There's a lot of data showing that trust in governments, institutions, and organizations is declining worldwide. Employers were once considered the last trusted institution—and even that is eroding. As someone who has spent years working independently, I've often noticed that these conversations leave out people like us entirely. When you don't have an employer, trust shows up differently. Stability looks different. And the relationship you have with yourself matters more than most people realize.

So I wanted to start there.

I talk about what it actually means to trust yourself when you're self-employed, when you don't see many role models living or working the way you do, and when the noise—from well-meaning friends, family, and society—keeps asking, "Why don't you just get a job?"

For me, self-trust isn't abstract. It's practical. It shows up in how I decide to work, how I communicate, and how I choose between remote, in-person, or hybrid ways of connecting. It shows up in my values—impact, meaning, and helping shape a future of work that supports people, families, and communities, not just productivity metrics.

I also share the inner practices that help me stay grounded when things feel uncertain. Meditation. Walking. Swimming. Paying attention to my body. Noticing what has always been true about me—what I'm drawn to, what calms me, what fuels my curiosity. I talk about rituals, habits, and even "extreme noticing": light on water, changes in seasons, how my body reacts to people, places, and decisions.

These practices help me recognize what's changing, what isn't, and where opportunity actually lives—for me.

As we move through uncertainty, I believe self-trust becomes a form of leadership. When you know your own reactions, values, and rhythms, you're better equipped to make decisions, form opinions, and move forward without needing constant external validation.

I close the episode with an invitation:
What helps you trust yourself? What rituals, habits, or inner practices keep you grounded? I'd love to hear your stories, and I may share some of them in a future episode as we explore how self-trust shapes how we lead, work, and relate to others.

Because maybe—just maybe—trusting ourselves more is the first step toward trusting each other again.

• Leave me a voicemail with your questions or thoughts: https://podcastfeedback.com/hopeandpossibilities

• Follow me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/nolasimon

• Subscribe to my newsletter: Hope & Possibilities: A Love Letter to the Future of Work | Nola Simon | Substack

• Hire me via website: www.nolasimon.com

Absolutely! Here's a first-person version of your show notes:

Episode Title: Pivot to Future of Work Leadership

Episode Description:
In this episode of the Hope and Possibilities Podcast, I talk about what I'm seeing for 2026 and the future of work. My focus is shifting from solely helping companies adopt hybrid and remote work to looking at leadership more broadly. Flexibility, autonomy, and well-being aren't just perks anymore—they're core to how people want to work and how organizations succeed.

We'll talk about the pressures around office return mandates, AI, and workforce reduction, and why I don't buy the narrative that humans are expendable. Instead, leadership in the future is about reinvention, redistributing work, and making sure people feel that they matter.

I'll also share how I plan to use this podcast, my newsletter, LinkedIn, and email to create space for nuanced conversations about the future of work. And I want to hear from you—what questions are keeping you awake at night?

Key Topics & Timestamps:

• [00:00:22] Why I'm pivoting my focus for 2026

• [00:00:53] Why hybrid and flexible work aren't going away

• [00:01:32] Why autonomy and well-being often matter more than compensation

• [00:03:00] The circular debates around office space, identity, and leadership

• [00:04:39] How AI is changing the way work happens

• [00:06:26] Navigating conflicting narratives about AI and workforce reduction

• [00:07:16] Leadership as continuous reinvention, not a one-time project

• [00:08:34] Why making people feel they matter is central to leadership

• [00:09:49] Discernment as a critical skill in an increasingly complex world

• [00:11:05] How work is evolving—universal benefits, portfolio careers, and new models

• [00:12:06] How I'm shifting the podcast, newsletters, and my content strategy

• [00:15:10] How you can interact with the podcast and share your questions

• [00:16:26] Questions to reflect on: identity, life quakes, and navigating change

Connect & Engage:

• Leave me a voicemail with your questions or thoughts: https://podcastfeedback.com/hopeandpossibilities

• Follow me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/nolasimon

• Subscribe to my newsletter: Hope & Possibilities: A Love Letter to the Future of Work | Nola Simon | Substack

• Hire me via website: www.nolasimon.com

Takeaway:
The future of work is about flexibility, discernment, and creating environments where people feel valued. Change is constant—how we respond and evolve will define the next chapter of our work and our lives.

