Brace Yourself: Navigating the 3 Harsh Realities of the Workforce in 2025
I’ve been told my superpower is that I’m “real,” and part of how that plays out is that I tell the truth.
Usually, I coat it with a little compassion so it’s tolerable, but I call it like I see it regardless of whether the message is popular. You’d be surprised how far this can get you in life. I’ve found most leaders welcome “real talk.” They are data people and no one likes bad data when making important decisions.
This article will help you learn to deal with the current reality of the workforce. I hope it will give you some insight into leading others into better relationships in business, whether you're a seasoned veteran on your way to retirement or a new manager trying to motivate people to bring their best.
We've all heard the same tropes lately: people don't know how to behave at work, they start and quit jobs rapidly, and people want more money and titles with very little relevant experience. Younger workers hurl the insult “boomer” like a hand grenade and older employees bicker that young people lack soft skills. Corporate culture seems to grind people down, and of course, all of this could be fixed if executives weren't greedy, right?
Well…not really.
Leaders know who the high performers are on teams. These folks seem to have the magical ability to get things done efficiently, be on time, go the extra mile, and communicate effortlessly. We all want a stack of resumes of these folks, but in reality, we have to create these people. The traditional adage states "coach them up or out," but these days you'll get more mileage by developing proactive mentoring relationships and helping your team members, especially young workers, understand some very important axioms of the 2025 workforce.
1. This is the job market and economy you're in, regardless of what you'd hoped for
Look, we can all be upset about where things are. I'm speaking strictly from the American perspective, but friends in the UK and elsewhere have many of the same complaints. While we might want to blame greed or complain about other people, the reality of the workforce is that technology has allowed us to do much more work than our parents’ generation could even have imagined.
Companies need specialized skills and people who are self-starters that don’t need a lot of direction. If a manager has to tell you what to do, they’ll probably wind up ticking you off, and while you might be quick to scream “micromanager,” things need to get done efficiently to move objectives forward.
Cloud computing, AI, and smartphones have set expectations for speed, efficiency, and urgency that are insane. While we might want to complain about all that and opt out altogether, I can tell you as someone who took a sabbatical, you'll be bored to death by week two, in an existential crisis by the end of a month, and clinically depressed if you go past two months. Maybe you’d love to never work again, but my guess is anyone reading this article doesn’t have that temperament. If you’re ambitious, your brain operates at a certain cadence that can’t tolerate an abundance of leisure.
Additionally, you need to have a rational understanding of where you are in your life cycle. Younger workers without children tend to have less stress and complexity to contend with. They can work till 7 any night of the week. Workhorses with stay-at-home partners also have the competitive advantage of being able to go hard. Before you complain too much, realize these individuals have a lot riding on their backs. While it might seem like they get preferential treatment on projects, it's because they grind. I appreciate the vulnerability and authenticity culture of years past, but I think grit is about to make a major comeback. High performers across all industries love to get after it, and let’s face it folks, those are the people who get promoted and survive restructuring.
Regardless of how you want to optimize your career, you have to swallow this harsh reality. You're going to have to work hard no matter what you do in life. Median American salaries in 2024 are somewhere between $50-60k according to a quick Google search. If you expect a competitive salary with perks, you should expect to contribute 2-3 times the result as the average worker.
2. Work is often like the final stretch of a season of Survivor
We've all seen the reality show where alliances form and people wander off into the jungle to bury an immunity idol or talk about setting another person up at the tribal council. While I'd love to tell you this isn't what work culture is like, you need to brace yourself for the reality that behind closed doors, leaders are governed by business principles and beholden to the realities of capitalism. Those realities occasionally put them in positions where they can’t honor former promises they’ve made.
Yes, plenty of awesome leaders make good on their word, but they tend to do it for their ride-or-die high performers. Sure, we can talk about engagement and being honest with our employees, but no leader or human, for that matter, can predict the future. When funding gets tight, political chaos ensues or another company gets a competitive advantage, all bets are off.
In business, you need to be prepared for the unexpected. Adaptability is key. Build strong alliances, but also understand the limitations of the game. The reality is that sometimes decisions will be made that seem unfair or cutthroat, and it's important to not take it personally. Let me share a real-life example:
A long time ago in a galaxy far away, I worked for a very large corporation. Our team had about 150 people with a director and eight managers, each supervising about twenty people and governing some small projects and break-out committees. Turnover was rampant, and human resources came in and eliminated the management tier. Instead, there was now the director, a day and evening manager, and three shift leads. The managers who were salvaged were 20-plus-year veterans who were good friends with the director. They had gone to college together, and let's just say they were close to the throne. One was awesome and had earned her stripes; the other was pretty much clueless. Two of the three shift leads were probably the worst possible choices for leaders you could imagine, but they both had master’s degrees and were on a ton of committees. They were “yes” people.
When the verdict came in, the laughter around the lunch table was hysterical. I gave notice a week later, and several people planned knee and shoulder surgeries to burn out their sick time before job shopping. We can all write cute articles about engagement, but being rational during restructuring will help you stop taking things personally and advocate for yourself. Keep your focus on delivering results and staying resilient, and you'll navigate through the challenges more effectively, whether you get cut or stick it out.
Here’s a quick journaling exercise if you have some anger toward your current or previous employer. Sit down with a journal and make an exhaustive list of all the connections you made during your time there. Write down all of the unique skills you learned, certifications you received, and raw experiences that make your resume pop. No work is without merit and no job is wasted.
3. You should swap the word "work" for "business"
What you call a job, executives and shareholders call a business. Businesses are hyper-rational and non-human. They work on the principle of self-preservation and don't care about your personal life when a major project is due or when the market has a correction and you just got comfy in your dream role. That doesn’t mean heart-centered people can’t lead businesses and it doesn't mean C-suite folks are sociopaths. It's just a reality of the game.
When I went to LSU, I worked as a line cook and shift manager at a local eatery. It was a long-time business and cash cow that was open 24 hours. A staple of campus culture. A rite of passage. I cooked overnights on weekends and during LSU football season it was typical that we stayed busy till 4 a.m. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the LSU basketball stadium was used as a National Guard and medical outpost. We were about a half-mile walk so needless to say medics and military dudes were eating like horses between shifts. We cooked around the clock for nearly two weeks, with limited cutlery and food ingredients. Our chef made some pretty interesting specials, and our owner helped other small burger joints and sandwich shops survive by using our dicers and kitchen equipment. I remember the general manager quipping, “There is no schedule right now; if you’re awake, just come to work...” Of course, he was being hyperbolic but all of this met with tirades about business owners being money-hungry, yet I triple-dog dare anyone who thinks this way to form an LLC or S Corp and get after it. Ninety percent of people will fail.
While that might sound gloomy, understanding the reality of business and not taking leadership issues personally is why folks past middle age tend to fare better in corporate, and by corporate, you can throw in a nonprofit or any organization bigger than a few hundred people. Pay attention to the folks in middle life. We've lived through restructuring, team implosions, and recessions. We've also lived through our own implosions, be they personal or family. We know at the end of the day, Mom and Dad are getting older, our kids are more important than work drama, and life is fleeting at best. I had a beautiful friend die tragically in 2023. He was 41 and a gem of a human. It put a lot of things into perspective.
While I don't love stoicism as much as your basic crypto bro, there is some peace to be found in understanding we're playing a game, and your happiness is your job. Work is work, and what you do outside of work is on you. Hang with good people and take care of yourself.
This thing called life is short. We’re just passing through.
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