You spend so much time on work, why accept the status quo, when there are ways to do it better? Get expert advice, research and hacks that will crush your inertia.
Join Lisa Leong and other This Working Lifers as we experiment and explore the latest in the world of work.
We cover policy issues, like hybrid workplaces and remote work, employee wellbeing and organisational culture, the use of AI, employee surveillance, employee engagement, diversity and inclusion. We talk about progress on wider issues that relate to work, like work life balance, organisational change, restructures, and casualisation. On This Working Life our focus is on everything related to the people in a workplace too, including culture, individual experiences, performance management and career advice.
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You spend so much time on work, why accept the status quo, when there are ways to do it better? Get expert advice, research and hacks that will crush your inertia.
Join Lisa Leong and other This Working Lifers as we experiment and explore the latest in the world of work.
We cover policy issues, like hybrid workplaces and remote work, employee wellbeing and organisational culture, the use of AI, employee surveillance, employee engagement, diversity and inclusion. We talk about progress on wider issues that relate to work, like work life balance, organisational change, restructures, and casualisation. On This Working Life our focus is on everything related to the people in a workplace too, including culture, individual experiences, performance management and career advice.
It’s estimated we make up to 35,000 decisions every day so how can you make better decisions at work?
Before you start drawing up pros and cons lists, listen to this episode to hear how you can make decisions with less stress and a lot more satisfaction - from small everyday ones, to big ones like changing career.
Guests:
Dr Ellen Langer - Professor of Psychology, Harvard University. Author, The Mindful Body.
Dr Janneke Blijlevens - Senior Lecturer in Experimental Methods, RMIT University
Dr Adrian Camilleri - Associate Professor of Marketing, University of Technology Sydney Business School
Brigitte Duclos - Counsellor
This story was first broadcast on 11 February 2024
We can learn a lot about gaining influence when you don't have power, from those who work on Capitol Hill.
A leadership adviser reveals how Congressional Chiefs of Staff navigate a volatile political environment, with challenging bosses.
This is a masterclass in how to manage up and build relationships that can further your career.
Guest: Margie Warrell, Leadership advisor, author The Courage Gap
Have you ever been told that if you follow your passion, you’ll never work a day in your life? As it turns out, the research doesn’t support that narrative.
We explore what’s really going on with passion at work, and discover how to sustain and nurture it over time.
Guest:
Jon M. Jachimowicz, Assistant Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School
Thanks to Renata, Yin and Melissa for sharing their stories and advice.
It can be hard to know what to say when your colleague or employee is going through a difficult time.
We explore how to support someone who is dealing with grief.
Guest:
Tasha Broomhall, founder and Director of Blooming Minds
Also check out our companion episode: How to handle grief at work
The death of a loved one, a divorce, an illness, a job loss or another challenging personal issue will be experienced by just about everyone in the workplace at some point.
What are the practical, and emotional considerations that can help?
Guests:
Diane Bergeron, social psychologist and Senior research scientist at the Centre for Creative Leadership
Chris Hall, Psychologist & CEO of Grief Australia, an independent, not for profit organisation, striving to change the way Australia lives with grief
If you need support, help is available at grief.org.au
Diane is doing more research on grief at work, from the perspective of bereaved and non-bereaved employees. Click here to take the survey.
Videos of job applicants being interviewed by artificial intelligence avatars are being posted on social media.
How can job seekers and recruiters navigate the AI-powered recruitment process in a way that keeps things human?
Guests:
Dr Natalie Sheard, lawyer and McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Melbourne with expertise in discrimination by AI systems
Daryl Keeley, Managing Director, Macro Recruitment
Emily B. DeJeu, Assistant Teaching Professor of Business Management Communication at Carnegie Mellon University's Tepper School of Business
For more information about cases of discrimination relating to the use of AI in hiring, check out the Law Report
It's mid way through the year and many of us are still asking ourselves, ‘ Why are we here’ ?
What is it about the culture of work that’s leading to that feeling? And what can we do about it?
Guest:
Jennifer Moss, workplace culture strategist, author, Why Are We Here: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants
This story was first broadcast on 20th January, 2025
It's an important part of monitoring and improving performance, but when feedback is given or received in the “wrong” way, it can damage relationships and affect work.
Here’s a masterclass to help you get better at giving and receiving feedback.
Guests:
Roisin McCann, facilitator who works with organisations to build leadership capacity and develop a better culture of feedback and strategic communication
James Donald, senior lecturer, University of Sydney Business School
When you’re under the pump, it can feel like taking a break at work is impossible. But that can be habit forming, and bad for your physical and mental health.
Learn the benefits of building breaks into your workday, and how to do it in a way that feels manageable.
