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welcome to this week Forbes Careers newsletter, where we look at the rise in companies setting minimum vacation expectations (have a good Memorial Day weekend almost, everyone!); the return from Davos, where employment and skills are one of the major themes; and my conversation with economist Tyler Cowen, who explains why one of his favorite interview questions is asking candidates about their open browser tab windows.

This week’s book club pick author Cowen co-wrote Talent: how to identify energisers, creatives and winners around the world with entrepreneur Daniel Gross, who he says was written “to start a national and even global conversation about talent as our primary resource, and that we need to do a better job of finding and managing,” I he said.

Gross and Cowen, who write the Marginal Revolution blog, wrote a compelling and thought-provoking guide to finding great people — a guide they also hoped would tell the “oral tradition” of how some Silicon Valley heavyweights like Peter Thiel, Sam Altman and Marc Andreessen think about spotting and not missing talented entrepreneurs and other creative talent.

The book has a chapter focused on interview questions that spark conversation and tear up the scripted answers that so many candidates cook up. One of Cowen’s favorites – whether you want to use it or prepare to meet it – is “which browser tabs are open on your screen right now?” For more on why and our interview, check out our selection of book clubs below.

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Take a vacation or something

Before we dive into the rest of the newsletter, check out my story on the rise of companies mandating minimal time off in our exhausted, overworked world. Goldman Sachs partners and managing directors were told in April that they were getting unlimited vacation time, which, as anyone with such a policy knows, might not get used as much. But Goldman is asking them – and the junior employees who work for them – to take at least three weeks off, setting a floor that the company hopes they will follow.

They’re not alone: ​​After a more than two-year pandemic that has led to troubling mental health crises and historic quit rates, more bosses finally seem to realize that paid time off can’t just be a perk flashy that is touted to attract workers. This may require a requirement.

Goldman’s move follows a move earlier this month by consulting firm PwC to add a one-week shutdown for all employees in July, as well as introduce technology tools, such as a dashboard, which will make furloughs more visible to individual managers and nudge them to act when needed.

What I found fascinating in reporting this story was talking to companies like We Are Rosie, a network of on-demand marketing professionals who require their employees to take five days off per quarter or lose their full bonus. The small startup, which now has 60 employees, was barely a year old when the pandemic began, and employees told founder Stephanie Nadi Olson they were afraid things would fall through the cracks if they took leave or felt guilty asking their colleagues to cover for them. Switching to a tenure — and tying it to bonuses — “changed our culture around free time very quickly,” Olson says. “It changed our culture around removing that guilt.”

Warrants are great in theory, but I wonder how well they’ll work without the penalties that come with them. Take three weeks, says management, but if not, what are the consequences?

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FEATURED STORY

Carvana’s ‘chaotic’ zoom ends company’s struggles amid slowing market

Carvana’s massive layoff was a sign of much bigger problems at the company, say 10 former employees who spoke with Forbes’ John Hyatt (most of whom spoke on condition of anonymity) and several industry analysts. They describe a spendthrift company, whose growth-at-all-costs mentality has undermined business operations and sown the seeds of its recent layoffs.

“It always seemed like no one ever had a real game plan or reasoning behind the decisions they made on policy changes or additional training,” said a former call center worker. at Hyatt. “It was always just a quick idea from someone and it would come together without any extra planning.” Read the rest of the story here.

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WORK SMARTER

Here are the critical hiring mistakes you could be making right now.

Too old, not perfect, no leadership positions: the phrases that kill your career growth.

The economy is changing and this could have a negative impact on the job market. Here’s what you need to know.

Be an early bird: Here’s how to get a job before it’s advertised.

Make your meetings more inclusive for everyone with these four tips.

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ON OUR AGENDA

Davos is back, with spring temperatures: No snow this year, but global leaders from around the world are meeting again in the Swiss Alps this week to discuss jobs, hybrid working and hot topics like the four-day working week, among others. In the meantime, here ForbesLook at Davos in the United States, the global conference of the Milken Institute.

A new monthly benefit? Once a taboo subject, women are becoming more open about their periods and expressing the impact of menstruation on their work, writes Forbes senior contributor Kim Elsesser. But with Spain announcing legislation suggesting women take time off from work in case of menstrual pain, and gaming platform GOG announced in late April that it would offer menstrual leave, perhaps women could “stopping” their periods safely, writes Elsesser.

Fears of stagflation? Geopolitical turmoil. Inflation. Supply chain disruptions and formula shortages. That’s enough bad news, but there’s more that could impact your career, writes Forbes main contributor Jack Kelly. When there is high inflation and an economic downturn combined with high unemployment, Kelly writes, workers could face “stagflation” that impacts their job prospects and careers.

George Floyd after two years: Since May 2020, politicians and business leaders have invoked George Floyd’s name to call for racial equity for Black Americans. Companies have pledged billions in initiatives to recruit and promote black talent and invest in black-owned businesses, writes my colleague Jared Council. But there has been little progress in outcomes for black lives and livelihoods. Plus: Read reflections from black leaders on what has changed and what hasn’t.

Gen-Z’s Financial Anxiety: We hear a lot about Gen Z being more open about their mental health and expecting their employer to talk about it as well. But a new report from Deloitte reveals they’re worried about their finances, not just their remote work setup. Asked what their most pressing concern is, contributor Mark Perna reports that the cost of living (meaning housing, transport and bills) was top of the list, with 29% of young workers citing this concern. Only a quarter say they can comfortably cover monthly living expenses, and almost half (46%) say they live paycheck after paycheck.

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READING CLUB

Tyler Cowen loves an unusual interview question: “What browser tabs are open on your screen right now?” The economist and co-author of Talent: how to identify energisers, creatives and winners around the world says it’s a conversation starter that reveals what’s important to job seekers and how they spend their time. “How do they organize and sample information? What are they interested in? Whether it’s a good thinker: always zero inbox, or [do they] have 300 open browser tabs? ” he says. “Someone who isn’t enthusiastic about one of their tabs – they might be a great worker, but they’re probably not as enthusiastic about your assignment.”

Other favorites, Cowen told me — for people in leadership positions only — are “how ambitious are you?” He says that “it seems almost silly in its straightforwardness, but I’ve found people who aren’t so ambitious that they have a hard time pretending.” Cowen says the nonprofit founders he talks to sometimes aren’t ambitious enough or maybe aren’t aiming high enough. The telling part of the answer doesn’t come from how they specifically answer this question, but in “their level of detail and their enthusiasm to tell what they might be planning – that really shows you a lot”.

Another favorite: “What do you do to practice your craft that is akin to a pianist practicing scales or a basketball player practicing free throws?” He says the answer is good for almost anyone in any job, “because you get what your self-improvement program is.”

Cowen says he thinks a recession is starting for reasons that have nothing to do with talent — inflation, the Federal Reserve — and that the labor market is about to get worse. “But the medium to long-term trend is still that talent is incredibly scarce and the companies that can find it are the ones that will do well,” he says.