The Thirteenth Question

Gallup's 2026 State of the Global Workplace reports engagement at a record low, with managers declining fastest. Most wellbeing vendors respond with another engagement initiative. Chris Coulter argues the real driver sits outside the survey's reach: the struggling teen, the aging parent, the divorce, the debt, the unspoken grief your people carry to work and never mention. Here is what employers miss, why managers are breaking, and what asking actually looks like.