Written for the leaders, owners and professionals of the 11 million businesses with between $50,000 and $50 million in revenue.

Earlier this week, the Federal Trade Commission nuked the noncompete agreement. Employers can no longer temporarily ban new hires from switching jobs or starting businesses within the same industry. With 1 in 5 U.S. workers currently subject to noncompetes, the rule change is expected to boost competition for talent — and wages along with it.

Business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have legally challenged the FTC’s decision, arguing it will leave trade secrets unprotected. The FTC counters that confidentiality agreements are sufficient. “Noncompetes block workers from freely switching jobs,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan in an official statement, “depriving businesses of a talent pool that they need to build and expand.”

Financially Lit!: Jannese Torres’ tips to “level up your dinero”

Office small talk: It’s actually a good thing — and here’s why

(Source: GCP Balance)

In recent years, many American employees are working fewer hours, getting more paid time off, and working from home for a day or two per week — yet burnout levels are at an all-time high. Corporate trainer (and TikTok sensation) Emily Ballesteros has spent years interviewing burned-out professionals and consulting businesses on how to solve this very issue. Her new book, The Cure for Burnout: How to Find Balance and Reclaim Your Life, presents a methodology that could rejuvenate the hearts of 9-to-5-ers.

Ballesteros spoke with b. and gave us a road map back from the edge.

b.: Your book provides practical strategies for managing burnout in five key categories. Can you describe them? Ballesteros: Mindset is being able to recognize and then change the burnout patterns that you find yourself in. … Personal care that you can incorporate weekly — and not just force into weekends as damage control. Time management is getting as much important work done as you can in the most effective way possible. … Boundaries: identifying and setting personal and professional limits without feeling super guilty. And finally, stress management. … A lot of people who are experiencing burnout just live in fight-or-flight mode and don’t realize how activated their stress responses are. b.: Why has it gotten worse in recent years?

Ballesteros: When I started this work around 2017-2018, pre-COVID, it was already prevalent, but it has become increasingly prevalent with the flux of working from home, office work, and the hybrid model …

So many structures were changed. I was commuting an hour and a half each way, like three hours each day. So many things have changed since that point, but it’s like, “How did I ever do that? And why would I ever do that?”

People have experienced increased frustration after getting potentially a little bit more freedom when they got to work from home or having a little bit more flexibility.

b.: Is there a difference in burnout between generations?

Ballesteros: I’m a millennial. With previous generations, there was absolutely burnout and also their dollar went a lot further — if they were really burdened, they could also afford a [certain] lifestyle. So the burnout might have been more worth it …

[Millennial] burnout is that frustration, and then a lot of people have stereotypes about Gen Z of like, “Oh, they’ve given up before they’ve even started” or “they’re not even working towards the dream.” But they didn’t even see the dream. They’re so cynical and feel even less inclined to go through the motions because they didn’t even get to have that dream.

All of the burnout experiences at the end of the day have the same signs and symptoms. It’s going to be anxiety around work, troubled sleeping, mental and physical and emotional exhaustion. So the burnout experience is the same, but the circumstances are slightly different depending on when you were born.

This interview has been edited for length. Read the full Q&A at business.com.

The Cure for Burnout is available now.

Onboarding starts before your new employee ever steps foot in the office (or joins their first virtual meeting). With the right preparations, their first days can feel as smooth as butter. That’s why Bamboo HR put together this pre-onboarding checklist to help ensure your new hire feels comfortable and ready to thrive in their new role.

Because onboarding isn’t a one-team job, the checklist includes tasks for:

HR 

Hiring managers

IT

New-hire onboarding buddies

With the help of this pre-onboarding checklist, you’re sure to create better first days!

Empower: “It’s a net worth tracker where you can link all your different accounts and see your financial progress in real time.”

Fidelity: “That’s where I love investing. I just think their investing app is super user-friendly.”

Melio: “It’s the only invoicing app I’ve found that does not charge any fees for ACH, so it helps me keep more of my business earnings.”

(Source: Shutterstock)

Dr. Steven Rogelberg is a chancellor’s professor at UNC Charlotte, former president of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and author of Glad We Met: The Art and Science of 1:1 Meetings.

Small talk at work is anything but small, according to new research published in the Academy of Management Journal.

First, let’s clarify what small talk is and is not:

Small talk is a quick exchange that focuses on superficial topics — such as the weather, a local sports team, or a new restaurant — before each party moves on to work or other activities. It usually happens in hallways, conference rooms before meetings, on the way from the parking lot, and other casual locations.

Small talk is not about work; it is not about complaining; and it is not gossip.

Now the fascinating part: According to a survey of 151 on-site employees conducted multiple times per day for 15 consecutive days, small talk promoted positive emotions and well-being. Another twist: it did not appear to matter if a person is introverted or extroverted; small talk has positive effects regardless.

When feeling happier, people tend to engage in more workplace citizenship behaviors like helping others. There is even some research linking happiness to more creativity.

The implications are clear: Make room for casual small talk at work; it builds a more upbeat climate. Obviously, it should not replace meaningful work-related conversations, but these quick and light chats are one compelling reason why return to office can be a positive.

Written by Antonio Ferme. Comic by John McNamee.