Honest conversations about the psychology of modern work culture
The annual performance review sat on my calendar like a flashing hazard sign. I had stared at the form enough times to know exactly what it said. Meets Expectations. Exceeds Expectations. Needs Improvement. The script never changed, but every year, my stomach still tightened. Six years in, I knew the drill. I worked at a …
Claire had mastered the art of not caring. For a while, I mistook that for power. Corporate America loves a woman who never cries. A leader who fires employees with a steady voice, delivers bad news without flinching, moves through crisis with mechanical precision. When my manager introduced me to Claire in 2019, she presented …
I didn’t set out to become the office weirdo who ate lunch in their car, but corporate survival sometimes means finding a place to hide. A silver Honda became my lunchtime sanctuary in 2004, complete with crumbs between the seats and a view of the sprawling suburban office park. The decision stemmed from pure survival …
Programming is an act of control — until it isn’t. The computer was supposed to be on my side. That was the agreement. I typed commands, and it obeyed. Simple. But like most relationships built on blind obedience, this one was destined for trouble. We’d been dancing this dance for years — me believing I …
People are staring at me. I’m sitting at LAX Gate 12 after a week-long vacation. I can’t stop crying. My flight home leaves in an hour and I’m overcome with sadness. As the tears fall down my face, a woman with kind eyes sits beside me and asks, “Are you okay?” I consider saying something …
“You’re right, but it doesn’t matter,” my sister Helene said. This was her response after I shared about my refusal to comply with a background check request. The company I worked for ran one when I was hired. A client wanted to run their own. I said no. “What do you mean?” I asked. “You’re …