Truth, Lies and Work

Truth, Lies & Work is part of the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.

In this episode: We explore why "Brand Well-being" is the new secret to a 47% ROI, why a Silicon Valley startup is banning "tech bros" in favour of over-50s, and why the coworking dream is being replaced by the "proworking" revolution. Plus, we debunk the multitasking myth and solve your workplace dilemmas.

🔥 This Week in Work: The News Round-Up


Brand Well-being: The Competitive Advantage
Is your brand just a logo, or a healthy ecosystem? Leanne introduces "Brand Well-being"—the idea that success depends on the health of employees, internal culture, and customers. With research showing a 47% ROI on well-being programmes and the Work Wellbeing 100 outperforming the market, we ask: why is this still treated as an optional extra?
Fast Company Article: https://www.fastcompany.com/91474208/what-is-brand-well-being-and-can-it-give-you-a-competitive-advantage-leadership-brands-well-being


The Silicon Valley "Anti-Tech-Bro" Shift
Startup Snowcap Compute is flipping the script by hiring a team with an average age of over 50. In a hardware industry where one mistake costs nine months of progress, CEO Mike Lafferty argues that "veteran" skepticism beats "youthful" trust in models. We discuss why deep experience is becoming a primary competitive advantage.
Inc Article: https://www.inc.com/kevin-haynes/tech-bros-need-not-apply-a-silicon-valley-hiring-twist/91313738


The Death of Coworking & The Rise of "Proworking"
Is the "Bromad" era over? Al explores why serious professionals are quietly leaving open-plan coworking spaces. As home becomes the default for many, the office must offer something better: quiet, privacy, and "proworking" spaces that offer a door that actually shuts.
Forbes Article: https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbesbusinesscouncil/2025/12/15/the-private-office-revival-why-professionals-are-quietly-leaving-coworking-behind/

🧠 Truth or Lie: Can Some People Genuinely Multitask?
We put the "supertasker" under the microscope. While 2.5% of the population might handle heavy cognitive loads more efficiently, for the other 97.5% of us, multitasking is just expensive "task switching." We also look at how AI isn't making us better at juggling—it’s just taking some of the balls out of the air for us.

🏥 The Workplace Surgery


The "Zero Ambition" Contributor: Is it a problem if a top performer just wants to do their job and go home?


Leading Hard Conversations: Advice for HR pros and managers on staying neutral when things get emotional.


Podcast ROI: Is starting a business podcast in 2026 a smart growth strategy or a vanity project?

📬 Connect with Al & Leanne
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truthlieswork
– Al Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thisisalelliott
– Leanne Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meetleanne
– Email: [email protected]
– Book a call: https://savvycal.com/meetleanne/chat

Mental health support
UK & ROI — Samaritans Call 116 123 or visit https://www.samaritans.org
UK — Mind Call 0300 123 3393 or visit https://www.mind.org.uk
US — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Call or text 988 or visit https://988lifeline.org
Australia — Lifeline Call 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au
Global helplines: https://findahelpline.com

Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work, the award-winning workplace podcast where behavioural science meets workplace culture, brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network.

This week, we are joined by the "adult in the room" from the early days of Facebook, Tom LeNoble. Tom has led in boardrooms and fought for his life in hospital rooms, surviving multiple life-threatening illnesses. From shaping growth at Facebook (META), Walmart.com, Palm (HP), and MCI (Verizon) to now serving as CEO of the Academy for Coaching Excellence and a leadership coach with Santa Clara University’s Miller Center for Global Impact, Tom helps others navigate adversity with courage and clarity.

In his best-selling book, My Life in Business Suits, Hospital Gowns, and High Heels, Tom shares unflinching lessons on risk, resilience, and reinvention.

🔥 What we cover in this episode:


The Early Days of Facebook: What it was like interviewing with a 19-year-old Mark Zuckerberg in a tiny office above a Chinese restaurant.


The Secret Struggle: How Tom managed a high-octane Silicon Valley career while being given six months to live—three separate times.


Leading Through Crisis: The philosophy of laying off 100 people (and eventually himself) with dignity and a "head held high" approach.


The Philanthropic Mindset: Why philanthropy isn't about the size of the check, but the intention behind a simple "hello."


