Back to Human

Back to Human:  How Great Leaders Create Connection in the Age of Isolation, by Dan Schawbel, Hachette/Da Capo 2018 

Key words:  Human...Age of Isolation

We feel the addictive intrusion of technology, even when we are becoming and feeling more isolated from our colleagues and families.  Author Dan Schawbel says however, that what we crave most, and what research supports, is a "sense of authentic connection with others."  In fact he rates this human connection very high on Maslow's scale, coming after basic survival.  And, he rates the social isolation problem as important as the student loan crisis, global warming and world war to his generation.

Leaders are feeling challenged to develop strong connections with their key employees, but it can be difficult to understand which buttons to push, which changes are the right ones.  Here are the shockers that make the human isolation problem even more pressing for current leaders:

1. nearly one in ten jobs will be eliminated this year

2. organizations have become more decentralized, fluid and automated

3.  in some areas robots are easily taking the place of humans

4.  disconnection - In a global research study Schawbel conducted with Virgin Pulse of over 2000 managers and employees, results showed that 1/3 of employees work remote always or very often.. However, remote workers are much less likely to stay at their company long-term, and only 5% see themselves working at their company their entire career.  This ties to a 115 percent increase in remote workers in the past decade.  Pretty soon we won't be needing the big corporate headquarters!  Hah.  While remote work promotes flexibility and eliminates the cost and tedium of long commutes, it has made employees feel more isolated, lonely and less committed to their teams and organizations.

What are leaders to do?  Schawbel advises leaders to consciously work on fostering human connections. Here readers could use many many more suggestions, beyond "put the phone down!", and mentoring discussions.  It is more helpful to work on the books' self-assessment, "The Work Connectivity Index," as well as the powerful exercises and activities offered for individuals and teams.

Readers will be impressed with the quotes and references from name-brand organizations, including Instagram, Uber, Google, Starbucks, General Mills, Nike, Four Seasons, and the US Air Force.

Pay particular attention to Chapter 7, Hire for Personality, " Personality before CV.  A person who has multiple degrees in your field isn't always better than someone with broad experience and a wonderful personality." - Richard Branson

Patricia E. Moody

FORTUNE magazine  "Pioneering Woman in Mfg" 

IndustryWeek IdeaXchange Xpert

A Mill Girl at Blue Heron Journal, on-line resource for business thought-leaders and decision-makers, pemoody@aol.com, patriciaemoody@gmail.com, tricia@patriciaemoody.com,