You know a trend has gone mainstream when even the domain name market catches up. Registering a .ai address will now set you back ten times more than a typical .com because artificial intelligence is no longer niche. It’s embedded in how you live, search, shop, and increasingly, how you work.

But with AI rewriting 25% of Google’s code and shaping the decisions behind what you see online, it’s no wonder many professionals are wondering: What happens to my job when the robots get better at doing it?

The truth is that some jobs will vanish. But others — those built on human creativity, ethical reasoning and adaptability — are poised to thrive.

Related: These 3 Professions Are Most Likely to Vanish in the Next 20 Years Due to AI, According to a New Report

1. Lean into work that AI can’t replicate — like creativity and ethics

AI is only as good as its training data. It excels when tasks follow a predictable pattern: things like processing transactions, identifying standard forms or offering scripted support. But when a task falls outside its training set, performance drops.

This is why jobs that involve ambiguity, emotional nuance or complex human judgment are difficult to automate. They require skills AI can’t easily replicate — yet.

Take roles in AI ethics. These professionals go beyond analyzing data to examine its impact, asking critical questions about how it’s used and who it affects. Identifying bias, evaluating social impact and navigating ethical dilemmas require lived experience, cultural sensitivity and values-based reasoning. No training set can fully capture that.

Yet despite the increasing significance of AI ethics, its presence in higher education curricula remains minimal. A 2024 global survey by the Digital Education Council highlighted that only 5% of students are fully aware of their institution’s AI usage policies, while 72% expressed a desire for more AI literacy courses.

Or consider human-machine interaction specialists. Designing systems that people actually want to use goes far beyond function. It involves ergonomics, empathy and anticipating frustration. For example, repetitive stress injuries caused by poorly designed interfaces may be invisible to machines but glaringly obvious to humans. AI might detect outcomes; it takes a person to predict pain points before they happen.

2. Master the art of prompt engineering, not just code

On the development side, AI-assisted coding marks the next evolution in how we abstract and streamline programming tasks. Developers have always worked to simplify how code is written. We moved from machine language to high-level programming languages, and now, we’re moving into natural language prompts.

You still need to think critically about application architecture, troubleshoot bugs and make decisions AI can’t. Writing prompts has become a new form of programming, one where specificity and clarity replace syntax as the developer’s primary challenge.

Think of AI coding tools as new compilers: They translate intent into output, but you still have to know what you’re asking for and why.

Related: “The Future of Work Is Human-Centered AI. All We Need Is a Shift in Mindset,” Says Calvin Chu of Eden Strategy Institute

3. Design with empathy to improve how humans interact with machines

AI is also generating new roles that combine technical innovation with expertise from traditional industries. Many of these hybrid roles depend on human insight.

In healthcare, clinicians are learning to interpret outputs from diagnostic AI tools. In education, teachers are using adaptive learning software to tailor instruction in real time. In logistics, planners are leveraging predictive analytics to anticipate disruptions before they hit the supply chain.

For example, Amazon has deployed AI-powered robots that can independently unload trailers and retrieve inventory, along with generative AI tools that enhance delivery routing and mapping — innovations that depend on both advanced tech and human oversight.

What these roles share is a partnership between human judgment and machine efficiency. These roles amplify human decision-making by pairing it with machine-driven insights.

4. Step into hybrid roles that pair domain expertise with AI fluency

If your current role involves high repetition and little variation, it may be time to evolve your skills. That doesn’t mean abandoning your field. It means identifying the parts of your job that require judgment, creativity or collaboration — and leaning into them.

The most valuable skills in the age of AI are creative problem-solving, communication, empathy and adaptability. AI follows rules, but humans break them, reimagine them and invent entirely new solutions. While machines can mimic conversation, only people can build trust. And because technology never slows down, learning how to learn is your greatest asset.

For workers in at-risk industries, the transition may feel daunting. But small steps, such as getting familiar with AI tools relevant to your field or taking courses in adjacent disciplines, can open up new, more resilient paths.

Related: Here Is a Strategy For Making Yourself Irreplaceable Before Artificial Intelligence Learns to do Your Job

Will AI create more jobs than it eliminates?

It likely will, but not evenly, and not automatically.

As with past tech revolutions, new industries will rise while others decline. The key difference with AI is speed. The shifts are happening faster, and the gaps between adopters and laggards are growing wider.

