Tell me, are we allowed to...?
If you're a middle manager, you probably know this question from your everyday life. Perhaps you've heard your employees pose it, maybe to such an extent that you sometimes catch yourself thinking, 'Why should so many decisions actually go through me?' Perhaps you've also posed the question upward in your organization to ensure you're on track with the management's KPIs and expectations.
We need breathing spaces, breaks, and self-love in order to give while also growing from it
We thrive best when, as individuals, employees, and leaders, we have the opportunity to give while also growing from it. However, we can only do that when we remember to recover and occasionally take the time for a self-loving 'give-while-I-grow' check. That's why breaks and mental breathing spaces are so crucial for our well-being, to the extent that they can actually be equated with fundamental needs like sleep and nutrition.
Have you considered what provides meaning for you?
"Imagine if..." Those three words in context are one of my favorite expressions because they inspire me to wonder. I often wonder, especially if the growth paradigm, its dogmas, and ideals have actually led us away from a much more cohesive way of understanding ourselves in the world, which would make much more sense for individuals.
Quiet quitting – What is the meaning?
There has been an election in Denmark, and regardless of the government's color and composition, action needs to be taken. My greatest hope and heartfelt urging for the new government is that, through action, reforms, and human responsibility, it confronts the "sick" structures and endless exercises in cost-cutting and efficiency that, for far too many years, have contributed to the decline of meaning, values, and purpose — and to employees, leaders, professionals, and citizens who have simply had enough!
Yes, we need to move forward individually and organizationally – AND that requires a focus on constructive, honest, awareness-raising dialogues about meaning, well-being, and what we have learned from the pandemic.
Fortunately, the fog of the pandemic is lifting, and we now find ourselves in a place where, by listening to our own experiences, well-being research, and making room for presence, tranquility, self-compassion, constructive conversations, and shared exchanges of experiences, we can pave the way for more well-being, meaning, and greater job satisfaction.
Therefore, your brain develops when you fast
Just 20 years ago, it was believed that the brain's capacity was limited to the cells we are born with. That one had a brain with a certain number of nerve cells that remained constant throughout life. Since then, research has made us wiser, and today there is agreement that the human brain develops throughout life – provided, of course, that we give it the opportunity to do so.
Our talented public leaders deserve more time for the core task
I have repeatedly confirmed how dedicated, skilled, loyal, and hardworking public leaders we have in Denmark – but at the same time, I see a group of public leaders who feel tremendously pressured because they lack time for personnel management.
With a wish for more humanity and a well-being fostering new year
With a wish for more humanity and a well-being fostering new year January is a suitable time for reflections on the past year and the 365 days that the new year holds. So, I have decided to start the year by sharing some of my biggest wishes and hopes for the new year with you. And those wishes and hopes contain echoes of both major and minor keys.
We have created an entire population group that doesn't feel they can do well enough
We have created an entire population group that doesn't feel they can do well enough. We have now streamlined and squeezed the lemon so much – and for so long – that we have created a huge population group struggling to find meaning in their professional lives. And we really need to take that seriously – now.
New alarming stress figures only show the tip of the iceberg
The alarming figures clearly indicate that we have now reached a point where the prevailing growth paradigm is beginning to manifest in well-being measurements. In other words, we see how efficiency measures, cost-cutting exercises, and the pursuit of target management are starting to impact individual employees both mentally and physically. And my guess is that we have only seen the tip of the iceberg.
