If you spend too much time "in the trenches" with your team or with your head in the clouds as a visionary, it's a good bet your team sees you as a poor leader, which is why Suzy Welch of NYU Stern School of Business, recommends becoming a "lanager" who can balance leadership and management skills. "Lanagers" must be able to move between practical execution and big-picture thinking and have the conviction needed to make tough decisions, says Welch.

Practicing mindful leadership starts with being in the moment and connecting with your team members, writes Josephine McGrail, a meditation and yoga facilitator, who adds that empathy is a crucial skill for leadership. "Leaders who choose to be present and stay compassionately curious of the lives of their team, will feel more connected to those around them and will be happier, which will create a positive ripple effect," McGrail writes.

Entrepreneur Cynthia Kay says it is important to choose candidates for the size and nature of the company. Individuals from larger companies may struggle in smaller, more hands-on environments, underscoring the need to assess whether candidates can adapt to different organizational sizes.

Career coach Kendall Berg emphasizes viewing your career as a strategic game, similar to chess, where intentional moves, such as building relationships and self-advocacy, can lead to success and fulfillment. Berg explains that understanding both official and unwritten rules can help one progress from a starting position to a leadership role.

As summer approaches, benefit managers can prepare for an uptick in paid time off requests by addressing vacation anxiety, offering flexible schedules for parents and promoting health and safety resources for traveling employees. Managers should also model healthy time-off behavior to encourage employees to take necessary breaks.

The retreat from diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives by US companies has resulted in the loss of more than 2,600 DEI-related jobs since early 2023, affecting about 13% of DEI roles that existed at the height of hiring, according to an analysis by Revelio Labs. The cuts are part of a broader trend where companies like Verizon, Walmart and Amazon are scaling back their DEI initiatives amid a political climate unfavorable to such programs. "There is still more demand for DEI roles and similar roles than we saw at the beginning of 2020 — but it does look like these are trending to reach levels back to where we all started," says Revelio Labs data scientist Paulina Tilly.

American Airlines has refocused on the corporate market, according to Lucas Martin, senior vice president of sales, by rebuilding its sales team, aiming to hire 175 people and enhancing its indirect channel presence. The company also is working on continuous pricing and bundles and has restarted corporate forums to strengthen relationships with corporate travel managers.

Many misconceptions about rest exist, such as equating it solely with sleep or treating it as unproductive time. Confusing busyness with productivity often leads people to devalue rest or avoid it. True rest should not be mistaken for performing chores or engaging in mentally demanding tasks during breaks, which can sabotage its effectiveness.

Remember the story from a few weeks back about my son's former high school track teammate's amazing 400M race -- while training during the day and unloading UPS trucks at night? Well, Jacory Patterson continues his streak. On Sunday, he won the 400M at the Rabat Diamond League race in Morocco, his first Diamond League win, beating out reigning Olympic champion Quincy Hall. It's so fun to watch races when you have someone to root for. -- Janet Connor Kahler, editor of Your Career