That’s why foresight and flexibility matter. Stop asking if AI will change your work and start asking how you want it to change you. Plan with the intent to turn automation into a source of momentum and meaningful progress.

When O2 launched in 2014, it called itself an “oxygenated recovery drink.” What’s that? It means it’s infused with oxygen to improve recovery. O2 was marketed to young men who exercise hard, like its founders, Dave Colina and Dan Kim, and it did great in gyms. But it struggled to reach wider retail.

Then it became clear. Retail buyers didn’t understand the phrase “oxygenated recovery,” and consumer research revealed a surprising disconnect: O2’s most engaged customers were women ages 35 to 55 — not young men!

It was time for a change. O2 hired the branding agency We Are Bill. Here’s how they tore the brand down and then built it back up.

Related: Customers Want More Than Just a Product — Here’s How to Meet Their Expectations

Step 1: Define the Problem.

This is the original O2 design. We Are Bill pointed out a few problems: “The logo could be interpreted as a kind of recycling symbol. The waves can communicate water, but also make the logo busy.”

The silver metallic top was also a problem. It’s often associated with energy drinks, which are not perceived as healthy — one of O2’s greatest selling points. It also leans more masculine.

Step 2: Rethink the Vibe.

These are a series of alternative designs from We Are Bill. Here’s their thinking about each can:

1. It’s a simplification of the existing logo. The blues help to communicate hydration. Real ingredients are on the front. Saturated colors communicate full flavor.

2. This was inspired by the Lewis Structure, which is a way of communicating the molecular structure of oxygen. The scientific design helps create a sense of authority.

3. This is the simplest way to communicate “water with oxygen in it.” The drop of water shows it’s a hydrating drink. The scientific structure of O2 lends some authority.

4. This makes the brand slightly more premium. The custom form of the serif “O” is bold and memorable. The “2” nested in the “O” allows for a symmetrical balance.

Related: Why Most Branding Advice Is Wrong — and What Actually Works

Step 3: Refine the Approach.

O2 gravitated toward Option 1, which bears the closest resemblance to their original branding. “We already had several hundreds of thousands of customers drinking O2 somewhat regularly,” Colina says. “So we didn’t want a redesign that confused them.”

But the changes still marked fundamental, clarifying shifts. They swapped out the “oxygenated recovery” language for the simplicity of “hydration,” and described the beverage as “a new kind of sports drink.” They ditched silver for white to create a sense of clean healthfulness and an approachable premium feel. The bright colors helped communicate the full flavor even though the liquid is clear.

Step 4: Finalize the Decision.

Once the O2 team picked their favorite design, it was refined for further clarity. They added “non-carbonated” at the top of the can, and tweaked the description and nutritional fact bubbles.

Related: 10 Reasons Why Branding Is Important, Even For Startups

They also thought about how the cans would appear in retail. “When you have several cans side by side, the color blocking on the bottom curves up to mimic a wave,” We Are Bill CEO and cofounder Scott Roslyn says.

The final result: O2 began life as an “oxygenated recovery” drink for hyperathletic men, but is now a gender-neutral, flavor-focused, clean hydration drink for everyone. That’s what unlocked growth for O2, which you can now find nationwide at CrossFit gyms, yoga studios, and Life Time fitness clubs.

Join top CEOs, founders and operators at the Level Up conference to unlock strategies for scaling your business, boosting revenue and building sustainable success.

Codie Sanchez’s Bizscout, a fast-growing business acquisition marketplace, announced the appointment of Bobby Graham as President. In this role, Graham will lead operations, growth, and platform development, working alongside Sanchez to scale what has become one of the fastest-growing deal platforms in the U.S.

Graham, a veteran of high-growth marketplaces, brings deep experience building trusted transaction ecosystems. Prior to BizScout, Graham held senior roles at SeatGeek, where he helped scale the company from a startup into a nationally recognized ticketing marketplace, leading expansion across both primary and secondary business lines.

Bizscout has expanded from zero to over 100,000 users and has facilitated more than 25,000 connections between qualified business buyers and sellers. The next focus of his Presidency will be BizScout’s launch of DealOS, its proprietary deal management software. Hand holding buyers and sellers of businesses with a custom CRM, data room, off market deal searching and loan options all on platform.

“Established marketplaces encourage bad actors to take advantage of buyers who are eager to try their hand at ownership and freedom,” said Graham. “BizScout is changing that. We help serious buyers find genuine deals, and sellers sell for more and faster. I’m focused on offering the highest quality, most legitimate businesses for sale anywhere on the internet.”

