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Whats the best way to respond when customers, former fans, or anyone else criticizes your work? Taylor Swift just provided a perfect script for what to say. Its a great example for any entrepreneur, business leader, or creator to follow. Swifts 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl, released 10 days ago, is unquestionably a commercial success. It broke streaming records on Spotify with more than five million pre-saves, as just one example. But that doesnt mean that everyone loves it. The reaction from music critics has been lukewarm and the reaction from fans is decidedly mixed, with some saying they adore the album and others saying they cant stand it. One brand strategist declared on Instagram that the album was flopping, in a post thats been seen more than 1.4 million times, according to Newsweek. Swift, of course, is a very seasoned performer who has always written her own rules and has a finely tuned sense of how to communicate with her fans. So the mixed reactions dont seem to faze her at all. During an interview for Apple Music, she explained how she feels about the negative reactions. But if youre pressed for time, ET posted a video report less than three minutes long. It explains the controversy and includes clips of Swifts pitch perfect response. Heres some of what she did right. 1. She thanked her critics I do this too, with most negative feedback I get from readers or audience members. As Swift well knows, the fact that someone takes the trouble to give an opinion about your work means they care enough to pay attention to you. And in todays attention economy, that is a gift. The rule of show business is, if its the first week of my album release and you are saying either my name or my album title, youre helping, she said. I have a lot of respect for peoples subjective opinions on art. Shes right, of course. The fact that peoples opinions of this album are divided could bring new listeners because people who normally arent interested in her music may become curious to hear the songs and form their own opinions. 2. She put the focus on her fans This is something Swift does extraordinarily well and its one reason for her outsize success. And so, she very wisely made the criticism about them, rather than about her. Our goal as entertainers is to be a mirror, she said. What youre going through in your life is going to affect whether you relate to the music that Im putting out at any given moment. She added that she loves it when fans tell her they used to love one of her albums and, based on the events in their own lives, come to favor another. It was a very clever comment. It invited people to consider how their own feelings or preferences might affect their opinions. And it gave them permission to change their minds in the future. 3. She said she had done her best work Whatever fans or critics may say about Showgirl, Swift made it clear that she herself is happy with it. When Im making my music, I know what I made. I know I adore it, she said. And she did something very, very clever. She slyly pointed out that getting criticism is fitting given the nature of this particular album. The title track describes the bittersweet life of a performer: I make my money being pretty and witty. But also: I paid my dues, with every bruise I knew what to expect. And so, she told Zane Lowe, On the theme of what the showgirl is, all of this is part of it. Minda Zetlin This article originally appeared on Fast Companys sister publication, Inc. Inc. is the voice of the American entrepreneur. We inspire, inform, and document the most fascinating people in business: the risk-takers, the innovators, and the ultra-driven go-getters that represent the most dynamic force in the American economy.
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E-Commerce
Moving into a new leadership role is a big moment. But in todays rapidly shifting environmentwhere change moves faster than everyou dont have the luxury of slowly assessing your team and making gradual adjustments. The pace of technology and AI, hybrid work, low employee engagement, evolving strategies, and shifting workforce dynamics demand that you assess your team quickly and confidently. Gone are the days of observe and wait. Youre expected to deliver results fast, and your team needs to be plug-and-playand that means quickly understanding who on your team is ready to move with you, who might need support, and where changes might be necessary. Here are five traits or “now must-haves” to look for in your first three months to assess whether your team is equipped to meet the momentand the future. 1. Goal Alignment Are they rowing in the same directionor pulling against the current? Misalignment can be quiet but costly. One tech executive we worked with noticed a team member constantly questioning her strategy in meetings. Eventually, she had a candid conversationand made the call to part ways. The rest of the team felt relieved as the lack of alignment had been slowing everyone down. Ask yourself: Do they support the strategyor challenge it without solutions? Do they identify their mutual dependencies? Are their actions reinforcing the companys direction? As a new leader, the ability to detect early misalignment and address it decisively is critical. If ignored, it can sabotage your goals. 