06 Nov The Stuck Generation: Why Fear is the Hidden Enemy of Performance
In the last few months, layoffs have returned to corporate America with unnerving force. Starbucks, Target, Amazon, Paramount, and Molson Coors have all announced major job cuts, each for its own strategic reason. On their own, these announcements may seem like standard corporate adjustments. But taken together, they signal something deeper: the end of the “low-hire, low-fire” era that defined the post-pandemic labor market.
Economists are starting to notice. After years of worker shortages and cautious hiring, companies now appear to be losing their fear of firing. As Bloomberg recently reported, U.S. employers announced nearly 950,000 job cuts through September 2025, the highest total since the pandemic’s first year.
Those who have been laid off are navigating an extraordinary amount of stress, uncertainty, and emotional weight. Many are facing financial strain, identity loss, and the pressure of rebuilding in an unpredictable economy. Their experiences ripple outward, felt deeply by friends, colleagues, and peers who remain. Behind the statistics lies a quieter crisis that doesn’t show up in the data: the emotional toll on those who weren’t laid off. The ones who are still showing up. The ones who are now, in many ways, stuck.
The Hidden Cost for Those Who Remain
For those who remain after a layoff, relief often gives way to uncertainty. They continue on, but at a cost: colleagues are gone, workloads have increased, and trust in leadership has quietly eroded. The sense of belonging and safety that fuels engagement has been replaced by vigilance.
Many want to explore new opportunities or pursue their career goals, but they feel trapped. The fear of making a wrong move in an unstable market keeps them frozen. They worry about being the next to go.
This state of professional paralysis is spreading across industries. It’s less visible than layoffs, but just as damaging. When employees operate from fear rather than purpose, performance declines. Creativity stalls. Innovation dies. Fear narrows vision, it makes people protect rather than produce.
Fear Is a Terrible Place to Lead From
Leaders, too, are feeling the squeeze. Simon Sinek recently described middle managers as “in crisis,” and it’s not hard to see why. They are the connective tissue of every organization; responsible for translating strategy into action, stabilizing teams during uncertainty, and maintaining morale. Yet they are under immense pressure, often without the resources or psychological safety to thrive.
They are managing their own anxiety while shouldering everyone else’s. They are expected to inspire confidence when they themselves feel unsure. They are being asked to do more with less, in environments that feel less stable by the day.
This creates a dangerous paradox: the very people tasked with maintaining engagement are, themselves, disengaged. And when the middle layer of leadership weakens, the entire culture begins to collapse inward.
The Merged World of Work and Learning
According to McKinsey’s “Future of the CLO” research, the most effective Chief Learning Officers today are leading in a “merged world” of work and learning, one where development happens not outside of work, but inside the flow of it. This isn’t just an efficiency shift; it’s an existential one.
In an environment defined by fear and rapid change, learning becomes one of the few remaining antidotes to stagnation. Development signals to employees that they are valued, that their growth matters, and that they have agency, even when the broader economy feels uncertain.
When people learn, they move. When they move, they grow. And when they grow, they feel less stuck.
Mentorship plays a critical role in this equation. Mentorship creates a human bridge between uncertainty and possibility. A strong mentoring relationship reminds employees that they have potential beyond their current role, that their career still has direction, and that they are not alone in navigating change.
In other words, mentoring restores motion where fear creates stillness.
Culture 2026: Connection as a Strategy
As Hacking HR’s “Workplace Culture 2026” forecast predicts, the next evolution of workplace culture will revolve around connection and human-centered leadership. Technology, automation, and hybrid work models will continue to reshape how we operate, but it is culture that will determine whether organizations thrive or fracture.
In the coming years, successful companies will be those that prioritize psychological safety, empathy, and purpose. They will design workplaces that treat development not as a benefit, but as infrastructure. And they will understand that connection is not just a “soft skill,” it’s a hard competitive advantage.
Unfortunately, many organizations today are heading in the opposite direction. As layoffs mount and budgets tighten, investment in people is often the first to go. Yet disengagement and burnout among remaining employees are far more costly over time than any short-term payroll savings.
What the best leaders are realizing is this: when fear is in the air, doubling down on development isn’t optional, it’s essential.
The Culture Cost of Cost-Cutting
Layoff announcements collectively create a culture-wide loss of trust.
When employees perceive that human capital is expendable, psychological safety evaporates. That loss reverberates across every aspect of culture: collaboration declines, innovation slows, and customer experience suffers.
Even those untouched by layoffs feel the emotional contagion. They become cautious. They stop volunteering ideas. They prioritize self-preservation over progress. In short, the organization enters survival mode.
The irony is that companies conduct layoffs to preserve profitability, but the long-term erosion of engagement can quietly undermine that very goal. A disengaged workforce may not make headlines, but it’s a slow-moving crisis that eats away at performance from the inside out.
Investing in the Ones Who Stay
This is where forward-thinking organizations are drawing a line in the sand. They are choosing to pause the reactive cycle of cost-cutting and instead reinvest in their people, particularly their high-potential and high-performing employees.
Because these are the individuals who will determine whether the company rebuilds stronger or stagnates under the weight of fear.
When employees see that their company is investing in their growth, it changes everything. It rebuilds trust. It reignites engagement. It signals that leadership isn’t just reacting to market pressure, but actively shaping the future.
Mentorship, leadership development, and structured learning opportunities are powerful ways to send this signal. They tell employees, “You are seen. You matter. We believe in your potential.”
At Menttium, we’ve seen this dynamic play out repeatedly. When high-potential employees are paired with seasoned mentors, they rediscover clarity and courage. They begin to reframe fear as opportunity. They build the confidence to lead through uncertainty, not just trudge through it.
That shift doesn’t just benefit the individual; it revitalizes entire teams.
A Call to Courage for Leaders
The organizations that thrive in the next few years will be those that choose courage over caution. They will resist the temptation to let fear dictate their culture. They will recognize that people who feel psychologically safe are the ones who innovate, collaborate, and lead.
This doesn’t mean ignoring economic realities. It means meeting them with humanity. It means remembering that behind every statistic is a person and behind every person is potential worth investing in.
Leaders must acknowledge this emotional landscape and take active steps to heal it. That starts by creating space for open dialogue, investing in development, and reestablishing trust through mentorship and coaching.
Because fear may deliver compliance, but it never delivers greatness.
The Path Forward
We are entering a new phase of work, one defined not just by automation or economic cycles, but by how organizations respond to fear. Those that treat it as a signal, not a strategy, will win.
Now is the time for leaders to pause, reflect, and reinvest in the people who remain. These remaining employees are the stewards of culture and the architects of the future.
Fear is contagious, but so is courage. The companies that choose to cultivate courage, through learning, mentorship, and human connection, will be the ones that build the next era of thriving, resilient workplaces.