According to Gallup's State of the Workplace, 1 in 5 employees currently feel lonely at work. And the World Health Organization estimates 1 in 6 adults worldwide experience significant loneliness. The downstream effects of loneliness at work include poor performance, reduced creativity, and higher absenteeism. Loneliness among young people, in particular Gen Z, has reached an alarming rate. The University of Virginia is home to the Connection Project which trains over 1000 students each year to manage loneliness. Alison Nagel is a licensed clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at the University of Virginia. She visited William & Mary recently to talk about loneliness and how the Connection Project is equipping students with the tools to feel more connected to others. Before her talk, she sat down with us at the McLeod Tyler Wellness Center on campus.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

Whether you're happily employed, between jobs, or employed and looking for your next role, it can be easy to forget about your personal brand. Building and promoting your personal brand is important in today's competitive and crowded world, and it requires time, thought and effort. On the positive side, more tools than ever are available today to help you communicate those qualities that make you special. Dawn Edmiston is a professor of Marketing at the William & Mary School of Business. Among other things, she teaches personal branding. She's also a leader in the teaching of artificial intelligence. She joins us today to define personal branding and to share some insights on how you can improve your brand so you stand out from the rest of the pack.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

The holidays are upon us and we hope that means you get some well-deserved downtime. Some quiet time to read a good book, listen to a podcast, watch a movie, or stream some good TV. We asked some of our colleagues at the William & Mary School of Business to share their recommendations with you. Something they think you'll enjoy while you watch, listen, or read.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

Ask someone to describe the current job market and you're bound to hear a range of labels like "soft," "mixed," and even "positive." However you see it, one thing's for sure: the current job market is unusual. Due to a number of factors, it seems like we've never experienced a market quite like this. If you're seeking or considering a new role, some of the traditional tactics still work. At the same time, it's important to adopt some new approaches as well. Phil Heavilin is director of Internships and Applied Learning at William & Mary. He works for the university's Office of Career Development and Professional Engagement. Throughout his career, he's guided countless people through their job searches, from new grads, to mid-level, to senior level professionals. He joins us today to discuss the current job market, the influence of AI on the job search, and what you can do to make your job search successful.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

Whether a startup or a Fortune 500 company, it's more challenging than ever to cut through all the noise and competition to reach new customers, partners, and investors. One requirement for success is a great story, and often one that can be told in just seconds. In today's world, the best story wins. Last month during homecoming weekend, the William & Mary entrepreneurship hub hosted a storytelling workshop, titled "What's Your Story?" William & Mary alumni Francis Lyons and Jason Ross, both successful creatives and founders of top ventures in media, tech, and entertainment, led the workshop. Afterwards, they sat down with us in the entrepreneurship hub to talk about storytelling, the importance of a compelling narrative, and how today no story equals no success.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

According to a number of sources, the average business professional spends just under five years with an employer before they move on to another organization. Colby Loucks has been with the same employer his entire career. For 29 years, he's worked for the World Wildlife Fund. He started as a college intern, now he's Vice President and Deputy for Wildlife. The World Wildlife Fund works to build a world where people and nature thrive, and Loucks has been all over the world working on a variety of interesting projects to reach that goal. He visited William & Mary as a guest of the Institute for Integrative Conservation. Afterwards, he joined us to discuss leadership, the benefits of loving your work, and staying with one employer for the long term.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

It's a special edition of Leadership & Business. With today's episode, we're celebrating two milestones: our 10th year anniversary, and our 250th episode. We couldn't let that go by without sharing something special so we invited two CEOs to join us on the podcast today. AnnaMaria DeSalva just concluded her tenure as Chairman at Burson - the global strategic communication firm. Before that, she served as CEO of Hill & Knowlton. Dan Draper is the CEO of S&P Dow Jones Indices - the world's leading index provider. DeSalva and Draper sat down with us to discuss leadership, their styles and approaches to leadership, and what lies ahead for the leaders of today and tomorrow.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

From Dog Street to Wall Street. It's an annual event co-hosted by the Boehly Center for Excellence in Finance at the William & Mary School of Business and partner organizations on campus. The event introduces students to William & Mary alumni and industry guests who lead sessions and panels on finance, investment and corporate banking, private equity, alternative investments, hedge funds and more. This year's keynote speaker was Austin Camporin, a William & Mary graduate and Senior Portfolio Manager and Head of Special Situations at Magnetar Capital. After interacting with students, he joined us to talk about his investment philosophy, the current market, and approaches that lead to success.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

Data centers, artificial intelligence, and manufacturing facilities require power to operate. And demand for power is growing considerably. Some wonder if the US will have the power necessary to fill its needs in the future. While the demand is causing increased and new competition in the energy space, one organization has been solving complex energy problems since 1990. LS Power is part investment firm and part power company. Darpan Kapadia is its chief operating officer. Kapadia visited William & Mary to speak to students at the annual convocation ceremony. Before that, he met with MBA students, then sat down with us to discuss renewable energy, the growing need for power, and what policymakers and others are doing to ensure future needs are met.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.

Improvisation. You probably know it as comedy and communication on the fly. It often consists of short scenes or sketches beginning with an idea from the audience. Many of your favorite comedians and entertainers have considerable improv training. As modern improv comedy grew, business professionals took note - realizing improv training could greatly help in terms of communication, success, and teamwork. When the new MBA students and the William & Mary School of Business arrived a couple weeks ago, they were given improv training by Brad McMurran, who among other things owns Push Comedy Theater in Norfolk, Virginia. Just minutes after training the new MBA students, McMurran sat down with us to discuss improv, how it builds rapport, and helps people become more comfortable when conversing with others.

Learn how the Raymond A. Mason School of Business at William and Mary can help you and your organization develop your top talent through customized executive education and professional development programs. Visit us at www.wmleadership.com. Thank you for listening.