When was the last time your team really laughed together?

Not a polite chuckle on Zoom. Not a nervous laugh during an icebreaker.

I mean the kind of guffaw laughter that makes your sides hurt and your cheeks sore from smiling so hard.

Laughter has long been called the best medicine, but it turns out it’s also one of the most underused leadership tools.

Have you seen Chris Hemsworth's show Limitless on Disney+? I highly recommend. While enjoying the extreme stunts and peak physical fitness is fun, the show is a great reminder that stretching yourself, mentally and physically, is essential to growth and longevity.

Hemsworth, aka Thor, has plenty of money and could spend the rest of his life taking it easy. He could relax with his family, go surfing, act when he feels the inclination, and enjoy life at his own pace. But that's not the drive he feels. Chris understands that not challenging himself could limit his potential, reduce his vitality, and ultimately shorten his lifespan. Pushing boundaries, learning new skills, and staying active are his ways of ensuring he not only lives longer, but lives fully.

In the last Leading On Purpose blog post, I talked about The Great Stay from the employee's perspective. Workers aren't exactly rushing for the exits right now. Due to economic uncertainty, hiring freezes, and layoff fears due to AI, people are staying rooted right where they are.

The Great Stay is this current period in the job market where employees are choosing stability over risk. Fewer workers are walking away from their jobs. The U.S. quit rate has dropped to just 2.2%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a sharp contrast to the height of the Great Resignation, when over 4 million people were quitting every month.

But there's a hidden trap... Stability for employees doesn't automatically equal growth for organizations. If organizational leaders simply take advantage of this season by doing nothing, what you’ll really get is a stagnant culture, and when the job market swings back, those “stable” employees will be gone in a heartbeat.

Layoffs fueled by AI are splashed across headlines daily. Families whisper at dinner tables, wondering if tomorrow will be the day their breadwinner’s role gets swallowed by a machine.

Software engineer? On edge.

Customer service rep? Scared.

Travel agent? Worried

Sales representative? Nervous

And you are probably right to be concerned. In the Federal Reserve’s August survey, workers said they only had a 44.9% chance of landing a new job if they lost their current one. That’s the lowest confidence level since the survey began in 2013. People aren’t exactly optimistic about bouncing back right now.

While maybe this isn’t the time to storm into your boss’s office demanding a raise or handing in your two weeks’ notice. But standing still isn’t the move either.

Lawnmower parents suck. Yeah, I said it.

Feel free to hate me.

I'm not a parent. I'm also not a helicopter pilot, but if I see a helicopter in a tree, I know that someone messed up.

For those who don't know the term, lawnmower parents, also known as snowplow parents or bulldozer parents, are those who actively remove obstacles and hardships from their child's path, ensuring a smooth and easy journey for them. No bumps. No challenges. No struggles. Their mission? Make life as smooth as possible.

This proactive approach, while often stemming from a desire to protect and support, can hinder a child's development of essential life skills, resilience, and problem-solving abilities.

You might believe an organization of coaches would be a self-sustaining engine of growth. Everyone knows how to ask the right questions, hold people accountable, and spot limiting beliefs.

So why do teams of coaches still need team building, culture development, and leadership coaching?

Because coaching individuals isn't the same as coaching a TEAM. Individual coaching changes a person. Cohesion Culture™ changes the environment they operate in.

The mismatch nobody wants to admit

Coaches train clients.

Teams need alignment, psychological safety, and a shared operating rhythm.

One-to-one coaching can change habits.

But an organization’s norms, reward structures, and leader behaviors decide whether those habits survive. If the culture contradicts the coaching, the coaching becomes an expensive one-off.

Most organizations say they want leadership development.

Few are willing to get uncomfortable enough to actually develop it.

I try to regularly do things that make me uncomfortable—sign up for an improv class, hike a mountain I’ve never climbed, kayak a river I don’t know, or travel to a country where I don’t speak the language.

Most recently, I took a trip to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado with an incredible group of friends. We drove Jeeps across rugged passes, hiked through wild terrain, explored deep caverns, and soaked in the kind of beauty that can only be earned. It wasn’t easy, but that was the point.

My nerves kick in just like everyone else's. My hands get sweaty. My heart races. My inner voice gets loud.

But it's also exciting. Really, really exciting. I feel fully alive.

Bosses say, “Return to the office.”

Employees say, “No thanks.”

And the data says they aren't bluffing.

Companies have been droning on about Return-to-Office (RTO) for over a year now, but the results? Barely any movement.

According to data collected by Stanford University professor Nick Bloom and his team, office attendance policies have increased by 10% since early 2024 yet actual attendance has risen by less than 2%.

Return-to-office mandates from major employers like Amazon (3 days/week), Google (3 days/week), and JPMorgan Chase (full-time for senior leaders) have barely moved the needle. Employees are quietly pushing back on mandates they see as out of touch with their realities and their proven ability to perform remotely.