We do a TERRIBLE job of interpreting our co-workers REAL feelings and experiences? You think you size people up easily. You think you know when your co-worker is confident, happy, angry, entitled…
You think you know when someone has their shit together and when they don’t.
I am here to tell you that your co-workers and even bosses have secrets. Many of the people you see who appear to be happy, confident, put together and successful are living inside a mental shit-storm.
I know because they are my clients. I know because they were me.
The masks we wear are powerful. They create well-polished illusions that we are navigating our work-life with stability and confidence.
The mask hides the fear of judgment, the overthinking, the second-guessing, the perfecting, the fear of failing. The mask is convincing. But the mask isn’t real.
Stop comparing yourself to someone’s mask. Stop assuming your co-workers are navigating their work with ease.
The person who reaches out for my help, is often one of the most successful people in the room. The one who appears the MOST confident and put together. When you recognize that the people you spend your days working alongside are often struggling in ways you can’t see—you can give yourself a break for your own work struggles. And you can show up with more patience and understanding when a co-worker or boss seems difficult to be around.
Your co-workers have secrets. We all have secrets. So stop feeling ashamed when your feel yourself struggling to navigate your job with ease. You are not alone. There is someone you passed by in your office today who has the very same secret.