Sanchez, who remains BizScout’s CEO and strategic lead, emphasized Graham’s fit and timing.

“Bobby is a builder. He’s scaled billion-dollar platforms and knows how to earn trust in fragmented markets,” said Sanchez. “At BizScout, we’re building the rails for Main Street ownership. Bobby is the right operator to take this movement from early traction to full-on scale.”

BizScout is currently rolling out new features designed to streamline and accelerate the acquisition process. These include AI-powered buyer-seller matching, listing analysis to boost seller exposure, free business valuations, financial verification tools, and expanded onboarding flows. The goal is simple: help legitimate sellers close faster, and help serious buyers find better deals, all without the noise and uncertainty of outdated listing sites.

With Graham now formally at the helm, BizScout is doubling down on infrastructure, speed, and trust to define the next era of small business acquisition.

About BizScout

BizScout is the verified marketplace for serious small business acquisitions. Founded by Codie Sanchez under the Contrarian Thinking umbrella, BizScout connects vetted buyers and sellers through DealOS, its proprietary end-to-end platform designed to close deals faster and more reliably. With over 100,000 users and growing rapidly, BizScout is the go-to destination for qualified business buyers, legitimate listings, and real ownership opportunities. Learn more at bizscout.com.

Starbucks has constructed a 4,624-square-foot office in Newport Beach, California, which is a five-minute drive from CEO Brian Niccol’s Orange County home.

According to documents and photos reviewed by Business Insider, the 13th-floor office was completed on July 2 and designed by Gensler, a leading architectural company that also designed the Chase Center in San Francisco and Shanghai Tower, China’s tallest building.

Related: Starbucks Pins Its Turnaround Hopes on ‘Green Apron Service.’ What Is It, Exactly?

A floor plan for the office, seen by BI, instructs Gensler and the contracting team, Pacific Tusk Builders, to build a space with “luxury” accents, including “white oak” floors and custom countertops. It also asks for “elegant lighting.”

Plans for the office were first disclosed in an August 2024 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing outlining Niccol’s compensation package. The filing stated that Starbucks would begin planning to establish a “small remote office” in Newport Beach and “employ an assistant” for Niccol of his choosing.

“This office location will be maintained at the expense of the company,” the filing reads.

Starbucks told BI that other employees can use the new office, though it’s unclear how many other employees will be working from the office, how long the space took to construct, and how much it cost Starbucks to build.

Related: Here’s How Much 8 CEOs Made, From JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon to Disney’s Bob Iger

Starbucks also awarded Niccol a $1.6 million base salary, a $10 million signing bonus, and a $75 million equity grant over the next three years in his compensation package.

^{Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol. Photo by Robin Marchant/Getty Images}

Niccol had previously been commuting at the company’s expense, flying 995 miles on the company’s private jet from his home in California to company headquarters in Seattle, Washington, to work from the office at least three times a week as part of the company’s return-to-office mandate.

Related: Starbucks Is Hiring a ‘Global Content Creator’ to Travel, Drink Coffee, and Get Paid Six Figures

Earlier this month, Niccol sent a letter to employees stating that corporate staff will be required to return to the office four days a week starting in October, an increase from the three-day schedule set in 2023. He wrote that employees do their “best work” when they are together.

Employees can choose to receive a cash buyout of an undisclosed amount if they prefer to leave the company instead of working in the office.

“The default for support partners should be working in person, in a Starbucks office,” Niccol wrote in the letter. “We understand not everyone will agree with this approach.”

Related: Starbucks Is Offering Executives $6 Million Performance-Based Stock Grants

Niccol became Starbucks CEO in September after leading Chipotle for six years as CEO. Under his leadership, Starbucks has tried to turn around slumping sales with a “Back to Starbucks” turnaround plan that has resulted in cuts to its menu, less wait time for coffee, and customers’ names written on cups in Sharpie.

On Tuesday, Starbucks also reported financial results for its 13-week fiscal quarter ending June 29. Global store sales dropped 2%, with North American store sales also falling by 2%, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of declining sales. Net revenue, however, increased 4% to $9.5 billion when compared to the same time last year.

The earnings report also mentioned that Starbucks opened 308 net stores in the quarter, for a total of 41,097 global stores.