The Story of Rita Dayworth: Reclaiming all parts of your identity, from executive suits to high heels.

📚 About Tom LeNoble

Tom’s book is available on Amazon, and you can learn more by visiting www.tomlenoble.com. Follow @lenoble.tom on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

You can also reach out to Tom directly at [email protected].

📬 Connect with Al & Leanne


LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truthlieswork


Al Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thisisalelliott


Leanne Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meetleanne


Email: [email protected]


Book a call: https://savvycal.com/meetleanne/chat

🧠 Mental health support+1


UK & ROI — Samaritans: Call 116 123 or visit https://www.samaritans.org


UK — Mind: Call 0300 123 3393 or visit https://www.mind.org.uk


US — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 or visit https://988lifeline.org


Australia — Lifeline: Call 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au


Global helplines: https://findahelpline.com

Truth, Lies & Work is part of the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.

Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work, the award-winning workplace podcast where behavioural science meets workplace culture, brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network.

This week, we explore why "friction" might be the secret to better judgment, the brutal reality of AI-driven layoffs at Block, and why your boss's 10:47 PM emails are exhausting your entire team. Plus, we dig into the science of whether leadership is written in your DNA.

🔥 Stories Covered

1. The Rise of "Friction-maxxing"
Leanne introduces a new term: friction-maxxing. Inspired by reporting in the Financial Times, this movement sees workers deliberately choosing slower, more effortful ways of working—like handwriting notes or reading full documents instead of AI summaries—to combat "cognitive atrophy" and build nuanced judgment.
Source: https://www.ft.com/content/fd5e65df-83c7-42f3-9658-377c99df42d1

2. Jack Dorsey’s AI Gamble
Al discusses the recent layoffs at Block (formerly Square/Twitter), where CEO Jack Dorsey cut 4,000 jobs—40% of the workforce—and explicitly blamed AI productivity gains. We debate whether this "rip the plaster off" honesty is refreshing or a dangerous precedent for the future of work.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/feb/27/block-ai-layoffs-jack-dorsey

3. The Climate of Constant Connectivity
New research in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology reveals that when leaders use smartphones for work after hours, they create a shared "climate of constant connectivity". This doesn't just annoy individuals; it leads to collective emotional exhaustion across the entire team.
Source: https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/joop.70067

🧠 Truth or Lie: Are Leaders Born or Made?

We tackle the "Great Man" theory of leadership. While studies of identical twins show that between 37% and 59% of leadership style variation can be linked to genetics, that still leaves more than half the equation down to environment, experience, and development.
The Verdict: It’s a Lie—leadership is not a genetic script; it is a practicable skill shaped by opportunity and self-awareness.

💬 Workplace Surgery

This week, we answer three tough listener questions:


The Nepotism Trap: How do you push back when a senior leader pressures you to hire their less-qualified relative?


The Vanishing Spark: What do you do when "star" employees suddenly settle for "just fine" without being dramatic about "quiet quitting"?


The Transparency Gap: Your manager is telling the CEO a project is "on track" when you know it's failing. Do you speak up or stay complicit?

📬 Connect with Al & Leanne
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truthlieswork
– Al Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thisisalelliott
– Leanne Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meetleanne
– Email: [email protected]
– Book a call: https://savvycal.com/meetleanne/chat

Mental health support
UK & ROI — Samaritans Call 116 123 or visit https://www.samaritans.org
UK — Mind Call 0300 123 3393 or visit https://www.mind.org.uk
US — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Call or text 988 or visit https://988lifeline.org
Australia — Lifeline Call 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au
Global helplines
https://findahelpline.com

Truth, Lies & Work is part of the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Find out more at: https://www.hubspot.com/podcast-network

Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work, the award-winning workplace podcast where behavioural science meets organisational culture.

In the corporate world, we are obsessed with personality. We use DISC, Myers-Briggs, and Enneagrams to "colour-code" our colleagues and predict who will be a great leader. But what if we’ve been looking at the wrong data?

In this episode, we sit down with Juliette Alban-Metcalfe, a Chartered Occupational Psychologist and CEO of Real World Group. Juliette is at the forefront of leadership research, building on the groundbreaking work of her mother, Professor Beverly Alimo-Metcalfe.

