.  The robot was "trained" for several days to recognize humans moving in a standard fashion, such as walking or running.  By the end of the training period, the robot performed flawlessly in a series of preliminary tests.  For the actual test, Marines were instructed to use any means possible to avoid detection and touch the AI robot.

As Marines often do ("Improvise, Overcome, Adapt"), the eight Marines went off script and avoided detection.  Two Marines somersaulted for 300 meters across open ground.  Another pair hid beneath a cardboard box and simply walked up to the robot.  One Marine removed a branch from a nearby fir tree and held it in front of himself.  The AI robot saw absolutely nothing.  When asked to detect an intruder, it failed miserably!

As then DARPA Deputy Director Phil Root said, "Eight Marines - not a single one got detected.  You could hear them giggling the whole time."  The system was trained to detect predictable human movements, but it failed to detect unconventional human movements.  The Marines completely fooled the AI robot!  Max Hauptman reported on this story in 2023 (see "Marines outwitted an AI security camera by hiding in a cardboard box and pretending to be trees") and stated, "While an AI can outperform human beings in a specific task, people, as Scharre writes, have a tendency for 'mistaking performance for competence.' In other words, an AI can be very good at what it knows how to do. But the AI doesn’t know what it doesn’t know, and it also doesn’t know that it should know what it doesn’t know."

I'm not saying that this is definitive proof that we won't all get replaced by AI in the future.  I actually think that AI will continue to be a game-changer.  And the AI that was available in 2023 is very different than today's AI - and the technology is getting better every day.  But I'm also not ready to give up on us humans.  As Scharre himself wrote, "Humans tend to have a much richer understanding of the world."  So, even if a group of U.S. Air Force pilots can't beat an AI flown F-16 in a dogfight, the Marines remain undefeated against AI!  At least for now...

Da Vinci's Seven Principles

Leonardo da Vinci was the textbook definition of a polymath.  A polymath is an individual whose knowledge, skills, and expertise span many different subjects.  These individuals draw upon their extensive knowledge and expertise to solve complex and difficult problems.  Leonardo da Vinci lived during the so-called High Renaissance period.  For this reason, we often use the terms polymath and Renaissance man interchangeably.  

We could certainly learn a lot from Leonardo da Vinci.  The author and management consultant Michael J. Gelb wrote a book in 1998 entitled, How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day.  While da Vinci himself never wrote down a set of "seven principles", Gelb and other modern thinkers have listed seven principles needed to understand his genius, based largely upon da Vinci's own notebooks, writings, and life.  They are:

Curiosità

The Italian word curiosità is translated directly to the English word curiosity.   Leonardo da Vinci possessed an insatiable and lifelong curiosity for all things, asked questions to explore life's wonders, and sought new experiences and knowledge.  His notebooks are filled with his observations and ideas, and he famously sketched out his ideas for an early version of the airplane, the helicopter, the parachute, and an armored tank.  If we wish to be like da Vinci, we should start by asking questions and continuously learning.  As Ted Lasso famously said, "Be curious" (see my post "Barbecue Sauce").  

Dimostrazione 

The Italian word dimostrazione is translated directly to the English word demonstration. Leonardo da Vinci was committed to learning through direct, hands-on experience.  He believed that we learn best when we learn from our own mistakes.  It is often said that experience is the best teacher, and I am sure that Leonardo da Vinci would agree with that sentiment.  I am reminded (see one of my old posts) of a quote by former major league baseball player, Vern Law (who won the Cy Young Award in 1960 while pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates), who said, "Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lesson afterwards." 

Sensazione 

The Italian word sensazione is translated directly to the English word sensation.  Leonardo da Vinci believed that in order to maximize our experiences (see above), we needed to use each of our five senses, particularly the sense of sight.  We learn by our experience, for sure, but we experience our world around us through our five senses (see my post "All life is an experiment" for more).  

Sfumato 

The Italian word sfumato refers to one of da Vinci's painting techniques that uses subtle, soft blending to create a hazy or "smoky" transition between colors and tones, effectively blurring harsh lines (his masterpiece Mona Lisa is an excellent example of this technique).  However, in this context, the term is used to suggest that not everything has a clear answer.  We live in a world characterized by uncertainty. In order to be thrive in this world, we need to be willing to embrace ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty (see my posts "Welcome to the age of chaos..." and "What if this isn't the storm?").