^{Join top CEOs, founders and operators at the Level Up conference to unlock strategies for scaling your business, boosting revenue and building sustainable success.}

In boardrooms and Zoom calls everywhere, the same excuses are repeated:
“Our industry is too competitive. We’re fighting for every dollar and every employee.”
“We have one of the highest turnover rates out there — it’s just the nature of the business.”
“This is just how it is. It won’t change.”

Here’s the truth: It’s not your industry. It’s your company. More specifically, it’s your culture. High turnover, low engagement and poor retention aren’t industry mandates — they’re signals of internal issues that need attention. And if you want to build a resilient business, you need to stop outsourcing the blame.

Transactional leadership isn’t working

Start with the employee experience. If your relationship with your team is purely transactional — do your job, collect a paycheck — then you’re not building loyalty. You’re building burnout.

What do employees say about your culture when leadership isn’t around? What do they really think about their opportunities, support or team dynamics? If you haven’t asked, you don’t know — and you’re guessing.

Transformation begins when leadership shifts from managing output to investing in people. Every industry with high turnover also has companies that defy the odds. What sets them apart? A culture built on trust, purpose and shared growth. This is available to every business, but only the ones willing to earn it.

Related: How Businesses Can Build Resilience, Stay Ahead of the Curve and Seize Opportunities for Long-Term Growth in 2025

Culture isn’t cosmetic — it’s core

Your company may be profitable. You might have strong external branding, marketing or even an award-winning product. But if your internal culture is weak, cracks will appear. Innovation will slow. Employee burnout will rise. Talent will leave — quietly or loudly — and reputation will suffer.

Culture isn’t a feel-good initiative. It’s a core business driver. And if you want to fix it, you need to start from the inside.

How to start your transformation

If your company culture needs a reset, here’s how to begin:

1. Assess the reality
   Use anonymous surveys, team interviews and 360-degree feedback to understand how people really feel. Consider bringing in a neutral third party to remove bias and uncover blind spots.

2. Align leadership
   If the executive team isn’t fully aligned on values, goals and expectations, culture work will stall. Alignment creates consistency. Inconsistency breeds distrust.

3. Rebuild trust through action
   Employees don’t trust what you say — they trust what you do. Small, visible actions that reflect new priorities will go further than a dozen all-hands meetings.

4. Use the right tools
   Personality and team dynamics tools like Myers-Briggs, DISC or AEM-Cube can help teams better understand how to collaborate and make decisions. But don’t stop at labels. Use these insights to drive real change in how teams operate.

Culture change isn’t a one-time fix

Transformation isn’t a workshop. It’s a commitment. Culture shifts require consistent reinforcement, not just big kickoff meetings. Just like you track revenue, leads and customer satisfaction, you should also track employee engagement, burnout risk and internal alignment.

Culture is a living system. Without regular check-ins and adjustments, it will drift, often in the wrong direction.

Your team comes before your customer

This may sound counterintuitive, but it’s true: Happy, engaged employees build better businesses than stressed, replaceable ones. The companies that outperform in “high-turnover” industries invest in their people like they invest in their customers. They don’t accept excuses. They create environments people want to stay in.

If your business is struggling with retention, morale or engagement, don’t blame the industry. Look inward. Lead forward. And do the hard work of building the culture your team deserves.

Ready to break through your revenue ceiling? Join us at Level Up, a conference for ambitious business leaders to unlock new growth opportunities.

AI has a high chance of replacing many professions, according to a new Microsoft report.

Microsoft researchers analyzed an anonymous dataset consisting of 200,000 conversations between U.S. users and its Copilot chatbot during nine months of last year and published the resulting study last week.

The report found that the jobs with the highest chance of being replaced by AI were interpreters and translators. AI has been found to work well for translating, and there are many applications currently on the market, including popular options from Google (can create translated AI voiceovers) and Amazon (translates 164 languages in real time).

Related: AI Is Going to ‘Replace Everybody’ in Several Fields, According to the ‘Godfather of AI.’ Here’s Who He Says Should Be ‘Terrified.’

The next most likely to be replaced by AI was a historian. The researchers noted that gathering information, including about history, was one of the most successfully completed tasks by AI. Copilot users tasked the chatbot with prompts about researching historical or social issues and examining materials for accuracy.

Also on the list were CNC (Computer Numerical Control) programmers, who create and develop the code that tells CNC machines to cut, drill, or mill materials. AI is taking over CNC programming by automating the process and making it more efficient with faster production times and reduced waste.

