What I'm about to share with you is probably the most consequential piece of advice I've read all year. Not even joking.
Last week, I came across this tweet by Scott Clary that broke down why we feel so tired and overwhelmed all of the time.
It's not your workload. It's your open loops.
the original tweet (thread?) by Scott Clary
This hit me like a truck, as I realized that I had plenty of open loops taking away my attention and focus:
The open tabs I haven't looked at in weeks
The emails piling up in my inbox
The travel I haven't booked, or small projects at home I've been putting off
All of these items were taking up a small amount of my daily focus and willpower, and that was adding up over time to a mental load that prevented me from moving forward on just about anything.
So once I saw this post I immediately took action and made a plan for knocking down each and every one over the next few days. And while this meant that some of the things I was working towards at the moment were temporarily put on pause/slowed down, by the time I returned to them days later, I could do so with an uncluttered view.
Mental clutter is the silent destroyer of your progress and momentum. So this week, if you wake up feeling a little more sluggish or overwhelmed than usual, ask yourself:
What loops could you close?
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Welcome to First Things First, Reader. I created this newsletter as the reminder I needed to reflect on how far I've come, as well as prepare for the journey ahead.
Today I'll share with you:
What's going to replace the job market
The real cost of laying off government workers
Why managers are more stressed than ever (and what we can do about it)
I’m so glad you’re here. Let's get started.
But first, let me tell you how I got promoted twice in two years using Adobe Express
If you’re still using Canva for your work projects, let me put you on something better.
I’ve been using Adobe Express to create all of my presentations, event materials, and career resources, including the One Pager that helped me get promoted twice in two years.
In the video below, I break down exactly how it works and show you how to make your own.
I got promoted twice in two years once I started creating a One-Pager to use at work to show off my career accomplishments and skills. And today I'm re-launching it with @Adobe Express! Learning how to effectively communicate your skills and impact at work is how you’ll take greater control over your career, and using my One Pager template on Adobe Express is an easy and simple way to do both. Click the link in my bio and check out my editable template in Adobe Express for free! #AdobeExpressPartner
The process was pretty seamless. I uploaded my previous One Pager and was incredibly surprised with how easy it was to get it imported and loaded into Adobe Express. No strange text or mystery fonts - just a clean import!
I already had loaded in my brand, so I could easily fine-tune this design to match my colors and fonts. My favorite part was updating my headshot. I easily removed the background (which is free in Adobe Express by the way) and used their commercially safe AI feature, Generate Imag,e to make my headshot more personal to me.
Learning how to effectively communicate your skills and impact at work is how you’ll take greater control over your career, and using my One Pager template is an easy and simple way to do both.
Grab the free template here and remix it in Adobe Express to build your own One Pager!
Sponsored by Adobe Express, the Create Anything app by Adobe
We're no longer in a job market. We're in a skills market.
I don’t have to tell you that the job market is fundamentally broken. Online job applications are flooded with mass apply bots. Recruiters and hiring managers are stretched thin so a 2-week hiring process takes 4 or more. And we’re starting to see diminishing returns on a college degree (Fortune recently reported that Gen Z men with college degrees now have the same unemployment rate as non-grads). But while the traditional job market may be struggling, here’s what I’m also seeing:
Top creators are bringing on creatives to help them architect their content, or operators to manage their brand partnerships.
Founders are looking for tech-savvy assistance setting up their website and email automations.
Corporate consultants are leaving their high-salaried jobs, knowing they can work with the same clients and charge 3x more.
There has never been a better time to bring your skills to the open marketplace. Gen Z already knows this (according to Forbes, 57% of Gen Z workers already have a side hustle). I’m not saying that traditional W2 employment will disappear. I'm also not saying that you should throw your resume away and go sign up for Fiverr. But the data is clear: over the last 30 years, the price of a home has increased 3X, while wages have largely stayed the same. So if you’re looking for something to close that wealth gap, the answer may be to create the career you’ve always wanted.
What the data behind government job cuts reveals about the value of public service
A recent edition of the Laid Off newsletter interviewed Tara, who is collecting stories from government contractors about how these recent layoffs have affected their lives and their perspective on public sector work.
The full interview is worth a read, but here are a few summary insights:
Nearly everyone interviewed felt disposable, demoralized, and devalued after a layoff or unemployment
Mental health deterioration is a strong and recurring theme
Many participants are diversifying skills, seeking multiple income streams, and considering entrepreneurship to gain more control over their futures
The majority equally grieve a loss of individual purpose and the dissolution of programs they believed made important differences in people’s lives
Many, not all, people who choose to work or contract with the government choose to do so because they feel drawn to public service. And when that work is brought down to a simple P&L, or they're let go with no notice and little access to benefits, it's understandable why they start to feel this way.
Managers are more stressed than ever
In a recent survey done by LinkedIn, nearly 30% of respondents said that their managers were too stressed out to support them on the job.
Reading this stat made me think about my own experiences early on in my career. Without my manager, who was excellent, I would've wasted so much time hustling backwards or just guessing towards what to do next.
As someone who's managed others, though, I get it. You're in between the younger staff and the higher-up executives, and both groups demand a lot in today's always-on "infinite workday".
The worst part of this stat is that these are managers. So if they themselves are barely able to inflate their own metaphorical life vest, that only further limits the support or attention they can give the people they manage.
You can read more about this in LinkedIn's Workforce Confidence survey here.
A few resources to help you on your journey
Career Wrapped: We already know you listened to a lot of Drake this year. Instead of a Spotify Wrapped, why not create a "Career Wrapped" for this year instead?
LinkedIn Search Secrets: Most people have no idea how to take full advantage of LinkedIn to find jobs or people to network with in their industry. Here's your guide.
One Pager: This promotion template got me promoted twice in two years. This will help you summarize your skills and drive your yearly review conversations at work!
I've spent the last few years creating and collecting the best resources to help you level up in your life and career. Check out my most popular ones above, or view the full list here.
It really means the world to me that you show up to explore these topics with me each week, so thank you for reading. If something above resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone else who might need it too.
If you have any feedback, you can always reply or email me at me@colinrocker.com
And remember that you’re not behind, because you're a "first". Which means you were never made to follow.
