In The Worx

If you've ever led a team through a major transition, you know the moment I'm talking about.

The strategy is clear. The timeline is tight. The pressure is high. And suddenly, everyone is tired.

Not just physically tired. Emotionally tired. Decision tired. Change tired.
The middle of transitions is where burnout loves to hide. Not because people can't handle change, but because they're expected to handle too much of it, too fast, with too little support.

Transitions ask people to hold two realities at once: do their current job while learning a new one, let go of old ways while adopting new expectations, stay productive while feeling uncertain. That load adds up fast, especially when leaders assume resilient teams can just push through.

Resilience isn't infinite. And burnout doesn't always look dramatic. It shows up as disengagement, frustration, silence, and attrition.

The most common mistake leaders make during transitions is focusing only on ex*****on. Deadlines, deliverables, metrics, milestones. Those matter. But when ex*****on becomes the only focus, people become the collateral damage.

Thriving through transition isn't about moving faster. It's about leading smarter, with attention to energy, not just output.

Read the blog: https://www.intheworx.org/blog/how-to-thrive-in-transitions-without-burning-out

I'd love to know what comes up for you. Share it in the comments. 👇

📍 Save the date: October 29, 2026!

We're bringing Lead the Shift to the Rochester Academy of Medicine, and the setting is no accident!

RAOM has been common ground in this city for more than 125 years. It started in 1899 as Rochester's central medical library, a place where the region's practitioners came to study and share what they were learning.

Today it's a hub for education and honest dialogue, and its rooms have grown well beyond medicine. Its membership now includes nurses, social workers, educators, and community members, all of them at the same table.

That's the point. In a city shaped by major health systems like the University of Rochester Medical Center and Rochester Regional Health, RAOM stays neutral ground, a welcoming space where people come together to trade ideas and work toward better outcomes.

It's exactly the room we wanted for a day about AI and where your business goes next. All are welcome, and the real value is in who you'll be sitting next to.

Mark your calendar. Registration is open, and the full lineup lands over the coming weeks.

Learn more: ROCLeadsTheShift.com

One of the hidden burdens of HR is taking ownership of problems that aren't actually ours.

The emotions.
The conflict.
The culture.
The morale.
The uncertainty.

At some point, we start carrying things that were never ours to hold.

A healthy reminder:

• You can care without carrying
• You can support without absorbing
• You can listen without fixing
• You can lead without sacrificing yourself

💛 Boundaries aren't barriers. They're protection.

What's something you've learned to let go of?

👉 Grab your HR Black Box: www.intheworx.org/hrblackbox

How many webinars have you signed up for this year? And how many do you actually remember?

Most fade the moment the tab closes. You half-watch, multitask through the Q&A, promise yourself you'll go back to the recording, and never do.

That's exactly why we built Lead the Shift as a full day in one room, not another screen.

When you're in the room, AI stops being a topic and becomes a decision. You compare notes with other owners and operators sitting with the same questions.

You walk out with something you can act on Monday, not a link you'll forget by Friday! That's the difference we're after.

Lead the Shift: AI Business Summit
Thursday, October 29 · Rochester Academy of Medicine
Details & Registration: ROCLeadsTheShift.com

Change stretches you. And in that stretch, your boundaries get tested. What you say yes to, what you tolerate, what you protect. Where are your boundaries being tested right now?

Take a moment to write down one boundary you need to reinforce. 👉

There's a quiet pressure in HR to play it safe. Stay neutral. Follow the process. Avoid rocking the boat. Stick to what's already been approved.

For a long time, that approach made sense. HR has always carried the responsibility of protecting the organization, ensuring fairness, and minimizing risk.

But something has changed.

In today's workplace, playing it safe may actually be the riskiest thing HR can do. The world of work is shifting faster than policies and structures can keep up, and HR professionals who stay inside the comfort zone may find themselves reacting to problems instead of shaping solutions.

HR was trained for caution. Decades of being responsible for compliance and risk management made avoiding mistakes second nature. But the modern workplace demands more: adaptability, creativity, and the courage to challenge outdated systems.

Playing it safe might prevent small risks in the short term. But it can create much bigger ones in the long term.

Read the blog: https://www.intheworx.org/blog/the-anti-comfort-zone-why-playing-it-safe-is-riskier-than-you-think-in-hr

I'd love to know what comes up for you. Share it in the comments. 👇

Most business owners I talk to aren't asking whether AI matters anymore. They're asking what to actually do about it, without betting the quarter on a guess. 🤔

That's who we built Lead the Shift for.

Registration is now open for a full day on October 29 in Rochester. It's for the people who carry the decisions: owners and founders, HR and people leaders, operations and strategy, and anyone in healthcare or service work trying to sort signal from noise.

If that's you, grab a seat early. The rooms that are worth being in tend to fill with the people who move first.

📅 Thursday, October 29
📍 Rochester Academy of Medicine, Rochester
🔗 Register: ROCLeadsTheShift.com

HR professionals are master problem-solvers.

We jump into challenges.
We help people find solutions.
We manage crises.
We keep things moving.

But sometimes we're so busy helping everyone else that we stop noticing our own warning signs.

Burnout often starts as:

• Constant fatigue
• Brain fog
• Irritability
• Feeling emotionally numb
• Difficulty focusing
• Lack of motivation

You don't have to earn rest by reaching a breaking point.

💛 Taking care of yourself isn't selfish. It's sustainable.

What warning sign tells you it's time to slow down?

👉 Grab your HR Black Box: www.intheworx.org/hrblackbox

Discomfort isn’t always something to avoid. 👀

In transitions, it often shows up as a signal. It can point to growth or misalignment.

What is your discomfort trying to tell you right now?

✨Comment with one word that describes what this season is teaching you.

If you spend enough time in HR circles, you'll hear the same question over and over again.

"How do I become more strategic?"

It shows up at conferences, in coaching sessions, in leadership development programs. HR professionals are constantly told to be more strategic, but rarely given a clear picture of what that actually means.

So we try. We learn the language of business. We build dashboards. We study frameworks. We earn our seat at the table. And still, many of us walk away feeling like something is missing.

Here's what I've come to believe: being strategic isn't about how much you know. It's about the impact you create.

Maybe the real question isn't "How can I be more strategic?" Maybe it's "How can I create an impact so meaningful that people remember the difference I made?"

Read the blog: https://www.intheworx.org/blog/stop-asking-how-can-i-be-more-strategic

I'd love to know what comes up for you. Share it in the comments. 👇