Arte/Scienza 

These two Italian words translate directly to the English words art and science.  In order to thrive in a world of chaos and uncertainty (see above), we need to strike a balance between logic and imagination, between science and art.  We need to leverage our "whole brain" in order to merge our analytical powers with our creative ones (see my posts, "What do Robert Frost, Hippocrates, and Daniel Drake have in common?", "Ipsa scientia potestas est", and "A night at the theatre").

Corporalità 

The Italian word corporalità translates directly to the English word corporality or corporeality.  The concept refers to the cultivation of grace, ambidexterity, fitness, and poise.  Leonardo da Vinci, as a scientist, was fascinated by the human body and, more importantly, by the connections between physical health and mental well-being (see my post, "The Five Pillars of Happiness").  True wisdom can only come when we are thriving from a physical, mental, and spiritual standpoint.  

Connessione 

The Italian word connessione translates directly into the English word connection.  Leonardo da Vinci thought about the interconnectedness of all things and applied "systems thinking" in order to see and understand patterns and links between seemingly unrelated ideas.  Just as important, I believe (and the evidence strongly supports) that in order to thrive in today's world, we need to stay connected with our friends, family, and peers (see my post "The truth about connection", "Ubuntu", "It's a small world after all...", and most recently, "Connections").  

So there you have it!  Follow these seven principles and you will be well on your way to becoming a person of the Renaissance!  More importantly, they will help you to become a better person and a better leader.

Happy Halloween!

Today is October 31st - that means it is Halloween!  Today I'm going to re-post a favorite from the past (the year 2018 in fact).

One of the many great things about working in a children's hospital is that you get to wear your Halloween costume to work - and it's completely acceptable!  In the spirit of Halloween, I want to talk about one of my all-time favorite television shows growing up - the cartoon series, "Scooby Doo, Where Are You!", which was produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1969 to 1970 (surprisingly, this now iconic series aired for only two seasons before going into syndication and generating a number of spin-offs).  The show featured the adventures of Scooby Doo and Mystery, Inc., a group of four teenagers who solved mysteries which frequently involved ghosts, monsters, and the supernatural.  

Shaggy Rogers (I bet you didn't know his last name was Rogers!) and his best pal, Scooby Doo, once gave some really great advice:

Hold on, man.  We don't go anywhere with 'scary,' 'spooky', 'haunted,' or 'forbidden' in the title.

It seems fairly intuitive and simple, but the advice is really great.  Unfortunately, most of the mysteries that Scooby Doo and his friends were trying to solve involved going to places with the words 'scary,' 'spooky,' 'haunted,' and 'forbidden' in the title!  That happens a lot of times in the real world too.   Despite our best intentions, the world can be a dangerous place.  And no matter how hard we try, there are times when we are going to have to choose to take risks.

I like to read and write a lot about so-called High Reliability Organizations.  HROs are usually defined as organizations that have succeeded in avoiding serious accidents or catastrophes in dangerous environments - the kind of environments where accidents are not only likely to occur, they are expected to occur.  The important point to realize, however, is that these same HROs don't seek to avoid risk - indeed, they could not exist if they did.  Rather, these organizations manage that risk in such a way that when (because it's always a matter of "when" and not "if") accidents occur, the adverse impact on the organization is significantly attenuated.  

Shaggy and Scooby Doo tried hard every episode to avoid taking a risk.  However, the whole purpose of Mystery, Inc. was to solve the mystery, and solving the mystery required taking a risk.  Scooby and his friends usually did a good job of managing risk - I wouldn't say that Mystery, Inc. was a great example of a High Reliability Organization, but they usually did pretty well in the end.  There was always the line from the villain at the conclusion of every episode, "I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling kids."

So, in the spirit of Halloween, take a leadership cue from the gang at Mystery, Inc.  Manage your risks.  Solve the mystery.  And have fun.

