Issue 02: It's 10:15 AM EST, do you know where your pets are?

**This is a preview. To view the entire newsletter, please subscribe here!**

Opening Salvo

Are the times still unprecedented, or have we given up on trying to regain a sense of “normal”? I don’t want to get into that debate, so I won’t. What’s been on my mind this week is how a decade or so of conflating opinions with facts has fueled scarcity behaviors, inequities, and distrust, particularly in the workplace. I’m not sure how to fix it yet, but I believe we need to start living in the space between “your truth” and “my truth” if we’re going to improve the current state of work.

I don’t use the term lightly, but we all experience some level of trauma in our careers. No matter the degree, we carry those experiences with us from one organization to the next. For those of us in formal leadership roles, or even informal positions of influence, we need to acknowledge that we sometimes create traumatic experiences for our people—whether intentional or not.

All that to say, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to better embed psychological safety into performance management systems to create more objective and equitable work environments. Also, as a consumer, I’m tired of feeling like quality is an afterthought for most of the products and services I buy. But maybe that last part is just me.

Did You See This?

A New Mandate for Mental Health Support

A new rule announced by the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury mandates that mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) benefits must be offered on par with physical health benefits by health insurers. This final rule aims to close gaps in mental health coverage, ensuring that employees receive equitable treatment. Employers are expected to review their benefit plans and adjust offerings accordingly to comply with the new standard.

This new mandate reflects the growing recognition that mental health care must be prioritized alongside physical health. It’s a step forward in addressing the longstanding issue of underfunded mental health services. For organizations, this presents an opportunity to strengthen their benefits strategy and ensure employee well-being is fully supported. But implementing this shouldn’t just be a compliance exercise—it should challenge organizations to revisit how they manage and communicate benefits in a way that genuinely supports the mental health needs of their employees.

Fostering a workplace that actively promotes mental health care isn't just about offering a benefit—it’s about creating an environment where employees feel supported in accessing that care. Organizations that take proactive steps to educate employees about their mental health coverage and remove any stigma surrounding it will benefit from a more engaged and healthier workforce.

Antidote Through Anecdote

When I was 22 and three-quarters, I took over a team that included a recent college graduate, someone who had been with the organization longer than I had, and someone new to the organization but twice my age.

The challenge was clear: one was new to the workforce, another felt overlooked, and the third struggled with reporting to someone half their age. Managing different perspectives quickly became more of a challenge than the work itself.

I learned that when leading teams, it's essential to keep the main thing the main thing: performance must be our objective metric. However, individualizing your approach to bring out the best in your people while meeting those metrics is the true essence of management—and why it's such a crucial factor in organizational success.

With time, we found balance and improved as a team.

People management is individualizing success while focusing on outcomes.

The Plug

This newsletter is brought to you by AstutEdge, a consultancy dedicated to developing and deploying a people-first talent management culture. We solve both obvious and hidden challenges by optimizing performance, engagement, and development across the entire HR, People, and Talent spectrum.

This plug is shameless and should be shared widely. If your organization or a partner organization could use additional talent management support, reach out!