If you want your team to understand your company's purpose and how they fit into it, then use your daily actions -- on purpose -- to reinforce it in meetings, hiring practices and communication by highlighting how their jobs make an impact, writes university professor Benjamin Laker, who notes that consistency is key. "Employees notice what leaders celebrate and what they overlook. When they see alignment between words and behavior, they respond with commitment. When they see contradiction, they respond with cynicism," Laker writes.

Put it into practice: Use meetings to reflect on how your team's work contributes to your company's purpose and tell stories about the real-world impact of what your team does, Laker suggests. "Purpose does not need to be discovered in a retreat or written by a consultant. It needs to be practiced daily -- in decisions, in language, in how leaders show up when things go wrong."

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Retention is becoming less of a leadership challenge as employees "job hug" amid economic uncertainty, but this presents an opportunity for leaders to focus on regeneration, writes leadership expert Julie Winkle Giulioni. This includes engaging in development conversations and encouraging safe experiments to keep employees engaged and thriving. "Investing in their growth sends a powerful signal of support while also allowing employees to take constructive action to prepare for an uncertain future," Winkle Giulioni writes.

Put it into practice: Re-energize your team by giving them a chance to try new ideas, celebrate the lessons learned from mistakes and model how you've done new things and grown from missteps, writes Winkle Giulioni. "No-fault forays inject energy, build resilience, foster adaptability and enable a sense of accomplishment."

Seattle Storm head coach Sonia Raman shares her approach to delivering constructive criticism quickly during high-pressure situations, emphasizing the importance of building trust with players through genuine interactions throughout the year. "There's not going to be a lot of time. You have to be really direct, and you have to go for it," Raman says. By showing players she cares about them beyond their athletic performance, Raman creates an environment where honest communication and constructive criticism are more easily accepted.

Put it into practice: Your relationship with each of your team members is unique, which means your technique should be too, but start with genuine interactions, Raman says. "As I make those connections and [my players] start to understand that I care, and that I care not just about the wins and the losses, but about them as people, then the rest of the conversations flow."

The "sleepmaxxing" social media trend has gained traction by promoting strategies to optimize sleep, such as keeping the mouth closed at night, ensuring a quiet and dark environment, setting a cold room temperature and taking supplements. While some advice may be beneficial such as avoiding drinks before bedtime, other advice such as taking melatonin is not universally effective or recommended, says Laxminarayan Prabhakar of Long Island Jewish Medical Center, who suggests that good sleep hygiene involves individualized routines, and he advises consulting your doctor about sleep concerns.

TV shows, basketball stars, cottagecore aesthetics and Y2K nostalgia are influencing parents about what to name their babies, according to BabyCenter, which predicts names such as Helena, Belinda and Chelsea will be popular next year. Names such as Juniper, Flora, Sienna, Eloise, Reed, Rowan and Heath are also more popular, as more parents seek names connected to nature and a simpler, idyllic lifestyle.

In the current economic climate, you may not be having a lot of trouble retaining your employees, especially as layoffs become more common. However, as Julie Winkle Giulioni writes, many of your staff members may be "job hugging," holding on to their jobs more out of fear than commitment.

Since job-huggers are not truly motivated, they're less likely to innovate, grow or contribute in meaningful ways. Just keeping those workers in their seats is not enough. You need to plan for their regeneration -- renewing their hearts and minds so that they don't just survive, but thrive.

You can do that, Winkle Giulioni notes, by demonstrating a culture of fairness where you consistently apply policies with empathy and everyone's contributions are recognized. Use one-on-one meetings to learn more about their aspirations, challenges and what success means to them. Co-create plans that include stretch projects, skill building and cross-functional rotations. Make it safe for your team to experiment with new tools, ideas and approaches and celebrate even their small wins.

Retention keeps people in place; regeneration brings them alive. When you lean into fairness, personal growth and experimentation, you transform the workforce into a source of resilience and innovation. Rather than simply holding onto employees, nurture a culture where people are emotionally and intellectually invested. In that kind of environment, when the pendulum swings again (as it inevitably will), your organization will be ready -- not scrambling, but already thriving.

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