2. Sound Judgment Can they make good decisions with limited information or time pressure? You cant make every decision yourself. Thats why judgment matters. One CEO that Melissa coached asked her sales lead to evaluate a complex strategic shift. His response wasnt just a yes or noit was a thoughtful breakdown of risks, trade-offs, and stakeholder implications. She knew immediately she could trust him with big decisions. Similarly, a leader Frans worked with asked his new team to identify their number-one issue to be solved within their circle of influence. The leader organized a session with a clear goalfor the team to develop two alternative solutions to the issue. The discussion that ensued exposed, very clearly and quickly, who was able to provide a sharp assessment of and solutions to the problem. Ask your team members: Describe a situation where they had to make a decision with incomplete and/or ambiguous information How did they manage the uncertainty? What did they consider most difficultand why? Watch how they weigh risks, not just outcomes In these times of exponential change and uncertainty, leaders must make decisions with limited information and under pressure, making sound judgment crucial. 3. Adaptability How resilient are they in terms of recovering from pivots and stress? Do they adjust fastor resist when things shift? Change isnt the exception anymoreits the norm. Asking about how team members have handled past challenges is telling. One leader Melissa worked with joined a company right after a failed reorganization. During one-on-ones, he asked team members how theyd handled past disruptions. Some responded with solutions; others stayed stuck in old complaints. That distinction helped him begin to identify who could thrive in the new culture. In addition to asking about how team members have navigated past obstacles, observing and assessing how team members navigate real work challenges is also critical. A newly appointed leader that Frans worked with oversaw a five-person leadership team where each leader managed an independent production facility. Due to a ban on a country involved in a war, one facility lost over half of its demand. The teams initial response was to lay off a large portion of the workforce, creating negative sentiment. When the team realized that another facility was severely understaffed due to strong growth, an aging workforce, and high turnover, they decided to transfer staff from the struggling plant to the growing one, with plans to reverse the transfer once the ban was lifted. Observing how team members navigated this scenario gave Franss client invaluable information about their levels of adaptability. In fact, assessing team members by watching them tackle real or simulated challenges is often more reliable than relying on spreadsheets, quotas, or even a predecessors notes, as it reveals their actual behavior and true capabilities in context. Ask yourself: How do they respond to sudden pivots? Do they stay focusedor get flustered? Are they looking for whats nextor longing for what was? Adaptability is a skill that grows through recovery, not resistance. And, in uncertain times, the best strategy is adaptability. 4. Tech Fluency Do they lean into digital toolsor avoid what they dont understand? Being tech-savvy isnt about coding. Its about confidence with data, digital tools, and AI-enabled processes. One of Melissas clients, an operations leader, asked her team, What tools did you use to make this decision? Some had solid answers; others didnt know. That helped her see who needed coachingand who was ready for more responsibility. Watch for: Comfort using key platforms or dashboards Proactive use of AI or automation tools Curiosity about how tech improves outcomes Tech fluency and digital intelligence are no longer nice-to-haves. They are becoming the baseline for modern leadership. 5. Growth Mindset & Risk Tolerance Are they playing to winor playing it safe? One team leader started asking a new weekly question: Whats something you tried that didnt work? And what did you learn from it? It became a signal of who was learningand who was hiding. The people willing to share, reflect, and adjust were the ones he tapped for bigger opportunities. Look for: Openness to feedback and experimentation Energy around learning and developingnot fear of failure Willingness to take smart, calculated risks Leaders must have a growth mindset and actively practice strategies to build a bold, learning-oriented culture in order to get their teams to take more risks. Clarity now beatscleanup later and theres no grace period for leaders anymore. Your first three months set the tone. By assessing these five traits earlyalignment, judgment, adaptability, tech fluency, and growth mindsetyou can lead with clarity, set expectations, and make confident decisions about the team around you. In a world of constant change, speed matters. But the real advantage? Knowing whos ready to change with you. And how well the five essential traits are distributed among your team. And, when all else fails, try Franss go-to question when he was CEO: Would I rehire this individual if building this team from scratch today?