Meanwhile, the study also identified where AI is barely being used. Two professions that fell under this category were nursing assistants and massage therapists, which made it on the list because they require working with people in person. Other professions were AI-proof because they required operating or monitoring machinery, like truck and tractor operators, or manual labor, like dishwashers and roofers.

Related: Here Are the 10 Highest-Paying Jobs with the Lowest Risk of Being Replaced By AI: ‘Safest Jobs Right Now’

Copilot allows users to provide thumbs-up and thumbs-down feedback for each of its responses. Based on this feedback, the researchers calculated an AI applicability score, which measured how well different work activities are performed or supported by AI. The more thumbs-up feedback a response receives, the higher the user satisfaction and the greater the likelihood that AI could take over that task. The sourced employment numbers are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Here’s a list of the top 10 professions most likely to be impacted by AI, based on the overlap between their duties and what AI can currently do.

1. Interpreters and translators

AI Applicability Score: 0.49

Employment: 51,560

2. Historians

AI Applicability Score: 0.48

Employment: 3,040

3. Passenger attendants

AI Applicability Score: 0.47

Employment: 20,190

4. Sales representatives

AI Applicability Score: 0.46

Employment: 1,142,020

5. Writers and authors

AI Applicability Score: 0.45

Employment: 49,450

6. Customer service representatives

AI Applicability Score: 0.44

Employment: 2,858,710

7. CNC tool programmers

AI Applicability Score: 0.44

Employment: 28,030

8. Telephone operators

AI Applicability Score: 0.42

Employment: 4,600

9. Ticket agents and travel clerks

AI Applicability Score: 0.41

Employment: 119,270

10. Broadcast announcers and radio DJs

AI Applicability Score: 0.41

Employment: 25,070

For a full list, check out the study here.

^{Join top CEOs, founders and operators at the Level Up conference to unlock strategies for scaling your business, boosting revenue and building sustainable success.}

Coulter and Trent Lewis, Colorado-based brothers and co-founders, wanted to give yards across the U.S. a major update — and it led to the launch of an innovative lawn care brand in 2019: Sunday.

^{Image Credit: Courtesy of Sunday. Trent Lewis, left, and Coulter Lewis, right.}

 ”I’m standing in the aisle in a home improvement store and smelling [lawncare products] from 30 feet away, [and] I just had a moment like, What the hell is this?” Coulter recalls. “This feels like it’s from a different era. There are a lot of things in life where we just accept it the way it is until we get the gift of perspective and see it with a clear set of eyes.”

Coulter started the health-conscious brand Quinn Snacks with his wife Kristy Lewis in 2010, and through their work on that business, he got an up-close look at how crops grow. He found himself in that home improvement store a few weeks after visiting an organic cornfield and considered how “better, more natural, safer” products might reshape lawn care, too.

Related: This Couple ‘Sold Everything’ and Bought a $1,500 Work Van to Turn Their Weekend Hobby Into a Business That Sees Over $4 Million Annual Revenue

With a mechanical engineering and design background on top of his entrepreneurial experience, Coulter teamed up with his brother Trent, who brought expertise from his career in finance, to turn the vision into a real business.

The co-founders didn’t waste time; they kicked off an extensive research phase, which included finding 100 people across the U.S. to send lawn care products to for a full season.

“It was not just the product that was refined over the course of that year.”

The brothers made those early products in their garage, and although some challenges arose — like the “gut-wrenching moment” when they delivered 100 product-filled pouches to UPS only to be told black liquid had leaked from every single box — the process helped them “innovate across everything,” from hose ends to plastic waste reduction.

During the research process, the co-founders also conducted home visits, calls and surveys to get a deeper understanding of their customers’ wants and needs. That’s how they learned that people not only wanted improved lawn care products but also wanted to do more with their yards. “They want to grow more things,” Coulter says. “They want to have a more verdant and sustainable landscape.”

Related: This 29-Year-Old’s Side Hustle Brought People ‘to the Dark Green Side.’ It Made $10,000 Within 2 Days and Sees 6 Figures a Month.

Despite a clear interest in bettering their yards, many people lacked confidence in their abilities to do so.

“After talking to customers, we understood they don’t know a lot about this stuff, and they’re actually going to need their hand held a little bit more,” Trent says. “So [we didn’t refine just] the product over the course of that year, but also the communication with the customer.”

