EDITION 734
8 OCTOBER 2018

As another week slips by, here are 10 things which caught my attention and may have escaped yours. This newsletter is sent to 50,000+ subscribers each Monday. Please share on social media and forward to your colleagues and friends so they can subscribe, learn and engage. I'd be very grateful if you did.

1. How to become a more respectful leader. Showing respect enhances a leader’s influence and performance - and a worldwide study found that it’s the leadership behaviour with the biggest effect on employee engagement. Yet many leaders struggle to show respect to their employees. To become a more respectful leader, try these tips: [MORE]
    
2. 'Self-made’ Trump had $413m loan from father. During his campaign to become US president, Donald Trump described himself as a self-made man who turned a “small loan of a million dollars” from his father into a billion-dollar empire. However, an examination of tax documents suggests Trump’s father actually gave him $413m (£318m) in today’s money. New York Times
    
3. Is Britain experiencing an ‘empathy crisis’? Only 12% of people quizzed for a new study by YouGov said they had noticed an increase in most peoples’ ability to put themselves in others’ shoes, while 51% reported a decrease. The findings point to “an emerging crisis of empathy”, according to the Scout Association, which commissioned the research. The Guardian
    
4. Doing the washing up priced at £12,000. The Office for National Statistics has estimated the contribution to the national economy made by people who do unpaid domestic work at home. Washing, cleaning, cooking and looking after children is worth £12,000 a year per adult. Driving and caring for elderly family members add another £7,000 approximately to this value. Feeding the family was £2,400, laundry chores were £1,355 and caring for children was estimated at £5,358. The Times
    
5. You were born to do this. Once you discover your strengths, you must intentionally increase your time using them. That's when you will begin to see themes emerging in your life. Your goal should be to sharpen your skills and increasingly target your work towards your strengths until you hone in on the thing that makes you say, "I was born to do this." [MORE]
    
6. Service charges to be paid to waiting staff. The government is to put in place legislation to make sure that 100% of restaurant service charges go to waiting staff. The new rules will apply in England, Scotland and Wales and will force high street chains including TGI Fridays, Prezzo, Strada and Zizzi to pay their waiters all service charges. Labour said it would go further. The Telegraph
    
7. Waitrose unpacks shopping while you’re out. Supermarket Waitrose is trialling a system that will see delivery drivers use a special digital lock to enter customers’ homes while they are out and then put their newly bought groceries into the cupboards where they belong. Profit margins on home delivery are thin, and the system might mean savings for the store because of wider delivery windows, according to experts. BBC
    
8. House of Commons cleaners complain of condoms and vomit. MPs will be warned about their conduct after cleaners complained of finding used condoms and vomit in their House of Commons offices. The Commons authorities may introduce a new service agreement with strict new rules about the appropriate use of their workspace. "It’s the type of behaviour you would expect from students enjoying freshers’ week, not MPs and their staff," a source said. The Mirror
    
9. Let’s stay home. 31% of Brits believe they will not be able to clear their debts during their lifetime. Among 18- to 24-year-olds, the figure is 50%. The Independent
    
10. The bottom line. Homebuyers in the London boroughs of Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea paid £1.04bn collectively in stamp duty last year – ten times what buyers paid in the whole of north-east England, which paid £105m. Buyers in the two London boroughs paid £594m and £447m respectively. That compares with £160m in Wales, £445m in the north-west, and £310m in Yorkshire and the Humber. Daily Mail