We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jan Almasy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jan , appreciate you joining us today. So, let’s start with trends – what are some of the largest or more impactful trends you are seeing in the industry?

Gen Z is slowly losing more and more trust in social media.

Gen Z’s were born with phones in their hand. They are digital natives, and unlike previous generations, had the benefit of being raised by parents that had been using technology for years. Although many people point to this digital nativism as a disadvantage, citing some Gen Z’s preferences to play video games after school rather than going outside, they are leading the charge in speaking out against the negative effects of social media.

Not in small part because they have been intensely affected by it.

Gen Z’s were born between 1997 and 2012, and has grown up in an era of extremely rapid technological advancement and widespread social media use. Despite platforms like Instagram, Facebook and TikTok having a high amount of Gen-Z engagement, many members of Gen-Z have a massive distrust of the social platforms. This mistrust is fueled primarily by a far of manipulation and misinformation.

Recent studies have shown that a significant percentage of Gen Z individuals are wary of social media and its impact on society. A study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that 40% of young adults aged 18-24 reported concerns about the accuracy of information presented on social media. This mistrust of information on social media has led to a decrease in the credibility of these platforms in the eyes of Gen Z.

Another study published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking found that Gen Z individuals are more likely to be aware of the negative effects of social media use, such as cyberbullying, and the impact on mental health. This awareness has led to a growing mistrust of the motivations of social media companies and the information they present.

Despite the widespread mistrust of social media among Gen Z, these individuals continue to use these platforms in their daily lives. However, they are becoming increasingly savvy about the information they consume and share online. Gen Z individuals are increasingly turning to alternative sources of information, such as news websites, to verify the accuracy of information presented on social media.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I went to school for nursing and clinical psychology while serving in the Air National Guard. Five years ago I started a podcast with a friend from college. Now that podcast is a global consulting group called Apex Communications Network with 3 full-time staff.

I’m also the Head of the Community for IndeCollective, which is a private community where top independent workers develop the know-how and network to translate their specialized skills into financially rewarding, personally fulfilling careers.

My goal in life is to open as many people’s eyes to the possibility of an independent future as humanly possible and build a global network of talented marketing professionals that can help those dreamers scale their organizations once they get rolling.

I’ve always been passionate about developing people.

At Aultman Hospital in Canton, OH I was a clinical instructor in the Cardiac ICU and when I was in the military I was in charge of developing our new recruits prior to them shipping off to basic training. For years I’ve witnessed the power of mixing together a little of nursing theory and clinical psychology with my vision for building strong relationships between passionate people in the business world.

I’m proud to have the ability to serve my 40+ globally spread customers at Apex Communications Network along with the 400+ alumni of the IndeCollective community in every way I can. I firmly believe that there has been no better time in history to become an independent worker than right now.

How did you build your audience on social media?

When I was 21 years old, I started a blog dedicated to the topics of physical, mental, and spiritual health. This blog ended up transforming into a podcast called The Apex Podcast that now has over 80 episodes published and has reached over 50,000 people since it’s inception.

Over the years, I’ve consistently kept my social media as organic as possible. I don’t schedule posts ahead. I also try to make sure that I keep a good mix of stories about my professional life and remind my followers that I’m a person with flaws just trying to figure things out like everyone else.

As it stands currently, my personal brand is one of the largest revenue drivers for my company. I consistently do business with members of my LinkedIn Community, Newsletter Readers, and Podcast Listeners – which is awesome because honestly, it feels like we’ve known each other for a long time.

I think it’s one of the most valuable reasons to vulnerably be yourself while building your personal brand on social media. I know it’s hard to not just get stuck focusing on the number of followers you have, or how many sales you’re able to generate from a social platform. We were raised to measure the ROI of everything.

I can assure you that although I cannot directly tell you exactly how much value each “Happy Birthday” message (or a phone call on a Saturday to vent about the week) has brought me – I can say that over time the relationships that started as acquaintances are now friends. Not only that, they are advocates for what I do. They continuously support me and push me to be a better version of myself.

Here are 4 short tips to up your social media game:

1. Don’t overthink it. Just talk about what you’re passionate about.

2. Don’t be upset if being a Youtuber isn’t your thing. You might be a writer or a podcaster. Stay in your zone of genius.

3. You won’t be able to produce if you’re just consuming all the time. Doomscrolling doesn’t count as “research”

4. Share things you think are cool, you’re audience will get to know you better that way, and you don’t have to recreate things.

Any advice for managing a team?

I firmly believe that when it comes to managing a team, the biggest factor is maintaining radical transparency and genuinely showing them that you value their input in decision-making. At Apex Communications Network we meet once every three months to discuss company goals and personal goals all in the same session.

As a leader, sometimes I feel like we can believe that we are responsible for making the decisions and having all of the information figured out before we even get to the team. That is just not the case. Our true power as leaders really lies in our ability to bring out the greatest talents of our teammates and allow them to excel in their zone of genius while contributing to accomplishing the mission.

If you’re not allowing your team to stretch and flex themselves creatively and work ethic-wise while making crucial decisions for your organization – I can guarantee that you are hyper-stressed for no reason and your team may be feeling a little left out.

On the flip side of this, I try my hardest to help my team avoid burnout by leading by example. We make sure to advocate for self-care time, and disconnection from social and work, as well as regularly getting together as a team to discuss difficult projects and decompress with each other. I always make sure to open up these sessions by pointing out the ways that I may have failed the team during the project, which tends to open the floor up to a more vulnerable and productive discussion.

I learned this technique from the CEO of TXI, Mark Rickmeir after he delivered a lunch and learn during a virtual education program I was attending called IndeCollective.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.indecollective.io , www.apexcommunicationsnetwork.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jan_almasy/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jan-almasy-57063b34/

Image Credits
Apex Communications Network Military picture is the 179th Airlift Wing