The Peter Principle states that employees often rise within an organization to the level of their own incompetence, meaning 'accidental managers' sometimes ascend the corporate org chart without formal training in management or leadership. While they might know a great deal about the technical aspects of a job, they don't always know the basics about managing people.

Nimble leaders and companies that readily adapt to and thrive on change see revenue growth 2.6 times higher over a three-year timeframe than companies that are less comfortable with change, according to recent WTW research. The areas that helped make a difference for the companies are purpose, programs, work, people and risk, writes WTW's John Bremen.

Leaders, like chess masters, need to know the lay of the board, who is available to assist and remember they may need to move not only forward but to the side and backward to achieve their goal, writes Leadership Vitae's Kristin Hendrix. "By realizing we have others available to us to achieve our desired outcomes, and looking at the entirety of the board, we can retain a sense of empowerment even in a challenging environment," Hendrix writes.

Empathetic leadership is about understanding workers and using that knowledge strategically to drive the best employee experience, and should not been seen as a weakness, writes Lively Paradox CEO Nicole Price. "[A] workforce that feels understood will help the leaders build a successful business," Price writes, which is why leaders must "strengthen their empathy muscle."

Legislators at the federal and state level are examining how using AI and algorithms in the hiring process might perpetuate bias. Matt Scherer of the Center for Democracy and Technology says the landscape is ripe for change, but that for now "it's the Wild Wild West out there."

More than 453,000 employees in the US have taken part in 312 strikes so far this year, per a Forrester report, which is a warning to employers that growing unrest signals a need to focus on employee experience. "We suggest looking at strikes as part of a bigger phenomenon -- that of employee power, one of the four shocks reshaping the future of work in the next decade," advises J.P. Gownder, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester.

Everyone procrastinates to a certain degree, but when you find that procrastination is limiting you in your career, it's time to break the cycle by implementing new habits, writes business coach Chris Westfall. Strategies to help shift away from the habit of leaving things until the last minute include focusing on your goals and dreams, creating new habits based on positive messages and taking the first step, Westfall writes.

The methodology for these rankings isn't scientific in any way, but instead relies on Tripadvisor reviews that mention "clear water." Prassa Beach in Kimolos, Greece, was ranked #1 in the world, and the top beach in the US is in Wisconsin.