Guests:
Kira Schabram, Assistant Professor of Management & Organisation at Smeal College of Business, The Pennsylvania State University
Vanessa Miles, organisational psychologist, Transitioning Well
If you have trouble sleeping, work may be part of the equation. Here’s some expert tips on what works best to get a good night’s sleep, and advice some of you shared about your sleep hacks.
Guest:
Alex Sweetman, Senior Program Manager, Australasian Sleep Association
You can apply to access Bedtime Window here.
Four in ten Australians are not getting enough sleep, and work could be a part of the problem.
Whether you work 9 – 5 or irregular hours, lack of sleep impacts performance, safety and can compound work stress. So how can you balance work responsibilities and sleep?
Guests:
Moira Junge, CEO Sleep Health Foundation and sleep psychologist
Dr Charlotte Gupta, Senior Postdoctoral Research Fellow, School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Appleton Institute, CQ University
AI tools are making it easier for employers to gather data on where, when and how you're working.
But when it comes to workplace surveillance, how do you find the balance between an employer’s need to know and protect staff, and their privacy?
Guests:
Associate Professor Penny Williams, Director of the Centre for Decent Work and Industry and Senior Research Fellow in School of Management, QUT
Dr Dale Tweedie, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Accounting & Corporate Governance, Macquarie University
Aaron McEwan, vice-president of research and advisory in HR at Gartner
Being in charge means making decisions, and whether they’re right or wrong, managers often feel they need to make them in order to display leadership.
But in an uncertain world, the most successful leaders are recognising their blind spots before they act. We'll teach you how.
Guest:
Dr Kirstin Ferguson AM, author, columnist and expert in leadership and culture
Career regret is a common phenomenon, so what practical advice is there for people who are at a career crossroads?
Guests:
Leah Lambart, Career and Interview Coach, resident career expert for SEEK
Annie Louey, celebrant, comedian and writer who has experienced and interviewed others about career breaks
More than 50 years ago, an American sociologist published a game-changing paper that illustrated just how important casual acquaintances are in our work lives.
Mark Granovetter's The Strength of Weak Ties was a groundbreaking paper that changed the way we looked at networking forever.
So, how vital are 'weak ties' in today's workforce?
If you think of productivity as hustle culture, endless multi-tasking, and constant busyness, you might be on the wrong track and you may be on the way to burnout.
New York Times bestselling author Cal Newport is a long-time advocate for making changes to the way we work. Now he has a new work philosophy: Slow Productivity.
He says doing fewer things, working at a natural pace, and obsessing over quality will deliver lasting success.
Guest:
Cal Newport, author of Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout.
From pets to pot plants, comfy clothing to noise-cancelling headphones. There have never been more ways to bring a personal touch to your office experience.
But what happens when different employees have conflicting approaches?
Guests:
Christhina Candido, Professor of Environmental and Sustainable Design, University of Melbourne
Dr Amantha Imber, organisational psychologist, founder, Inventium, and host of the 'How I Work' podcast
Pick something you enjoy doing and you can 'leisure craft' it! We learn about the benefits of this technique as a way of improving your personal wellbeing, and your performance at work.
Plus we'll give you some practical tips on how to 'leisure-craft' in Try This.
Guest:
Alex Hamrick, Assistant Professor of Management, Robins School of Business, University of Richmond
From our phones to social media, to search engines, artificial intelligence is becoming a part of our everyday lives.
Learn how organisations are incorporating it into their workflows, and explore the ethical considerations and other concerns people have about using artificial intelligence at work.
Guests:
Jeremy Utley, adjunct professor, Stanford University, co-host Beyond the Prompt
Mark Pesce, futurist and co-founder Wisely AI
The junior person feels like they’re being micromanaged, but the manager feels like the job is not being done properly. When does good supervision tip into micromanagement?
Shona Ryan had such a difficult time being micromanaged as a millennial worker, that she decided to research the topic.
We hear what she learned, and get advice from an expert on how to break the pattern of micromanagement.
Guests:
Dr James Donald, Senior Lecturer in Work and Organisational Studies, University of Sydney
Shona Ryan, employee relations specialist
And if you liked this episode you’d enjoy our story on the magic of job crafting, listen to it here.
This episode was first broadcast on 2nd June 2024.
You spend so much time on work, why accept the status quo, when there are ways to do it better? Get expert advice, research and hacks that will crush your inertia.
Join Lisa Leong and other This Working Lifers as we experiment and explore the latest in the world of work.
We cover policy issues, like hybrid workplaces and remote work, employee wellbeing and organisational culture, the use of AI, employee surveillance, employee engagement, diversity and inclusion. We talk about progress on wider issues that relate to work, like work life balance, organisational change, restructures, and casualisation. On This Working Life our focus is on everything related to the people in a workplace too, including culture, individual experiences, performance management and career advice.
