The S&P 500 has been the clear winner among major stock markets in recent years, thanks to enormous technology companies. But the whole world has managed to recover pretty well from the 2020 crash.

Why it matters: The S&P 500's outperformance isn't really a function of American exceptionalism. U.S. small caps, for instance, as measured by the Russell 2000, are significantly underperforming France and Germany, and are barely outperforming Brexit-wracked Britain.

Between the lines: While Japan's Nikkei tops major markets in terms of its five-year returns, it looks much less impressive in dollar terms.

• It's also worth noting that the Nikkei's 35-year return, in local currency terms, is +20%, compared to +1,740% for the S&P 500.

The big picture: Deglobalization is visible everywhere except the stock market, where technology megacaps are reaping the benefit of global domination.

• That said, it's great news that almost all the world's major stock markets are sitting on reasonably healthy five-year returns, given that in early 2020, they all plunged in the face of the deepest and sharpest recession since the 1930s.

The bottom line: Sharp falls generate headlines and panics — but are often short-lived.

In 2023, 35% of workers aged 15 and over worked from home some of the time, per fresh data from the American Time Use Survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Why it matters: That's unchanged from 2022 — a sign that a post-pandemic normal has emerged.

What's next: We're heading into the thick of summertime, a particular flashpoint when it comes to remote work.

• Tis the season when flexible work arrangements collide with employees' summer vacation plans.
• Some bosses resolve the tension with strict crackdowns on any intrusion of leisure into the workday, while others are more inclined to trust employees and offer more flexibility.

Zoom in: It's an especially tricky moment for middle managers, who are struggling to trust workers at a time when they're not always right in front of the boss's face.

• In the worst-case scenario, you wind up with monitoring software and strict return-to-office ultimatums that push some people out of the workforce.

The bottom line: The hybrid work world is here to stay. Managers need to adapt.

Jennifer Romolini is the latest former media executive to grapple with the fever dream of the Girl Boss era, and the culture of workaholism that fueled it.

Why it matters: In her new memoir, "Ambition Monster," Romolini digs into what fueled her rise from college dropout to executive positions in print and online media.

• "The 2010s were a socially sanctioned #bossbitch bootcamp," she writes, arguing that the attention paid to so-called Girl Bosses during that time amped a certain group of media leaders to often unhinged heights.

State of play: Romolini grew up working class in Philadelphia, the child of teenage parents struggling to get by, who partied a lot and often left their young daughter feeling scared and unprotected.

• As an adult, she found comfort in work: the structure, the rewards, even the constant stress.

Zoom in: In a later chapter, she sums up 12 years of working in women's media under a string of so-called girl bosses.

• "In my day-to-day work under these leaders, women who publicly spouted fempowerment platitudes slammed doors in my face, called me names, required that I eliminate the positions of employees on maternity leave and asked that I fire a young woman struggling with mental health because she was 'bumming us out.'"
• "One boss got violent and frequently kicked the back of my office chair when she was mad."

Zoom out: The book follows in the footsteps of "The Myth of Making It," from a former executive editor at Teen Vogue who also recounts a burning ambition to succeed — and the feeling of burnout and emptiness once she got there.

The bottom line: Workaholism is a gender-neutral phenomenon, but when crossed with a certain kind of faux feminism it can be pretty toxic.