In a sense, the co-founders realized they’d been trying to solve the wrong problem. Yes, people wanted their lawn care products to have fewer pesticides in them, but Sunday needed to reinvent the experience and build confidence among customers caring for their lawns in order for the brand to make a real impact in the space.

 ”We’re basically doing ag tech at the backyard scale.”

The realization that Sunday would have to become a technology company to innovate in that arena was daunting at first, the co-founders admit. Alongside its physical lawn care, pest control and garden products, the business launched custom pest and lawn plans, which use proprietary technology and expert lawn care advisors to help customers level up their yards.

 ”We’re basically doing ag tech at the backyard scale,” Coulter explains. “Our customers send us soil samples. We analyze every single customer’s soil. We have the largest soil database ever created from that now. It’s precision agriculture at that tiny scale.”

Related: After This LGBTQ Couple Lost Their Jobs Within 30 Days of Each Other, They Started a Business — With Goats. It Led to More Than $150 Million.

With increased technological needs and the expertise to back it, the co-founders decided it was time to raise money for Sunday. Being able to tell their story to investors effectively was key — and is an invaluable asset for entrepreneurs at every growth stage.

“People always lean on like, Oh, I have a vision, [or] they make a cash flow sheet of how things are going to work out generally,” Trent says. “It’s a dream; it’s a hope, but you really don’t know until you get into the world and start selling your product. So, being able to raise capital is really important for businesses. And to have that muscle and understand how to do that allows you to get out into the world [and] spread your idea.”

Sunday has raised more than $100 million and serviced over one million lawns to date. The brand’s products are available in more than 5,000 stores across Walmart, Target and Home Depot.

“We get to have this cycle that helps us leap forward and innovate more.”

Sunday experiences its peak season in March through mid-May.  Even in southern regions of the U.S., where lawn care happens year-round, Coulter notes that there’s “still a spring mindset” that contributes to the uptick in sales. Sunday uses lower-demand seasons to set itself up for the following year.

“The positive way I’ve always kind of spun it in my own head and to the team is that we get to have this cycle that helps us leap forward and innovate more,” Coulter says. “Right now, Sunday is entirely focused on building for 2026. We’re still selling product. There’s a lot of business that we’re running, but in terms of innovation and what we’re building, it’s already looking forward to 2026.”

Related: The ‘Hustle’ He Started Out of His Station Wagon Became a Nationwide Business That’s About to Hit $300 Million: ‘Everything We Do Is Pretty Simple’

As Sunday eyes continued growth and technological advancements, including more AI integration, the co-founders remain grateful for the year they spent researching the market and their customers thoroughly — and suggest any aspiring entrepreneurs do the same before following their big ideas into business.

“ A lot of entrepreneurs are really passionate; they want to get their product out in the market,” Trent says. “But to do it at a small scale and really take your time and learn if you can do that is a better way to do it because you’re going to launch a better product. You’re going to trip over those small problems at a much smaller scale and learn those things before you launch it at a bigger scale.”

Ready to break through your revenue ceiling? Join us at Level Up, a conference for ambitious business leaders to unlock new growth opportunities.

This July, Americans are not only celebrating independence but are also being called to reflect on what freedom truly means in today’s world. This country was built by brave visionaries who dared to imagine a society rooted in liberty, justice and the pursuit of happiness.

Yet as the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, these ideals feel more fragile than ever.

Global leadership is shifting. Trust in business and government is eroding. At home, we face polarization, anxiety and a cultural drift away from the values that once made our country a beacon to the world. The question facing all of us, especially entrepreneurs and business leaders, is this: How do we reclaim these ideals and carry them forward?

Freedom is not merely the absence of constraint; it is the presence of opportunity — the ability to thrive, to speak, to build, to contribute or simply to be. But this pursuit of happiness falters when people feel insecure, unheard or unable to make an impact.

Related: Study Reveals American Trust Crisis With Government, Business and the Media

Ethical leadership

We often celebrate open markets and open societies, but they cannot flourish without open hearts and ethical leadership. Leading with purpose and ethics requires looking beyond revenue and actually acting on the needs of your employees and the planet. Ethical leadership means making decisions for long-term impact, not merely short-term gain, fostering trust by making ethics a part of daily business, not just lip service, and putting people at the center of progress by really listening to their needs. It’s this kind of leadership that anchors us to our values and reminds us what this is all about in the first place.

