EDITION 833
31 AUGUST 2020

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 at 10am. 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 disagree during an interview. You don’t have to act like a yes-man during an interview to land a job. In fact, disagreeing with a potential employer can lead to a more engaged discussion. Challenging your interviewer in the right way can show good character and self-belief. At the same time, it’s an opportunity for potential employees to test how receptive the company is to change and new ideas. Some things to keep in mind when offering an alternative point of view: [READ MORE]

2. Why the UK economy was worse hit. The British economy was the worst hit among major economies from April to June, according to the OECD, with the 20.4% contraction almost double the G7 average. A reliance on consumer spending – which accounts for more than 60% of the economy – is a major factor, with retail, hospitality and services hit hardest by lockdown measures. Though spending has started to rise, record retail job losses and the looming end of the government furlough scheme has analysts concerned. Some politicians and industry leaders are also worried about continued remote working, warning that city centres will become “ghost towns” without a return to offices. BBC

3.  Work from here, there, anywhere. With a large number of offices remaining shut, working remotely is the reality for many right now - but that doesn’t necessarily mean working from home. In July, Barbados announced an initiative allowing foreigners to work from the Caribbean country tax-free for a year, while Bermuda and Estonia recently launched their own programs to lure traveller-workers. In Punta Mita, Mexico, one resort is preparing to offer WFP (Work From Paradise) and LFP (Learn From Paradise). Around 30% of the global workforce is expected to toil remotely in the coming months. The Sun

4. Housing demand rockets. Demand for houses has rocketed since the end of lockdown, according to a report from property website Zoopla. Properties are also selling far faster than before the pandemic hit, with the average selling time of a home decreasing to 27 days since lockdown eased, compared to 39 days in the same period last year. Zoopla said four- and five-bed houses are selling quickly as buyers prioritise more space and migrate away from the more expensive cities. The firm also believes house prices will rise 2-3% this year. The Sunday Times

5. Office workers need time off every 43 days to avoid burnout. A study of office workers found taking annual leave at least once every six weeks helps stave off exhaustion. And seven in 10 adults agreed they suffer fatigue and feel run down if they go too long without booking a holiday. It also emerged that the top tell-tale signs of a holiday being due include feeling stressed (56%) and finding mental wellbeing is starting to suffer (53%). For three in 10 adults, sleepless nights are an indicator that work is beginning to take over, while 23 per cent will book a break if they find themselves crying for no particular reason. The Independent

6. The end of the office romance. As workplace interactions are replaced with video chats and online messages, will the pandemic finally kill off the office romance? The number of people meeting their partner at work has been trending down for a decade and many workplaces have policies to restrict relationships and prevent the disruption they can bring. It certainly seems the pandemic has accelerated trends; dating apps were starting to overtake meeting people through friends or at bars, and with people unable to go out, matchmaking giants Hinge, Match and Bumble all saw a significant rise in the amount of time people spent messaging each other. Daily Mail

7. Collapse in tourism costs Britain big. Britain is facing a £22bn hole in international visitor spending this year as tourism plummets, putting almost 3 million jobs at risk, according to a report. The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) warned that spending by tourists could fall as much as 78% compared with a year earlier, or about £60 million every day, and urged the government to replace “stop-start” quarantine measures with test-and-trace programmes. It comes as Gatwick airport plans to cut 600 jobs due to the “devastating impact” of Covid-19. The Times

8. Treasury plans £30bn tax raid to deal with Covid debt. The Treasury is planning a £30bn tax raid on the wealthy, businesses, pensions and foreign aid to tackle government debt that has risen above £2 trillion. Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, is planning to raise both capital gains tax and corporation tax. The latter move would put the government on a collision course with businesses already struggling because of the pandemic. The Telegraph

9. British children the least happy in Europe. Researchers have blamed a “particularly British fear of failure” for their finding that more than a third of 15-year-olds here have low scores for life satisfaction, making them the unhappiest in Europe. The annual Good Childhood Report found that UK children were dissatisfied with schools, friends and their sense of purpose. The Guardian

10. The bottom line. Support for the Tory party has dropped four points to 40% since the Government announced its U-turn on England’s A-level results. Meanwhile, support for Labour has risen three points, to 38%. Keir Starmer also leads Boris Johnson by 35% t 31% on the question of who would make the better PM. The YouGov poll gives the Tories their lowest lead since June 2019. The Times