Juliette argues that personality only explains a tiny fraction of leadership success. Instead, the real "magic sauce" is behaviour—the specific, observable actions that leaders take to engage their teams and foster success.

In this episode, we discuss:


Personality vs. Behaviour: Why what you do matters infinitely more than who you are according to your personality test results.


The "Accidental Manager" Trap: Why founders and technical experts often struggle to transition into leadership and how 360-degree feedback can bridge the gap.


Predictive Validity: The science behind why leadership behaviours can predict up to 60% of a team's motivation and fulfilment.


Psychological Safety: How to use assessments to build trust and development rather than fear and judgement.


Actionable Advice for Leaders: Two simple things every leader can do today to immediately improve team engagement.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re "not a natural leader" or if you're an HR professional frustrated with the lack of ROI from personality workshops, this episode is a masterclass in the science of what actually works.

🔗 Connect with Juliette

– LinkedIn: Juliette Alban-Metcalfe
– Website: Real World Group

📬 Connect with Al & Leanne

– LinkedIn: Truth, Lies & Work
– Al Elliott: LinkedIn
– Leanne Elliott: LinkedIn
– Email: [email protected]
– Book a call: https://savvycal.com/meetleanne/chat

🧠 Mental Health Support

UK & ROI — Samaritans: Call 116 123 or visit https://www.samaritans.org

UK — Mind: Call 0300 123 3393 or visit https://www.mind.org.uk

US — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 or visit https://988lifeline.org

Australia — Lifeline: Call 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au

Global Helplines — https://findahelpline.com

Truth, Lies & Work is part of the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.

Welcome back to Truth, Lies & Work, the award-winning workplace podcast where behavioural science meets workplace culture.

This week, we explore the "silent disengagement" trend, the surprising truth about Gen Z and the office, and the psychological reason why the end of a project feels harder than the beginning. Plus, we settle the ultimate workplace debate: do people leave managers or jobs?

Stories Covered

1. The Rise of "Silent Disengagement"
Is office culture dying, or is it just getting quieter? We look at silent disengagement, where employees do the work but mentally pull back, speaking less in meetings and avoiding new projects. Leanne argues this isn't a new remote work problem, but a long-standing issue of employees not feeling valued or challenged.


Source: Silent Disengagement: The work trend explained

2. Gen Z: Leading the Charge Back to the Office?
Forget the lazy stereotypes. New data suggests Gen Z is actually leading the return to the office for social connection and development. We share the story of a 24-year-old commuting four hours a day just to be in the room. It turns out, different life stages need different work models—and flexibility increases engagement for everyone.

3. Why the "Last Stretch" Feels the Hardest
Ever noticed how the final 10% of a project feels more draining than the first 90%? A new study in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology explains that fatigue heightens as we become more aware of the effort we've already invested. The fix? Zoom out and frame the task as part of a bigger goal.


Read the paper: More done, more drained (Zeng et al., 2025)


BPS Digest: How to get through the last push

Truth or Lie: Do people really leave managers, not jobs?

It is one of the most common beliefs in business: "People don't leave bad jobs, they leave bad managers." Leanne digs into the research from Gallup, McKinsey, and Facebook to find the truth. While poor leadership dramatically increases the odds of someone quitting, we reveal the other factors that actually drive the Great Resignation.

Workplace Surgery

This week, we tackle three tough questions from our listeners:


Unlimited Holiday: Is it a brilliant trust-building exercise or a recipe for anxiety and "leavism"?


Lifting Morale: How do you rebuild energy in a team that is flat after a draining year of changes and stress?


The "30-Second" Interview: What do you do when you know a candidate isn't right within seconds of meeting them?

Connect with Al & Leanne


LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truthlieswork


Al Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thisisalelliott


Leanne Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meetleanne


Email: [email protected]


Book a call: https://savvycal.com/meetleanne/chat

Mental health support

UK & ROI — Samaritans: Call 116 123 or visit https://www.samaritans.org

UK — Mind: Call 0300 123 3393 or visit https://www.mind.org.uk

US — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 or visit https://988lifeline.org

Australia — Lifeline: Call 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au

Global helplines: https://findahelpline.com

Truth, Lies & Work is proud to be part of the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.