Employee Engagement at a 10-Year Low. Here's What You Need to Know.

There's new Gallup data that reveals a systemic collapse.

Employee engagement hit a 10-year low. That's 8 million fewer engaged workers since 2020.

But here's what really got me... When researchers asked employees what would help them feel more cared about at work, one person said:

That's straight-up gaslighting.

So what's actually breaking down?

• Role clarity: Down 9 points. Organizations can't even tell people what they want from them.
• Feeling cared about: Down 13 points for younger workers.
• Trust in managers: Dropped from 46% to 29% in just two years.
• Clear goals: Less than one-third of leaders can define what exceptional performance looks like. For everyone else, it's one in five.

If you don't know what "good" looks like, how the hell can you know if you're succeeding? You can't.

But what does this mean for you?

The data proves what you've been experiencing:

• 75% of millennials are unsure about their performance
• 62% felt blindsided by their evaluations
• Managers spend only 13% of their time developing their people
• 82% of employees are at risk of burnout

It's not you. The system is broken.

Three Things You Can Do Right Now

1. Ask the clarity question. "What does exceptional performance look like for my role?" If your manager can't answer that clearly, that's a them problem, not a you problem.
2. Document everything. This includes expectations, feedback, scope changes, etc. Put it all in writing. This protects you and exposes gaps.
3. Name gaslighting when you see it. If concerns are met with "be grateful" or "have more grace" instead of legit problem-solving, call that out as organizational dysfunction.

Stop trying to control what you can't control.

You can't fix your organization's broken leadership pipeline, restore role clarity company-wide, or change performance management systems. Those are above your pay grade.

What you can control is how you advocate for yourself, the boundaries you set, and whether you stay in the conditions that are breaking you.

I broke down all of this data in this week's episode of The Balanced Badass Podcast®.

This episode will change how you think about what you're experiencing.

The Great Unraveling: Employ... Feb 5 · The Balanced Badass Podc... 23:53   ​

If you're navigating these conditions and need help figuring out what you can control versus what you need to walk away from, let's work together.

Book a Career Reboot Strategy Session so we can dig into this and come up with a plan.

Remember, you're not broken. The conditions are.

Take care,

Tara