flexibility isn’t optional
Hiii,
Happy Wednesday, friends!
I'm reporting to you from Austin for the rest of the week for some IRL fun with my coworkers! 🥳
I enjoy these in-person events because the excitement is always so infectious.
You know what's not exciting, though?
Being FORCED to be in person and RTO, which brings us to yet another CEO who thinks forcing butts-in-seats will fix culture. Go figure.
As if flexibility is a perk you can give and then snatch back!
I think “flexibility” might be the word of the day for this ✨ mood boost! ✨
🗞️ Here’s the Tea:Copy anchor linkCopied
🏢 Paramount’s new CEO tells employees to return to office full-time or quit ahead of layoffs
The TL;DR: Paramount’s new CEO David Ellison is forcing employees back to the office five days a week starting 2026, or they can take a buyout by Sept. 15. The mandate comes ahead of mass layoffs (2,000–3,000 people) as the company looks to cut $2 billion in costs after its Skydance merger.
My POV: This is yet another textbook case of culture as collateral damage during a merger. Forcing a one-size-fits-all return-to-office while dangling layoffs creates more fear and less engagement.
We’ve seen how quickly talent hits the road when flexibility disappears!
So if you’re advising leadership right now, this is your reminder: mandates without trust and communication don’t “unlock potential,” they lock people out.
🎙️ Mic Drop Moment:Copy anchor linkCopied
“We bring so much more than just work to work.”Copy anchor linkCopied
On the mic this week: Latesha Bird is the founder and CEO of Perfeqta, where she partners with organizations to design people-first cultures. As an executive coach and speaker, she guides leaders through change with a focus on team alignment, culture clarity, and long-term sustainability. Her work sits at the intersection of leadership norms, data-driven accountability, and day-to-day behaviors that make cultures effective.
Pin this:
- Real culture = values operationalized in meetings, feedback, and decisions, not just written on a wall.
- Trust repair starts with naming the harm, asking for feedback, and acting quickly. Silence breeds disengagement.
- Hold leaders accountable with clear norms, metrics, and reviews. Tie behavior to KPIs and performance, not vibes.
- Don’t launch 10 initiatives at once—solve the root cause, not the headline. Avoid “band-aid on open-heart surgery” culture work.
My H*ly Sh*t Moment: Leaders love a metric, so tie culture and accountability directly to KPIs, because culture stops being fluff the second it’s measured like revenue or churn!
▶️ Press Play
📊 Data Is My Love Language:Copy anchor linkCopied
Stat: 82% of Gen Z say integrating exercise into their working day boosts productivity and energy levels, valuing the advantages of flexible working
My spiral: Wellness has lowkey become core to how Gen Z lives and works, and I love that!
They're literally telling us: give me time and flexibility to move my body, and I’ll show up sharper, happier, and more engaged.
If we want to attract and retain this workforce, fitness has to move from a perk to a strategy.
If companies ignore this, they risk looking out of touch with the workforce they’re trying to keep.
🗣️ UNMUTE YOURSELF
I’m sure you’ve been running nonstop between back-to-back fires and trying to hold your team together with good intentions.
But here’s the thing: burnout doesn’t announce itself, it just shows up one day and refuses to leave.
So my question to you is:
“What does rest look like for you right now, and are you actually getting it?”
🛠️ TRY THIS TOMORROW:
Language shapes how people see us, and half of our job is reading between the lines anyway!
The tiniest word swap can shift tone from apologetic to confident, without losing empathy.
So tomorrow, try this:
“Swap ‘Sorry for the delay’ with ‘Thanks for your patience’ in your next message.”
👂 OVERHEARD IN SAFE SPACE
This man just turned a viral meme into the world’s most privileged take! 🏆
Brb, also screaming.
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See ya on Friday!
