Writing a cover letter, especially when not required by a job application, can feel like a big pain. But it really makes a big difference—here’s why.

Why you need a cover letter

Fast Company deputy editor Kathleen Davis takes listeners on a journey through the changing landscape of our work lives. Each episode explores the future of work, including the state of remote and hybrid work amid the return-to-office battle; how AI will change the way we do our jobs; the status of gender equity and DEI efforts; rethinking career ladders and ambition; motivation and what makes work meaningful; and the progress on mental health and disability issues at work. And as if all that isn’t enough, she also shares practical advice for interviews, résumés, and salary negotiations, as well as the latest office jargon, just how useful personality tests really are, and more.

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Management

Should you send an email, or is Slack the better way to communicate with your colleagues? Is it ever okay to text a client? Can you use emojis with your boss—and if you can, should you? Communication at work can be really fraught and depends on the subject matter, your industry, your company culture, plus your individual style and preference. And given all that, there’s lots of room for mistakes and misunderstandings.In this LinkedIn Audio conversation with senior editors Lydia Dishman and Julia Herbst, we talked about navigating the world of workplace communication styles, and how to pick the best method for your particular situation.

Figuring out your best office communication style

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 61 million adults in the United States have at least one disability, and for nearly half that population, the disability is invisible or at least not apparent. These conditions often don’t manifest in ways that are immediately evident to others—such as chronic pain, diabetes, autism, ADHD, learning disabilities, arthritis, and more. And although the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990 to protect against discrimination, many employees or job candidates are reluctant or scared to disclose a disability for fear they wouldn’t be treated fairly or even get hired in the first place. And it seems many employers are clueless about what they’re doing wrong. So how can we make advocacy easier, open up opportunities, and build a world of work that works for everyone? Ludmila Praslova, a professor of psychology at Vanguard University, recently wrote about how her autism affected her onboarding experience at a new job. In her new book, ‘The Canary Code: A Guide to Neurodiversity, Dignity, and Intersectional Belonging at Work,’ Praslova delves into the challenges of self-advocacy, disclosing a disability, and what employers need to change to create neuro-inclusive environments.

Work is ableist

We take for granted the standard 40-hour, 5-day workweek, but this structured schedule was implemented to suit a very different reality than most of us work and live in today. In recent years, the 4-day workweek has gained attention. But that kind of restructuring seems to leave many with more logistical questions than answers: What about parents trying to match a school schedule, or sleep-deprived medical workers, or service workers who usually don’t know their scheduling needs in advance? Is there a way to redesign the workday and workweek to accommodate the needs of both employees and businesses—in a way that’s humane and can also work across industries? It’s a problem that Mark Takano continues address in Congress, as the representative from California’s 39th district. Takano introduced a 32-hour workweek bill in 2021 and is also pushing to restore the Overtime Act, which would increase the threshold for full-time salaried workers nationally.

The workday is poorly designed

Leaders have tried to sell work as ‘one big family’ for years. With the proliferation of terms like ‘office besties’ and ‘work spouses,’ many employees have viewed work as a type of family too. But anyone who has been passed over for a promotion they deserved or laid off after years of hard work knows the hard truth: Work isn’t your family. In fact, work can make people feel lonely by preventing them from connecting with their community, and some mental health experts have called loneliness a health epidemic. So, how can we prioritize our mental health and our ambition at the same time? How can we feel less alone at work and foster meaningful relationships while still protecting our ‘real lives’? To dig into these questions for answers, we talked with Ann Shoket, former editor-in-chief of ‘Seventeen’ magazine; author of ‘The Big Life,’ a guide for career-driven young women; and CEO of TheLi.st, a private community of innovators across media, technology, and business.

Why so many of us feel lonely at work

Even as the nature of work changes and innovations transform our jobs, the hiring process feels stuck in the same biased, ineffective rut. Too often, when companies finds themselves with an open position, they fall back on the same broken methods: mining leadership’s narrow, professional networks, or posting the same ineffective job ads in the same places. So how can we fix a system that’s so ingrained in the traditional corporate psyche? How can we really reach unexpected and underrepresented candidates? If it were possible to, say, burn the whole thing down and start from scratch, what would a new, more effective hiring process look like? We put that question to Kimberly Brown, founder of Manifest Yourself, a consulting company focused on career development for women and people of color. Brown, who sees both companies and job candidates struggling with poor communication and too few resources, believes that a few key changes could start to improve the experience for everyone.

Why you need a cover letter

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