Why your coworker is pretending to be so busy

Morning commuters pass the New York Stock Exchange, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. Richard Drew/Associated Press Worries about layoffs and AI taking jobs could push workers to engage in productivity theater. It's the act of demonstrating busyness to look good in front of higher-ups at work. Yet looking busy and actually being productive aren't always the same thing. When Taylor Goucher was in the military, he used to joke with colleagues about a lieutenant colonel who would scan the parking lot a...