Dunstable Community Information Portal

1. How to smart leaders win trust. Leaders have been trained to hide vulnerabilities, to minimise risk, and to be consistent, level-headed, and in complete control at all times. But it’s impossible to trust someone who is always rational, serious, and in control. READ MORE >>

2. The biggest opportunity killer is age. It's my birthday today. Happy Birthday me…! I'm therefore sad to discover that age is considered the number-one barrier to job opportunities in the UK today, above gender, ethnicity or education. Nearly half of the Baby Boomers surveyed – and over a quarter of Generation X respondents – said they felt age was the key factor in preventing people from realising job opportunities and gaining a good work/life balance, stability and from doing a role that they love. It's about time this changed, though, with recent research from over-50s recruitment specialists Rest Less suggesting that over-65s will account for over half of the UK's employment growth in the next 10 years. BBC

3. A new peak for global consumption. A report by the Circle Economy think tank found that in 2017 (the latest year for which data is available), humanity consumed 100.6 billion tonnes of material. Nearly half this total was the sand, clay, gravel and cement used for building; coal, oil and gas made up 15% and metal ores 10%; most of the remainder were plants and trees used for food and fuel. Since 1970, the materials consumed by humanity have quadrupled, while the world’s population has only doubled. Meanwhile, the proportion of materials being recycled is actually falling, down from 9.1% in 2015 to 8.6% in 2017. The Guardian

4. Nice work if you can get it. Members of the House of Lords will receive a 3.1% rise in their daily pay for turning up. From April, they will be entitled to £323 a day just for “signing in”. That could, in theory, amount to £48,450 a year over 150 days. The payments for meals, accommodation and transport are also free of tax and national insurance, because they are connected with the House’s parliamentary work. Members are not legally employees or holders of office. The Times.

5. Being a bad leader is not their fault. A weak leader or a bad boss can make or break how you feel about going to work every day. Yet employees should not necessarily rush to point the finger at a bad boss for their terrible leadership style. One of the big challenges for leaders is that rarely are they taught how to lead. Only when companies invest in managers learning the basics of strong leadership, such as listening skills, effective confrontation, how to give and receive feedback, patience and empathy, can they be fairly appraised. Effective leadership training is closer than you think. CLICK on the image below and I'll take you there. Ed.

6. Dealing with divorce at work. Determining how to navigate a divorce is deeply personal, yet the emotional toll of a marriage breakdown often seeps into your work life. For senior leaders, the issue is even more acute, as shifting emotions caused by divorce could impact their decision-making on matters with company-wide ramifications. For the rest of us, experts say it can be beneficial to inform trusted colleagues about your situation as you will likely experience less productivity and focus, and more emotion or sensitivity, and will possibly need time to decompress. Financial Review

7. UK economy flatlined at end of 2019. The UK economy failed to grow in the final three months of 2019, as Brexit uncertainty and the general election took their toll. Data from the ONS suggests there was an uptick in the services and construction sectors, but this was offset by poor results from manufacturing – particularly the motor industry. On top of this, total business investment shrunk by 1% in the quarter, which is worse than analysts had predicted. Office for National Statistics

8. 2021 census may be the last. The UK’s national statistician has revealed that next year’s census could be the last ever undertaken. The national survey, sent to every household, has been carried out once a decade for some 200 years, but the Office for National Statistics is now examining cheaper alternatives in a bid to drive down spiralling costs. BBC

9. Downing Street tells Beeb it will scrap the licence fee. Downing Street has the BBC it will scrap the television licence fee and make viewers pay a subscription. the corporation could also be forced to downsize and sell off most of its radio stations. Last week, the BBC chairman, launched an outspoken defence of the licence fee as tensions rose between the government and the national broadcaster. The Sunday Times

10. The bottom line. £2.1bn would be generated if the same percentage of British households subscribed to the BBC as American households subscribe to Netflix under a subscription model – much less than the £3.7bn the BBC raised from TV licences last year. The Times