- This post originally appeared in the Insider Today newsletter.
Hello there! Answering the age-old question of who gets the dog in the divorce is getting a bit easier thanks to the rise of pet prenups.
In today's big story, you shouldn't be so keen to share everything with your manager.
What's on deck:
- Markets: A simple test to see if a recession is coming.
- Tech: OpenAI is hiring someone to investigate what's going on at…OpenAI.
- Business: How Alex Cooper's massive $125 million deal with SiriusXM actually works.
But first, no comment.
If this was forwarded to you, sign up here.
The big story
TMI = too much intel
We're taught to share as kids, but doing it in the workplace has serious downsides.
HR director Valerie Rodriquez detailed what you shouldn't share with your manager to avoid uncomfortable situations.
For example, you should keep your weekend plans to yourself, lest they're used against you.
Rodriguez's friend faced rumors at work after calling in sick because people assumed she was at a concert, something she had previously told her manager she enjoyed.
That might seem like an extreme situation — and more an example of a toxic work environment — but it doesn't make the point less valid. Disclosing personal details at work can often lead to more harm than help.
It's an important lesson to learn at a time when the workplace has drastically changed since the pandemic. Zoom calls and Google Hangouts broke down some barriers between work and personal lives. (Remember virtual happy hours?!)
Add in the fact the workforce's newest entrants — Gen Z — aren't familiar with typical corporate customs, and you can see how oversharing can become an issue.
Maybe you feel shedding your personality at work could ultimately hold you back.
After all, building relationships with colleagues is sometimes a ticket to success. And being the personality hire has its benefits.
But Eddy Gramajo fell into the trap of focusing on corporate culture over his actual work at Deloitte, which led to his firing after 18 months.
Gramajo, who has since built a successful career in tech working at Dropbox, faced an uphill battle when he joined the Big Four firm as a first-generation college graduate from a low-income background. Surrounded by people he felt were more comfortable in the corporate environment, he relied on one of his biggest strengths to get by: relationship-building skills.
That worked for a time. However, performance issues resulting from his lack of focus on work began to pile up, eventually leading to his termination.
Gramajo's experience at Deloitte was a decade ago, but the takeaway is even more relevant today. With fears of a recession and layoffs seemingly never going away, employees might be better off just focusing on their work.
After all, they say work friends are overrated.
News brief
Top headlines
- Edgar Bronfman drops his $6 billion Paramount bid.
- Apple's big iPhone 16 event now has an official date — here's what to expect.
- More than 20% of Kamala Harris' July fundraising haul came from California, thanks to the tech world.
- Nvidia has lots of questions to answer in this week's earnings call on product delays, competition, and China.
- Elon Musk tells X staff to write a one-page summary of their achievements to get stock options, report says.
- Former billionaire John Foley says he lost all his money and had to sell 'almost everything' after losing the Peloton CEO job.
- The courts could decide this presidential election, and both campaigns are gearing up for an ugly legal fight.
- Kamala faces an uphill battle with Gen Z.
- Judge orders 'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli to hand over copies of one-of-a-kind Wu-Tang Clan album.
3 things in markets
- What an interest-rate cut means for the US dollar. With cuts coming next month, Treasury yields will fall, hurting the US dollar. But the strength of the stock market has limited the downside, according to Goldman Sachs. More broadly, economic researchers highlighted the four biggest headwinds for the dollar.
- It's time to start bargain shopping when it comes to investing. Investment firm GMO, led by legendary investor Jeremy Grantham, sees big potential with "deep value" stocks. Those securities are cheap relative to their genuine fundamental worth, and should benefit as investor sentiment in mega-caps unwinds
- A more straightforward recession indicator. Tired of trying to understand recession signals that combine a series of complicated date points? The Perkins Rule might be for you. The indicator is only triggered when a negative monthly payroll report is received. (We're not there yet.)
3 things in tech
- Telegram says CEO has "nothing to hide" after Paris arrest. The messaging platform backed CEO Pavel Durov after he was detained at an airport on Saturday. Authorities say Telegram isn't properly moderated and is being used for illegal activities; the platform maintains it abides by EU law.
- OpenAI wants a watchdog on its own employees. The company is hiring someone to investigate "suspicious activities" originating from within the company — a sign it's worried about the behaviors of its own workers. It's another example of the lengths OpenAI will go in order to stay on top.
- What's the price of an AI engineer? At Microsoft AI, it's about 48% more than all other US software engineering roles at the tech giant, according to leaked pay data. Some acquihire engineers were worth as much as $4 million a pop.
3 things in business
- Inside the "Call Her Daddy" podcaster's sweet new deal. Alex Cooper inked a three-year deal with SiriusXM reportedly worth a jaw-dropping $125 million — more than double her previous contract with Spotify. But it won't be easy. She'll have to hit these tough benchmarks before she can cash out those 0's.
- Dump Hinge and Tinder; you've got 11 new options. If you're burned out on Tinder and fed up with Hinge's "rose jail," fear not. These 11 founders are forming a new class of dating apps, which use innovative techniques to disrupt the dating industry.
- For some influencers, the chance to impact the election outweighs career risks. A new survey found content creators risk followers by talking about the election. That hasn't deterred them — a majority of influencer respondents were ready to bat for their political champions.
In other news
- The biggest star of the US Open: A cocktail that brought in $10 million.
- Hosts have ruined Airbnb with excessive fees, high demands, and bad customer service, travel experts say.
- 10 things you should never do at a golf course, according to PGA pros and employees.
- The cheapest Cybertruck now costs nearly $100,000. Here are 5 alternatives.
- An ex-Meta engineer and Stanford Ph.D. student built a bot in a bid to take on big job sites and put the power in the hands of job seekers.
- The starter home is making a comeback as the housing market thaws for first-time buyers.
What's happening today
- National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
- AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler delivers Labor Day State of the Unions address, including a plan to support Democratic nominees Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the presidential election.
- Nordstrom and other companies report earnings.
The Insider Today team: Dan DeFrancesco, deputy editor and anchor, in New York. Jordan Parker Erb, editor, in New York. Hallam Bullock, senior editor, in London. Milan Sehmbi, fellow, in London. Amanda Yen, fellow, in New York.