# Story 1: Meta's masculine energy and what it really signals - **Episode:** [174](https://agents.truthliesandwork.com/episodes/174.md) (2025-02-25) - **Type:** news-roundup - **Tags:** masculine-energy, zuckerberg, workplace-culture - **Time:** 2:37–8:00 (start 157s) - **Listen:** [https://truthliesandwork.com/174?t=157](https://truthliesandwork.com/174?t=157) --- [2:37] Leanne Elliott: So you know how Mark Zuckerberg said that he wanted to see more masculine energy in the workplace? Well, from what I've seen, it basically means being a dick [2:46] Al Elliott: Oh [2:47] Leanne Elliott: Honestly, the drivel I am seeing from Meta right now is, is truly shocking, and actually, I think, an absolute insult to masculinity and male leaders. I would be fuming if I were you, Al, about what Mark is currently saying. Um, lovely listener, you've probably heard bits and pieces about what's been going on at Meta, but when you put it all together, like I said, the picture is pretty shocking. So let's recap. Early 2025, Meta let go of around 3,600 employees. That's about 5% of its workforce. The official line was it was because they were cost-cutting, um, and were getting rid of lower performers to streamline operations, but many were questioning that narrative. Just a week later, um, an SEC filing shows that Meta is making a dramatic change to its pay structure. For 2023 and 2024, executive bonuses were set 75% of their base salary, but come 2025 Those bonuses will increase to 200% of base salary. So in practical terms, top executives are about to earn bonuses in the millions despite thousands of employees being laid off, uh, as part of vital cost-cutting efforts. Hmm, suspicious. Uh, shortly after, uh, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, one of the front runners of diversity and inclusion, uh, scrapped its entire DEI team [4:06] Al Elliott: Wow [4:06] Leanne Elliott: Don't need it anymore. And then cancelled funding for inclusive— inclusivity projects. Don't need them either. Apparently we fixed AI, we've solved it. Um, instead the focus is shifting to funding in the fields of biology and AI. Uh, so yes, clearly a move away from previous commitment— previous commitments to inclusivity. Um, and then there's that podcast, uh, that I mentioned at the top there. Mark Zuckerberg recently appeared on Joe Rogan, another gift that keeps on giving, where he argued that too much focus on inclusivity has left companies culturally neutered and that we need to find more masculine energy, um, in terms of leadership. Yes, he really did say that. And really, Mark Zuckerberg's call for more aggressive, decisive leadership, uh, really does fit into everything else that we're seeing happening at Meta, together with the layoffs, the bonus boost, the DEI cuts. I think it paints a pretty clear picture, actually, um, that there is a shift towards leadership driven by control And fear. So my question is, Al, is this really what is going to define masculinity in 2025? I do have a feeling there are a lot of men out there who would very much disagree. Thoughts? [5:12] Al Elliott: Yes, of course, lots of people would disagree. There's also going to be, like we said last time with the Jamie Dimon thing, Jamie Dimon thing, we need to find out how you say his name, um, is that potentially this is just more of a, you know, like how America's now got a new president. The new president seems to have very different ideas to their competitor. Um, in the presidential race. Uh, and so maybe it's just aligning with that because let's be honest, Elon's, um, I can't say the word bombing, can I? Uh, but, uh, you just did. Elon, Elon is definitely, uh, definitely enjoying the company, um, of Trump. And so maybe, uh, maybe the whole point is Zuck's going, oh, I feel like a bit of a cuck here, uh, looking at, um, looking at Elon and Trump and going, well, I want my turn. So they've gone, well, I'll show him. Just how well I can be a boy and a man and we can earn money [6:00] Veerle Numan: Woof [6:01] Al Elliott: Yeah. I don't know. I mean, it's, to be honest, the whole of the whole FAANG thing, apart from actually fag. No, can't say that either. I was gonna take Netflix outta FAANG, but— [6:10] Leanne Elliott: Explain what it is before we get canceled quickly [6:12] Al Elliott: Sorry. Uh, yeah. FAANG stands for the top 5 technology companies. Uh, Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google, and one other. I'm sure you're shouting at me what it is. Um, and, uh, uh, and they, most of them apart from Netflix, most of them seem to be aligning themselves with Trump and going, oh yes, this sounds like a Great idea. Let's get— let's streamline things. Let's be, let's be a little bit like you said, be a bit of a dick. Um, and, uh, hopefully I think they're just looking for their time in the, in the, in the limelight with, uh, with PT [6:39] Leanne Elliott: Yeah, it's unsurprising that entrepreneurs who want power are chasing power. Um, it's Psychology 101 really, isn't it? What concerns me, and I talked about this on another podcast recently, is that on a serious note, we make light of these things, but what these behaviours are, they're coercive leadership behaviours. They're bullying behaviors. And what concerns me as a psychologist, they, they are being normalized, um, at a scale and rate that I find very unsettling and very uncomfortable. Make no mistake about it, if you're a leader out there, these are not the behaviors to subscribe to. They are not the leaders that will result in you having a long-term successful business. And before you go, yeah, but I'm sure, uh, Tesla will be fine, I'm sure, you know, whatever else will be fine— maybe, but there are plenty of examples in history of these types of coercive leaders who have gone on to completely derail, um, and, and lose everything. We've heard some very famous examples of that. Enron, I think, was one, wasn't it? Um, what's the bank in the, um, GFCL? Oh, I was a little bit ego-driven. The Lehman Brothers [7:43] Al Elliott: Yeah [7:43] Leanne Elliott: Yeah. Um, there's lots of examples. I don't think it's sustainable. I think there's going to be a shift, and I do not think history will favor the likes of Mr. Zuckerberg. Very well [7:55] Al Elliott: No, I totally agree [7:57] Leanne Elliott: Anyway, enough of that. Have you seen anything more cheery this week, Al?