Episode Overview

In this end-of-year episode, Sabina Sulat goes back to the predictions she made at the close of 2024 and holds them up against the reality of 2025. Rather than offering hot takes or new speculation, this episode is a thoughtful review of what held up, what shifted, and what none of us fully anticipated.

From federal layoffs and prolonged job searches to AI, hybrid work, and the growing strain on social safety nets like SNAP, Medicaid, and Medicare, this episode explores what the job market actually felt like—and what both job seekers and workplaces need to do differently heading into 2026.

This is an episode about accountability, systems, and learning in public.

Key Sections & Talking Points
🔹 The State of Unemployment Now

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  Why unemployment numbers don’t reflect lived experience

  
  


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  Longer job searches and fewer confident job moves

  
  


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  Declining quits as a signal of uncertainty, not complacency

  
  


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  The emotional and cognitive toll of prolonged waiting

  
  

Key takeaway:

The market didn’t collapse—but it quietly tightened.

🔹 2025 Stories That Shaped the Job Market

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  Federal hiring freezes and layoffs—and the ripple effects into contractors, nonprofits, and regulated industries

  
  


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  The stress placed on workers navigating unemployment alongside stricter SNAP work requirements

  
  


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  Ongoing challenges accessing Medicaid and Medicare during job transitions

  
  


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  Why instability in the safety net directly impacts job-search outcomes

  
  

Key takeaway:

Unemployment is never just about work—it’s about stability, dignity, and bandwidth.

🔹 Reviewing the 2025 Predictions

Hybrid Work

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  Became common, but often poorly designed

  
  


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  Returned to offices without rethinking how work actually happens

  
  

AI & Automation

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  Adoption accelerated rapidly

  
  


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  Productivity expectations rose faster than reskilling or guardrails

  
  

Skills-Based Hiring

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  Talked about widely

  
  


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  Implemented inconsistently, especially in ATS-driven hiring

  
  

Portfolio Careers

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  Increased, often out of necessity

  
  


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  Stability replaced passion as the primary motivator

  
  

Well-Being at Work

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  Language expanded

  
  


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  Integration lagged behind lived reality

  
  

Tech-Driven Job Search

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  AI reshaped resumes and sourcing

  
  


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  Blockchain credentialing largely failed to materialize

  
  

Global Talent

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  Expanded unevenly due to legal and compliance barriers

  
  

IP Ownership

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  Conversation grew

  
  


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  Policy change remained slow

  
  

Key takeaway:

The direction of change was right. The pace—and accountability—were not.

Action Items for People Out of Work

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  Stop using labor headlines as self-assessment

  
  


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  Measure progress by traction, not timelines

  
  


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  Build visible proof of skills (portfolios, projects, case studies)

  
  


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  Use AI as a support tool, not a substitute for thinking

  
  


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  Treat all work—contract, freelance, exploratory—as legitimate

  
  


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  Protect your energy, mental health, and sense of agency

  
  

What Workplaces Must Do Differently in 2026

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  Shorten and clarify recruiting processes

  
  


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  Hire for actual skills and capability—not wish lists

  
  


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  Design the employee engagement cycle as one continuous experience

  
  


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  Make offboarding humane and dignified

  
  


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  Run stay and exit interviews through neutral third parties and act on the data

  
  

Key takeaway:

Data without action is theater.

Closing Reflection

2025 didn’t break work.

It tested it.

Reviewing the forecast isn’t about being right—it’s about learning, adjusting, and doing better.