In this solo episode of Hope and Possibilities: A Love Letter to the Future of Work, I'm talking honestly about how LinkedIn and social media are changing, and what that means for how I show up, get found, and build my business. I share how I went from casually using LinkedIn to becoming a LinkedIn Top Voice with a "small but mighty" following, and why the latest algorithm shifts are nudging me to rethink my strategy.​

I get into what's really going on with discoverability, including how proxy bias can quietly disadvantage women, people of color, trans folks, and anyone who doesn't fit the traditional leadership mold. I also talk about the emotional side of it—what it feels like when your impressions drop, your posts don't land the way they used to, and how I'm choosing to respond with experimentation instead of discouragement.​

I walk you through how I'm shifting from "cheerleader" style commenting to more thoughtful, strategic contributions that actually support my consulting work and signal my expertise. I share how I'm reworking my profile for people who are discovering me for the very first time through a comment, and why I'm putting more energy into things I own—like my website, blog, Substack, newsletter, and search-friendly content on platforms like Pinterest and YouTube.​

I also push back on the narrative that "everything needs to be in-person now." I talk about what it's really like living outside a major city, the time and energy cost of commuting, and why in-person events have to clear a pretty high bar for me: they need to help me make money, save time, or reduce risk—not just feel good in the moment.​

Throughout the episode, I keep coming back to one question: will future me be grateful for how I'm spending my time and attention right now? I share how I'm choosing to support important conversations about bias, platforms, and ethical AI without making "fighting the algorithm" the center of my business, and how I'm designing a visibility strategy that feels sustainable, values-aligned, and genuinely hopeful about the future of work.​

Key insights

• The LinkedIn algorithm is shifting from prioritizing posts to rewarding meaningful commenting, which changes how people get discovered and how you think about visibility and strategy.​
• Proxy bias means that even if gender isn't a stated factor, variables like role, seniority, and activity levels can still disadvantage women, people of color, trans folks, and others who don't match the "default" leadership profile.​
• Commenting as pure cheerleading doesn't necessarily drive business; strategic comments that demonstrate insight, credibility, and clarity on your services are far more valuable.​
• Building on platforms you own (website, blog, email list) is essential so your work and relationships are not entirely dependent on platform whims and opaque algorithms.​
• In-person-only strategies are exclusionary for many people, especially those who don't live near major hubs or carry significant logistical and emotional costs to attend events.​
• Future-focused visibility is about making choices that future you will be grateful for—balancing values, energy, and the reality that friends are wonderful, but clients pay the bills.

A personalized LinkTree for Nola Simon's presence on social media — Nola Simon

Listen: Hope + Possibilties: A Love Letter to the Future of Work

Review: Hope + Possibilties: A Love Letter to the Future of Work

Hope & Possibilities: A Love Letter to the Future of Work

In this episode, I share how I think about futurism not just as theory, but as something you can actually live. My focus has always been: how do we bring futurism into daily life? How do the choices we make today move us closer to the future we want?

I talk about the future-back method I first learned at the Institute for the Future, why noticing matters more than prediction, and how small shifts in attention can help you navigate change with more agency and optimism.

• How I use the future-back approach to imagine 10 years ahead and work backwards

• Why I see scanning for signals as the heart of futurist practice

• The difference between signals, trends, and lasting change (with stories about cell phones, remote work, and commercial real estate)

• My personal story of choosing flexibility early so I could be the parent I wanted to be

• Why agency and autonomy matter more than ever in how we work and live

• How I balance hopeful futures with the reality of shadow sides

Futurism doesn't have to be abstract. It can be practical, embodied, and deeply personal. For me, it's a way to navigate uncertainty while staying aligned with the life—and future—I want to build.