Connections

I recently posted about Dr. Vivek Murthy's (Dr. Murthy was the 19th and 21st Surgeon General of the Untied States) report, "The Healing Effects of Social Connection" (see my two posts "The Loneliness Epidemic" and "Ubuntu") and his "Parting Prescription for America".  Apparently his "Parting Prescription" is no longer available on the Department of Health and Human Services website.  I've also posted a lot about the role that television (see "Amusing Ourselves to Death"), technology (see "The Walkman Effect", "The Quiet Commute", and "Take a Break...") and social media (see "Familiarity breeds contempt...",  "Liberation", and "The truth about connection") have played in this epidemic of loneliness.  I think we can easily make the argument that the more time we spend on technology (e.g. smart phone, Internet) or social media, the less time we are connecting with others (friends, family, etc).  

Other people a lot smarter than I have also made the observation that we are less connected now than ever before.  I have referenced the author and journalist Nicholas Carr a number of times in the past.  His books are very interesting (see in particular his most recent book, Superbloom: How Technologies of Connection Tear Us Apart), but his blog posts are even more compelling in my opinion.  Carr published a collection of his articles and blog posts in Utopia Is Creepy: And Other Provocations.  Jonathan Haidt's book The Anxious Generation is also an important book that has received a lot of attention recently.  Several books by the Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam with a similar theme are also on my reading list (Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, Better Together: Restoring the American Community, and The Upswing: How America Came Together a Century Ago and How We Can Do It Again) and come highly recommended.

With all of this in mind, I recently came across a great online article by the social entrepreneur Aaron Hurst, who recently co-founded the U.S. Chamber of Connection, a movement to reverse the decline in connection and trust in society today.  They've called the connection gap the greatest challenge of our time, stating that "We are divided and disconnected.  It is destroying lives, communities, and our country."  The article "How '6 points of connection' can repair our shared trust" appeared on bigthink.com this past August.  Hurst stated the key takeaways of the article:

1. "Workplace loneliness is a growing issue fueled by the erosion of everyday connection."

2. "The decline in connection and trust is the result of more than a century of technological and social change." (see my points above!)

3. "In divided times, shared action often builds more unity than shared opinions."

While many have blamed this decline in connection and trust on social media and COVID-19, the truth of the matter is that this decline has been a long-standing trend over the past century or so.  Hurst blames social media (of course), but he also suggests that automobiles, television, the Internet, smartphones, and even artificial intelligence are just as guilty.  The U.S. Chamber of Connection offers six points of connection that we can establish and foster, which will help reverse this slow decline and restore our trust in society today.

Point #1: Know Your Neighbors

When I grew up, we knew all of our neighbors.  All of the adults (most, but not all had children around my age) watched out for us kids.  We used to have neighborhood block parties, and all of the neighborhood kids would play together.  As I've grown older, I've started to truly know my neighbors less and less over the years.  Today, according to a 2023 survey by Pew Research, only 26% of Americans know most of their neighbors and just 44% say they trust them.  Times have definitely changed!  Hurst states (and I agree), "To rebuild a connected life, one of the most powerful actions is also one of the simplest: get to know the people who live near you."  Stopping to say hello, offering to help with a small task, organizing a block part, inviting a neighbor to dinner - all of these small acts of kindness help build trust, belonging, and a shared sense of responsibility and community.  

Point #2: Community of Identity

Robert Putnam writes about the decline in participation in clubs, civic groups, sports leagues, and religious groups and how this has directly led to a decline in trust and connection in American society today in the books I listed above.  We all need to feel seen and heard, and one of the best ways to make that happen is through forming a community of identity, a group of individuals who share similar beliefs and experiences with our own.  According to the American Survey Center, almost fifty percent of adults under the age of 30 years say that they don't feel part of any community.  Hurst writes, "A community of identity provides a sense of home beyond geography...These groups offer something rare: shared language, shared understanding, and fewer barriers to being your full self...When you are deeply connected to at least one group that reflects who you are, you're more equipped to bridge divides and contribute meaningfully across society."

