Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and departing COO Sheryl Sandberg are heading back to Washington for another round of questioning from Congress. The pair will testify before congressional leaders about the 2015 Cambridge Analytica data breach, which already cost them $643,000 and feels quaint compared to future leaks from plugging Facebook directly into our brains.

As we know, this isn’t Zuckerberg’s first congressional rodeo (who can forget “Is Twitter Facebook?”) and he has bigger problems anyway — specifically, losing market share to TikTok. That might not be your company’s problem, but read on for an important business lesson from The Social Network.

Instant environmentalism: Make your company greener by EOD.

The power of plural: Collaborative language gets better results.

The Social Network: Your idea could be gone as quick as a Winklevoss.

(Source: Shutterstock)

Carbon emissions dropped substantially at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, dipping 5.4% globally in 2020, according to NASA. Another study found that working from home saved trillions of sheets of paper and resulted in a 67% reduction of waste production from businesses.

While we never want to repeat those difficult days of lockdown, it’s important to consider and minimize our environmental impact as we return to the office. Even if your company doesn’t have a big budget to implement eco-friendly investments, you can take steps toward sustainability before the clock strikes 5 p.m. today.

Adopt daylight harvesting

Make use of the sun’s natural light and heat by opening blinds and moving desks closer to windows so you can turn off some lights. (Bonus: Natural light from the side or front is more attractive for Zoom meetings!)

Replace your plastic kitchen utensils

Is your office kitchen stocked with disposable forks and spoons, not to mention paper coffee cups? Lower your daily trash heap with actual silverware and mugs. Just implore employees not to leave them in the sink.

Switch to recycled paper

The average office worker uses as many as 10,000 sheets of copy paper per year. Using recycled paper can make a big difference in your company’s carbon footprint. On that note, set up recycling bins throughout your office, not just one hidden behind the printer.

Challenge workers to go green

Turn going green into a game. Assign point values to different activities, such as carpooling, riding a bike, or driving an EV to work. Offer prizes to those who make the most positive, sustainable changes within a week or month. And don’t forget to lead by example.

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The average CEO only has a 67% approval rating from employees. Why so low? It might be their communication, explains Dr. Steven Rogelberg, Chancellor’s Professor at UNC Charlotte and former president of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

Some CEOs position themselves front and center as a strong and effective leader in stakeholder communication, using first-person singular pronouns (“I,” “me,” “my,” “mine”). Others emphasize their teams with plural pronouns (“we,” “us,” “our,” “ours”), and they’re getting better results.

In a study published in the Journal of Business and Psychology, a clear pattern emerged from 70 CEOs’ stakeholder letters: In companies with greater financial success, the CEOs used more “we” pronouns.

“CEOs need to be identity leaders,” the authors conclude, “who inspire positive organizational outcomes by representing and cultivating a sense of ‘we’ among organizational members.”

This may convince you to start using more “we” language in stakeholder communications. This is certainly fine. However, the words themselves didn’t increase ROI; they likely reflected a value system and leadership orientation. Elevate talent. Elevate teams. Help the collective thrive.

(Source: Sony Pictures)

Everyone has a million-dollar idea, but they’re all worthless if not legally secured. The Winklevoss twins learned that lesson in real life and in David Fincher’s instant classic, The Social Network.

When the brothers (played by Armie Hammer in the film, pre-scandal) approached Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) to write the software code for their exclusive social network, Harvard Connection, it was merely an abstract idea not protected under the law. That’s because intellectual property rights don’t cover the intangible idea but rather the manner in which it’s expressed. Clearly, the Winklevosses should’ve had Zuckerberg sign a lawyer-drawn contract that cemented their ownership.

Or, as Zuck puts it, “If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you’d have invented Facebook.”

But there’s an even bigger lesson here: Think of all the other great ideas they might’ve dreamed up if they hadn’t spent years chasing the one that slipped away. If you’re beaten to the punch, don’t become too fixated on the missed opportunity. Use that dissatisfaction to churn out an even better idea — like, y’know, becoming Bitcoin billionaires in their nonfictional case.

Friday is here, which means it’s time for our hop-notherapy appointment with Firestone Walker’s Hopnosis IPA. This longtime Paso Robles brewery utilizes sophisticated cryo-hopping techniques to create an extremely aromatic West Coast-style IPA. It’s soft on the palate with notes of lychee and passion fruit, though the finish is markedly bitter.

Pro tip: Firestone Walker has a great taproom on the border of Venice and Marina del Rey. If you’re ever in Los Angeles, “hop” on over!

Written by Dawn Allcot, Dr. Steven Rogelberg, Antonio Ferme, and Aaron Goldfarb. Comic by John McNamee.