• Join my 21 Day Futures Challenge to start practicing futurism daily

• Connect with me on LinkedIn

• Subscribe to Hope & Possibilities: A Love Letter to the Future of Work wherever you listen to podcasts

🎙️ Hope and Possibilities with Nola Simon
🗓️ Episode Title: What Got You Here, Won't Get You There
🧭 Length: ~20 minutes
🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts

In this episode, I reflect on a concept that's been showing up in a lot of places in my life and work lately:
"What got you here won't get you there."

It's a phrase I learned from Marshall Goldsmith, and it's one that keeps offering new layers of meaning the more I sit with it.

I talk about how this idea plays out in leadership — especially the shift from being an individual contributor to stepping into management or executive roles. I use parenting as a metaphor (because let's be honest, parenting and leadership have a lot in common), and I even dive into a pop culture example that might surprise you: Liam Payne from One Direction — and how his career arc illustrates what happens when our playbook doesn't evolve with us.

I also get personal about my own journey. I started my consulting business from a place of deep necessity — as a working mother trying to be more present for my daughters. But now that my girls are 18 and 20 and no longer at home, I'm finding myself in a new season. I'm reevaluating what work looks like for me now, and what I want to model going forward.

I invite you to reflect alongside me:
🌀 What's no longer working for you?
🌀 What do you need to let go of — even if it brought you success in the past?

• The theory of "What Got You Here Won't Get You There" and why it matters

• How leadership changes the skill sets that matter

• Why parenting is a powerful metaphor for management

• What Liam Payne's career taught me about reinvention

• The evolution of hybrid/remote work and how mandates affect trust

• Why I'm reconsidering my focus — and what I might do next

• The impact of AI, demographic shifts, and generational change on work

• Why clarity often comes after you take the next step

"The goal of a parent is to raise adults. So if you've raised adults, you've achieved your goal."

"You're not in control — but you are responsible. That's leadership. That's parenting. That's life."

"Sometimes what made you successful also makes you stuck."

"It's not that your past success isn't valuable — it's just not enough to carry you forward."

I'd love to hear your take.
🌿 What playbooks might be holding you back?
🌿 What do you think you'll need to drop or rethink to grow into your next chapter?

Send me a message, tag me online, or email your thoughts.
Let's connect.

If this episode spoke to you, please consider sharing it with someone else who's in a season of change.
And if you're enjoying the podcast, I'd love it if you'd follow, rate, or leave a review — it helps more than you know.

Presence, Work, and AI: Stories Beyond Location

In this episode of Hope & Possibilities: A Love Letter to the Future of Work, I dive into a theory I've been working on: our stories about work are deeply tied to presence—but not always in the ways we think.

When I look back on my own career, most of my success stories didn't happen in person. They happened over the phone, on a webinar, or through a screen. I rarely met my clients face-to-face, and yet that work shaped everything I achieved.

Along the way, I've noticed how much physical presence—height, energy, laughter, even hair color—shapes the way people are recognized and valued at work. For some, being seen in person is essential. For others, like me, virtual spaces open up new ways to make an impact.

Then there's AI. If AI doesn't rely on presence at all, what does that mean for how we define influence, storytelling, and success in the workplace of the future?

This episode is an invitation: to rethink the stories you tell about your own work, and to explore what presence really means beyond location.

• How my career stories evolved outside of physical presence

• Why energy, visibility, and recognition feel different in person vs. virtual

• The role of autonomy in choosing how and where we work

• What's missing from the "return to office" conversation

• How AI challenges our assumptions about presence and influence

• How to notice whether your influence depends on being in the room—or not

• Why remote work fuels some people and drains others

• How storytelling reveals hidden biases in work culture

• What AI might mean for the future of presence

I'd love to hear from you.

• Has working in person been essential to your success?

• Or has working virtually allowed you to thrive in ways you couldn't before?

Send me your story at nola@nolasimon.com or visit nolasimon.com.

• Website: nolasimon.com

• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/nolasimon