The Rebirth of the Workforce Will See People Showing Up Whole. Are You Ready?
The Great Re-evaluation is here, and people are not only questioning their jobs and employers, but they are stepping back and asking themselves what really matters. What do I want my life to look like? How do I want to work? How do I want to allocate my time? Who do I want to be?
People are changing for the better. They are going to emerge ready to show up fully with authenticity and passion, to initiate and create, to speak their truth, to reconnect in community with others, and to fiercely protect their personal boundaries of time, wellbeing, and love. They are going to show up with their feelings and their hearts. In short, they are going to really show up, show up fully human.
This period we are entering is the rebirth of the workforce as we have known it. In this new era of work, we will not think of people as workers or, even worse, as “resources.” We will not yell, curse, threaten, belittle, or control them. (For anyone reading who doesn’t think this happens anymore, look deeper.) We will not acquire them, rate them, or retain them. Just think about how those words sound! Because this period marks the rise of the individual.
Todd Rose, president of the think tank Populace and former director of Harvard’s Mind, Brain and Education program, talks about the importance of the individual in his book, “The End of Average.” Each person is an individual, and is going to expect to be treated and managed as such. Once we embrace this concept, we and our organizations will be so much better for it. Not only better, but thriving.
