Posts from Awesome Folks #178

A weekly round up of blog posts I've been reading

Author

Emily Webber
December 12, 2025

Hello folks,

This week in December is always a bit of a funny one; it’s a mix of people on slowdown as they head into the end-of-year break and frantic organising to get everything done so it’s not left to January.

The sea, with a wind farm in the distance, grey clouds with some blue showing through.

To keep some calm, I’ve been taking myself for a lunchtime walk along the beach every day. A bit of time in the bracing British weather does wonders. I hope you are able to find some calm in your day as well.

Enjoy this week’s posts, and happy Friday.

Emily

People and Culture

Speaking Up

Esther Derby

When people in your company feel like they can’t speak up, everyone loses.  What is the cost, and what can. you do?

estherderby.com/speaking-up-2

Do You Know If Your Team Is Overwhelmed?

Alyson Meister and Nele Dael

In a world where relentless demands and blurred boundaries have become the norm, overwhelm is no longer an occasional experience; it’s a defining feature of modern work. It’s easy to dismiss it as stress from an employee under pressure or mistake it for burnout. But it’s neither. Overwhelm is an exhausting—and often invisible—tipping point when the stressors you face begin to exceed your perceived ability to cope with them. Overwhelm can surge suddenly and unpredictably. When ignored, it becomes the gateway to exhaustion and future burnout.

hbr.org/2025/12/do-you-know-if-your-team-is-overwhelmed

Organisations and Systems

Animated Video: How SINA Works (and How It Built 120 Social Enterprises Without Managers)

Pim de Morree

Three weeks ago, at the Corporate Rebels Summit 2025 , we put SINA on stage. We did it because their story is one of the most inspiring we have come…

www.corporate-rebels.com/blog/animated-video-how-sina-works

TBM 393: Why Labeling Relationships Is So Important

John Cutler

So much becomes clear when you actually label the relationships between things. It’s something I do every day, and I do it very naturally. But it is not something everyone does naturally.

cutlefish.substack.com/p/tbm-393-why-labeling-relationships

Outcomes and Objectives

Setting Goals for Your Team When the Path Isn’t Clear

Muriel Wilkins

How to keep moving forward when your organization’s strategy is evolving and conditions keep shifting.

hbr.org/podcast/2025/12/setting-goals-for-your-team-when-the-path-isnt-clear

A Faster Way to Build Future Scenarios

Rafael Ramírez, Trudi Lang, Joakim Köhler, and Matt Mennell

Scenario-planning examples show how a streamlined approach that incorporates AI can yield useful insights faster.

sloanreview.mit.edu/article/scenario-planning-examples

Approaches for Teams

Silent retro

Jamie Arnold

For times when it’s not safe to talk, but it’s essential to listen. A short, silent, and anonymous retrospective that asks participants 4 questions: 1) What just happened? 2) What were you thinking? 3) What were you feeling? 4)What needs to happen to move things forward?

www.jamiearnold.com/blog/2025/12/10/silent-retro

Other Things

I thought about that a lot

Curated by Amy McNichol

I thought about that a lot is a collection of 24 essays by 24 authors. Each author will describe one thing they’ve thought a lot about this year and a new essay will be shared each day in December in the countdown to Christmas.  🎄 Basically, it’s an advent calendar for your brain, not your belly. 🌟

buttondown.com/ithoughtalot