Point #3: One-on-one Connection

I've always said that everyone should have at least one true friend that they can count on for support.  It truly takes just one friend.  One study ("How many hours does it take to make a friend?") suggests that it takes about 200 hours of interaction to form a true friendship.  Unfortunately, many of us don't spend anywhere close to that amount of time.  According to the American Time Use Survey, nearly 40% of adults in the U.S. spend no time with friends during a typical day.  But it's important to have at least one friend who we can trust and rely upon to anchor us emotionally.  We all need someone who will celebrate our successes and who we can lean upon when we fail.  

Point #4: Third Places

Howard Schultz, founder and former CEO of Starbucks, had a vision to design a place where people could go and hang out and enjoy a great cup of coffee (see my post "It's not about the coffee...").  He described his vision, saying, "The idea was to create a chain of coffeehouses that would become America's third place.  At the time, most Americans had two places in their lives - home and work.  But I believed that people needed another place, a place where they could go to relax and enjoy others, or just be by themselves.  I envisioned a place that would be separate from home or work, a place that would mean different things to different people."  Unfortunately, at least one survey showed that nearly half of U.S. adults can't name a single place where they regularly connect with others outside of home or work.  Hurst writes, "Third places matter because they invite spontaneous connection - between generations, across cultures, and beyond our usual social circles.  They're where we bump into each other, strike up conversations, and build trust without needing an invitation."

All we have to do is show up.  Visit a third place such as the public library.  Introduce yourself to the people who work there.  Say yes to the community event.  Become an advocate for third spaces, such as public parks, plazas, or gathering spots.  Be present in your community!

Point #5: Activity-based Community

Again, referring back to Robert Putnam.  One of the best ways that we can get involved with our local community is by participating in regular group activities, such as book clubs, sports leagues, civic or religious groups, or even neighborhood homeowners' associations.  Again, according to a recent survey, only one in four U.S. adults belongs to a local club, team, or hobby group that meets on a routine basis.  Joining and participating in an activity-based group of like-interested individuals can help increase life satisfaction and lower stress.  These groups can also support the third places and other community groups, creating what Hurst calls a "virtuous cycle of local connection."

Point #6: Community Service

Hurst writes, "Helping others is one of the most reliable paths to connection, meaning, and joy."  Spending time helping others and helping our community is a great way to form connections and build mutual trust and shared ownership.  Hurst goes on to write, "Volunteering at its best isn't about checking a box - it's about showing up for each other."

The "Six Points of Connection" aren't going to address all of our society's problems right away.  They are designed to be iterative, and I do believe that they are a great place to start.  We need to re-establish deep connections with each other, which will go a long way to re-building trust and harmony.

Mind-set matters...

The so-called "placebo effect" is a great example of "mind over matter", referring to the commonly observed phenomenon in which willpower and determination can help an individual persevere through physical pain, fatigue, or other difficult circumstances.  I recently came across an older study published in the journal Psychological Science in 2007 ("Mind-set matters: Exercise and the placebo effect") in which 84 hotel employees were split into two groups.  The first group ("informed group") was told that the work they do - cleaning the hotel rooms - was good exercise and satisfied the Surgeon General's recommendations for an active lifestyle.  The second group ("control group") were not told this information.  After 4 weeks, individuals in the informed group perceived themselves to be getting significantly more exercise than before the study.  More importantly, compared with the individuals in the control group, these hotel employees showed a decrease in weight, blood pressure, body fat, waist-to-hip ratio, and body mass index!  In other words, simply changing their mind-set and giving their everyday work meaning (it was exercise) produced tangible health benefits.

The author Zach Mercurio talked about the power of mattering at work in a recent Harvard Business Review article ("The Power of Mattering at Work"), which I mentioned in my last post ("To be of importance to others is to be alive...").  The article was adapted from Mercurio's newest book, The Power of Mattering: How Leaders Can Create a Culture of Significance.  Mercurio suggests that helping others to see the importance of their work and how it connects to the greater mission of an organization can make all the difference in the world.  He writes, "When people know that they matter at work, they thrive."  Feeling that you matter strengthens your motivation, self-esteem, and self-efficacy.  And it improves your performance and engagement.

