Power Reads: 5 Interesting Articles That Will Help You This Week

Each week, I select a few articles that rise above the fray and hopefully help you on your journey in leadership and the CRE world. They pull from one of four "corners": corporate real estate, technology, management science and anything positive. Each day we can become a better version of ourselves.

1. U.S. Added 916,000 Jobs in March as Hiring Accelerated

U.S. hiring surged in March as the economic recovery accelerated, the start of what economists say could be a sustained run of job growth to industries, regions and workers hardest hit during the pandemic.

U.S. employers added a seasonally adjusted 916,000 jobs in March, the best gain since August, the Labor Department said Friday, and the unemployment rate, determined by a separate survey, fell to 6.0%, a pandemic low. Still, as of March, there are 8.4 million fewer jobs than in February 2020 before the pandemic hit.

The jobs rebound is gaining renewed momentum as more people are vaccinated against Covid-19, states lift restrictions on business activity, and consumers grow more comfortable dining, shopping and traveling outside their homes.

2. Even Suez Canal Blockage Can’t Hold Back Red-Hot Global Trade

Factories around the world are struggling to keep up with soaring demand for all types of goods as the global economic recovery from the pandemic accelerates.

In the U.S., factory production and product sales soared in March, according to the Institute for Supply Management, an industry trade group. Its index of factory activity—a measure that takes into account new orders for goods, production, inventory levels and commodity prices—rose to 64.7 last month from 60.8 in February. Any figure above 50 suggests industry expansion.

The expansion—driven largely by American consumers venturing out in public again armed with government stimulus money—was broad based, with demand rising from every major industry, from restaurants to chemical companies.

3. CFOs haven’t been this upbeat about the global economy since 2018: CNBC survey

Covid cases and variants are rising, but in the race between the vaccines and virus, chief financial officers of major corporations are betting the pandemic will be the loser and the global economic recovery remain on track in 2021.

The CNBC Global CFO Council survey for Q1 2021 shows a level of economic confidence from chief financial officers across the globe that hasn’t been this high since 2018, and fears of the risk from Covid to their business outlook cut in half from just a quarter ago.

In the U.S. specifically, more CFOs are now citing cybersecurity as the biggest risk to their business than Covid.

4. The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index® Surged in March

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index® surged in March to its highest reading in a year, after a modest increase in February. The Index now stands at 109.7 (1985=100), up from 90.4 in February. The Present Situation Index—based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions—climbed from 89.6 to 110.0. The Expectations Index—based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions—also improved, from 90.9 last month to 109.6 in March.

The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey®, based on a probability-design random sample, is conducted for The Conference Board by Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and watch. The cutoff date for the preliminary results was March 19.

“Consumer Confidence increased to its highest level since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020,” said Lynn Franco, Senior Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board.

5. Make Time for “Me Time”

Illustration by Mark Harris; Source image: We Are/Getty Images

Do you feel so busy that you don’t have the bandwidth to think about your own needs, let alone do anything about them? Maybe you’re constantly thinking about work, or worry that you’re not proving yourself or your value if you aren’t available 24/7 (especially if you’re working remotely). Perhaps you’re juggling childcare, eldercare, pet care, or other family commitments. Or maybe you’re just caught up in the regular “life” tasks of paying bills, keeping a clean house, and managing the day-to-day. How do you carve out time for yourself, your health, and your needs when you’re always on?

The first step is to stop, take a deep breath, and realize that the world doesn’t rest completely on your shoulders. Many times the people around you could help more if you simply asked and spread out the responsibilities both professionally and personally. And in some cases, you need to let go and trust that everything will be OK, even if some tasks on your list are done imperfectly or not at all.

The next step is to give yourself permission to take care of yourself now. If you put off self-care until work is less busy, your kids are back in school, your house is in order, or some other circumstances are exactly right, you may never get to it. But if you take a brief pause and go through these steps, you can begin to take care of yourself, even when it feels like the responsibilities at home and at work never end.

Your success blesses others. I wish you a great a hugely impactful week!

Ken Ashley