Capitalism at its best is not about unchecked profiteering. It’s about building prosperity for people and the planet alike. That’s the promise of conscious capitalism. Right now, it’s a promise we must urgently renew as we edge closer to completely losing our way.

In recent years, America’s moral authority has been shaken. We’ve seen the growth of cronyism, unchecked corruption and the normalization of self-interest at the expense of shared progress. When trust collapses, so does the global social contract. The effects are far-reaching:

• Transaction costs go up with other countries

• Borrowing becomes more difficult

• Innovation within slows as ideas and goods flow less freely

• The cost-of-living climbs

• Our platform to promote new ideas diminishes

• Productivity collapses and talent hemorrhages

Ignoring the needs of people and the planet carries staggering costs that impact beyond the bottom line. This is not just bad economics. It’s a spiritual crisis. A nation that loses sight of its values cannot lead — not at home, and certainly not on the world stage.

Related: 10 Inspirational Quotes About Independence From Successful Entrepreneurs

Conscious capitalism

To reverse this trend, we need leaders who are not just successful, but also conscious and aware. According to Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of the World Forum for Ethics in Business, the antidote to corruption and decay lies in five foundational values that he calls the “Five Cs of Conscious Capitalism:”

1. Connectedness: Recognizing that we are more interconnected than we realize

2. Courage: Doing what is right, even when it’s not easy

3. Compassion: Especially for the underserved and overlooked

4. Caring and sharing: Prioritizing collaboration over accumulation

5. Cosmic understanding: Seeing life from a larger context of purpose

These are not merely abstract concepts. They are essential for leadership. When we embody them, we build trust — not just in our companies, but also in our communities. Ethical leadership and conscious capitalism lead to conscious consumerism and waves of awareness that shift societal actions in larger ways.

As America turns 250, we have the opportunity to redefine what success looks like. Not one merely driven by material success, such as GDP growth or shareholder return. It’s about having a thriving, creative, values-driven society where freedom means the chance to be one’s fullest, healthiest, happiest self, and to be able to help others do the same.

Yes, the world is complex. Yes, corruption exists. But we are not powerless. By rooting our actions in ethics, empathy and awareness, we can restore the kind of leadership the world looks to, not with fear, but with hope.

Related: Sage Business Advice From America’s Founding Fathers

We do this by cultivating resilience, staying anchored in purpose and choosing clarity over reaction. Navigating uncertainty requires us to pause, assess the landscape and make mindful choices. This is a critical first step when the path ahead is unclear. Leaders who thrive in chaotic environments are those who stay centered in their values, communicate transparently and create stability not by control, but by inspiring trust. That is the kind of leadership this moment calls for.

The founders of this country were dreamers. They risked everything for an idea of freedom far bigger than themselves. As stewards of this legacy, business leaders today must do the same.

Carpe diem is not just a motivational slogan; it’s a call to lead with integrity, build with purpose and live with courage. Let us reclaim that spirit — not just for America, but also for the entire world.

The maker of popular candies and gum, including M&M’s and Milky Way, is investing $6 billion in U.S. factories.

The Wall Street Journal reports that $2 billion of the six will be invested in the next 18 months with a focus on scaling new businesses, including building a new factory for Nature’s Bakery. (Mars brand Kind, which was founded by “Shark Tank” investor Daniel Lubetzky, acquired Nature’s Bakery in 2020.)

Mars CEO Poul Weihrauch posted on LinkedIn Tuesday that 94% of Mars products sold in the U.S are “produced locally in the U.S.” The company also said it has created 9,000 jobs over the last five years with its investments.

Related: Daniel Lubetzky Took Kind Snacks From Idea to $5 Billion. Here’s His Best Advice For Anyone Who Wants to Start a Business.

Related: Meet the World’s Secretive Billionaires Who Give Stealth Wealth a Whole New Meaning, from Ike Perlmutter to Philip Anschutz

The investment will stretch across the company’s many products and brands, which also include Pringles, Snickers, and Pedigree pet food.

“We’re convinced about the long-term strength of the American consumer,” Claus Aagaard, Mars’ chief financial officer, told the WSJ.

Mars is a private, family-owned business headquartered in McLean, Virginia. The Mars family reportedly has a net worth of $117 billion. Forbes ranked them the No. 2 richest family in America in 2024 behind the Walton family (Walmart).

^{Join top CEOs, founders and operators at the Level Up conference to unlock strategies for scaling your business, boosting revenue and building sustainable success.}