Mercurio offers several helpful points for leaders to create a sense of mattering in their organizations.  Importantly, he suggests that "mattering" can be measured (and he provides a measurement tool to do just that in his HBR article).  He says that "the first and most important step in cultivating a sense of mattering is to truly notice people."  Noticing others requires both seeing ("acknowledging them and paying attention to the details, ebbs, and flows of their life and work") and hearing ("demonstrating a genuine interest in the meaning and feeling behind their words and inviting them to share their experiences, perspectives, and feedback within a climate of psychological safety").  

In order to notice people, leaders need to make time and space to do that.  Leaders need to pay "deep attention" by fully connecting with the people on their team or in their organization.  And leaders need to respond compassionately and always follow up.  Leaders also need to affirm people by showing them that they are needed, whether by acknowledging their unique gifts and contributions to the team or by telling stories about how their work is connected to the greater mission of the organization.  

Mercurio ends the article by writing, "By genuinely seeing, hearing, affirming, and expressing how we need and value one another across our organizations, we can do more than foster connection.  We can reignite a sense of interdependence and bring our workplaces - and one another - back to life."  I am sure he goes into a lot more detail on how to create a sense of mattering at work in his book, which I have ordered from our local public library!  More to come on that in a future post...

"To be of importance to others is to be alive..."

I read a powerful anecdote in a recent article in the Harvard Business Review ("The Power of Mattering at Work") written by Zach Mercurio.  The article was adapted from his newly released book, The Power of Mattering: How Leaders Can Create a Culture of Significance.  Mercurio starts the article by telling a story about Jane, an environmental services employee at a local university.  Jane had just started the job after previously working as a live-in caregiver for a beloved family member who had recently passed away.  After a few shifts, she found herself struggling and asking, "Why couldn't I have done something more with my life?" or "I wish I were more than just a janitor."  

Luckily, Jane's supervisor noticed her struggling and handed her a dictionary.  She asked Jane to look up the word custodian and read the definition out loud.  Jane responded, "A custodian is a person responsible for looking after something."  Her supervisor pointed at her and said, "That's you.  You're responsible for and take 'custody' of this building and everyone in it."  

Jane's perspective changed because her supervisor pointed out to her that what she was doing mattered.  She wasn't "just" a janitor - she was "responsible for the building and everyone in it."  She was their custodian.  Jane ended up staying on the job for the next 18 years before finally retiring.

The story reminds me of another one that I've mentioned a couple of times in the past (see "Back to that Vision thing...NASA, cathedrals, and an automobile executive" and "We are all caregivers...").  The story involves President John F. Kennedy and a janitor that he met during a tour of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).  President Kennedy asked the janitor, "What do you do here?"  The janitor responded, "I'm helping put a man on the moon."  Even if there's no evidence that this story actually happened (there's a similar story about the famous architect Christopher Wren, who designed St. Paul's Cathedral in London), it's yet another powerful reminder of the importance of mattering.

Mercurio defines mattering as the experience if feeling significant to those around us because we feel valued and know that we add value.  It's more than just a sense of belonging (feeling welcomed and accepted in a group).  When we matter to the group, we feel significant to the individual member's of the group.

Study after study has shown that when employees feel that they matter at work, they experience greater self-esteem, self-worth, and self-efficacy.  Mattering strengthens motivation, well-being, and performance.  Unfortunately, Mercurio cited polls that show that 30% of individuals feel "invisible" at work, 65% of employees feel underappreciated, and close to 82% of individuals feel lonely at work (see my previous post on the epidemic of loneliness).  He wrote further, "Many of the workplace challenges currently plaguing leaders - a 10-year low in engagement numbers, demands for dignity and equity, increased labor action, declining employee mental health, and a few years ago, quiet quitting and the Great Resignation - can be traced to a growing mattering deficit."

The great Modernist poet T.S. Eliot reportedly once said, "To be of importance to others is to be alive."  If we can make that connection in someone's mind that what they do truly matters to the mission of the organization, we can take an important step in addressing the growing mattering deficit that Mercurio refers to in his article.  Mattering matters.  And I'll come back to this topic in a future post.