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E-Commerce
As more than 19 million U.S. college students prepare to wrap up their fall semester and begin looking ahead to securing internships and jobs next spring, its natural for themand their familiesto worry about the fate of the job market in the age of AI. Indeed, Anthropics CEO predicted this summer that within the next five yearsand maybe even sooneradoption of AI could reduce entry-level hiring in white-collar professions by 50%. The impact is already being felt: postings for early-career corporate jobs are down 15%, while applications have spiked 30%. A separate Stanford study found that AI displacement, at this point, seems to be disproportionately affecting younger workers. To be sure, these changes are unsettling. Butdespite current, often overheated rhetorictheyre not unprecedented. Of course, weve heard about the lamplighters and horseshoe makers. A hundred years ago, they were displaced by electricity and cars, and the economy soldiered on and they found something else to do. But the internet bubble 25 years ago, when we were first launching our own careers, is an even more salient example. Discourse around the emerging information superhighway also sparked dystopian predictions that tens of millions of people would lose their jobs to internet-enabled automation, leading to the end of work. The job displacement, in some cases, was real. One of us (Dorie) began her career as a journalist at a weekly newspaper and, only a year into her first job, was laid off when the economics of the ad-supported paper faltered. But Dorielike most of usmanaged to adapt, finding new jobs in politics and nonprofit management before becoming an entrepreneur. And the overall economy did just fine, with a current unemployment rate of just 4.3%, compared with 4.9% in 2001, when Dorie lost her job. The pattern is also clear in terms of individuals lived experience. Alexis, along with her coauthor Nancy Hill, has researched Harvards Class of 1975, examining generational differences and patterns. Her surprising conclusion is that the experience of todays college students is remarkably similar to that of students 50 years prior. Despite changing external circumstances (whether its campus protests about the Vietnam War or Gaza, and the political realities of a Nixon or a Trump administration), students professional hopes and worries remain fundamentally the same. Can I find a career that feels interesting and meaningful? What are the best skills to cultivate, and where should I focus my professional development? Can I support myself, and eventually a family, in changing economic conditions? Soin the midst of these real, but familiar, concernswhat advice can we share about how to prepare for the age of AI without panicking? 1. Use AI as a competitive advantage First, take advantage of the fact that theres no incumbency advantage in AI use now. If youre a newly minted law school graduate, a senior partner with 30 years professional experience and connections will almost always hold an advantage over you in their knowledge of case law and ability to land clients. But no professional outside academia has 30 years experience in AI, so young professionals have just as much of an opportunity as anyone to gain knowledge, expertise, and professional stature through their deployment of AI in their jobs. Indeed, AI is especially valuable for young adults, as studies show that AI usage is most beneficial for employees with the least experience. 2. Focus on developing a transferable skill set Second, focus on developing broad, transferable skill sets. We saw what happened when conventional wisdom (from politicians to business leaders) converged on the idea that everyone needed to be trained in software coding. Now, in the wake of layoffs at major tech companies and slowed hiring, newly minted software engineers are struggling to find jobs. If professional reinvention will be necessary for most of us throughout the course of our careers, we need to cultivate skills that can apply in multiple domains. For instance, when Dorie lost her job as a journalist, she applied her writing experience and knowledge of politics (the beat she covered) to pivot to her next job as a campaign spokesperson. 3. Build relationships Finally, lean into interpersonal relationships, becauseunlike youAI cant go to the watercooler. With enough data about meetings and emails, its true that it can analyze professional networks and see webs of influence within organizations. (Though many organizations are a long way from being able to fully deploy and capture the power of that analysis.) But, at least for the time being, AI wont be able to pick up on whats not captured in writing, from breakroom gossip and speculation to whispered advice and traded favors. Of course, were not suggesting that you become a Machiavellian operator, wielding insinuations and demanding reciprocity. But, in all of the discourse about what AI can and cant replace, it seems clear that interpersonal connections – and the deep-seated principles that govern them, such as the general desire to reciprocate good deeds that others have done for us – are likely to persist. Investing in understanding other people and trying to help them where possible still seems like a worthy bet in the age of AI. In the past, young professionals could and did adapt to the new technological reality and find ways to make it their own. We believe this will happen againand perhaps this might even take some of the pressure off the college experience, as students realize no one can predict the future and therefore, theres no right answer to be had as we navigate life choices.
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E-Commerce
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