Yesterday was probably my most stressful day at work. I felt others conveying strong messages and reinforcing an unshakeable vibe via their body language, and I felt flush and fearful of being fired. All day I was punishing myself for second guessing my value. Of course I was fine. I wasn’t being fired. I know […]
Over 40 and reinventing
When do we reinvent ourselves? I probably do every decade. And so I’m on my 4th decade of reinvention. In my industry, you probably only remain relevant until the age of 55. So I figure I’ve got a good decade to a decade and a half of this line of work, which is why I […]
When you have a solution, but no one is listening
As mentioned in my last post, I work in a culture that breathes polite. But what I didn’t say is that there are loyalties that run so deep where I work, it’s hard to build trust. If you’ve been following my blog, there are two human truths to Agent M: 1. Issues: She has insecurities every […]
Polite Society
I think a fine name for my place of labor is polite society. We are all really nice to one another, and when any one of us breaks the polite code of conduct, it’s frowned upon. The contrast is so different from where I was. So much so, that I need to stop second guessing […]
Re-Introducing Agent M1
To the outside world, agent M1 is your every day wife, mom and seasoned professional. At work, however, she transforms into a covert leader, secretly wondering how to fix the myriad problems at work. She knows she can be a change agent, even when the threat of disaster looms. The question is not how, but […]
Time to Mop Up
Tonight, I was performing the cathartic act of mopping the floor at home. So many days and nights I feel too exhausted from mopping up messes at work, that I don’t much feel like cleaning my own mess. This is my take on another form of work/life balance. When times are stressful and I am […]
Covert Answers: Unresponsive Managers
Covert Leadership Agents respond to readers’ questions in the Covert Answers feature. Submit your question here. Hi Agents – I find myself in an awkward position at work. The company director (my direct supervisor) asked me to give him a report with compiled data from five technical managers, all of whom report to the deputy director (my […]
Being Too Good at Your Job, Episode 1
Fall is here, so it’s time to kick off a new Blog series. I know this has become a cliché for government workers, but I want to address something that is not always apparent in the corporate world, yet omnipresent nonetheless. Being too good at your job. This is episode 1. Out of respect to […]
Fixing the Un-fixable
I have a friend, let’s call him Manny. Manny is a psychotherapist. The other day he was asking me about some of the common terminology in my field of work. When I asked why, he explained that his client was having some difficulties in her personal life, with relationships etc., and his assessment was that […]
When Goal Setting Isn’t Enough
I have this employee who has been learning his role on-the-job now for several years. During the past two, he hasn’t received a promotion and he’s wondering why. After our informal discussion where he disclosed his frustrations, it was immediately clear to me the reason for his struggles. Doug is a superstar in his own […]