Welcome to The Workplace Unfiltered!

If you really want to know who someone is, watch how they interact with someone who they feel can do nothing for them. We've heard versions of this phrase before, and it applies across every area of our lives. This article though will focus on what this looks like in the workplace setting, and what it really means for mitigating the effects of toxic workplaces, fairness, and equity in the workplace.

So, let's explore why "I'm a good person" is such a common belief, and what is actually happening beyond the surface of this and other statements like these.

A common workplace stressor is the exhaustion and confusion many of us experience simply trying to make sense of what's happening around us at work.

There is nothing different you could have said, no other way you could've looked, nothing more you needed to do. It is never about you- at least not in the way you're made to believe. 

Manipulators and abusers absolutely depend on us not seeing their true selves to continue abuses in the dark. Covert harm in the workplace often relies on a playbook of psychological tactics and behavioral patterns that repeat or represent themselves in different contexts. 

Uh-oh. If I haven't lost a bunch of subscribers by now, this series might just be the one. I sent out a poll via LinkedIn a few weeks ago to ask what we should talk about next here on  The Workplace Unfiltered , and the votes were overwhelmingly for discussing the behavior of women in the workplace. So, I'm blaming you all now for this newsletter's demise, lol. What am I bantering about? It's well known, at least among us women, that there are certain types of women that make

In the first article, I talked about some reasons why abusers are usually successful in abusing others. If you haven't read that article yet, please read that first before proceeding here. I think the first step in really understanding bullying and mobbing in the workplace is to get a real idea of what abusers (and abuse) looks like. In articles and posts everywhere, you'll be given the idea that bullies are overt, big, scarry people whose abuse is so overt and obnoxious that

How can you tell the difference between a healthy work environment, and one that may be toxic for you? This is an interesting question. Toxic doesn't mean not being able to control others or having to work with people you don't like. Sure, that's really unpleasant and can lead to toxic behaviors, but isn't toxic itself. Toxic behaviors are those actions, mindsets and behaviors that have a lasting and pervasive negative impact on productivity, innovation, and the mental, socia

Workplaces can be places of great collaboration, creativity, camaraderie and good times. Or- they can be breeding grounds for insecure, manipulative types to wreak havoc on the mental and emotional health of the rest of us. On this side of the internet, we're all about arming ourselves emotionally and mentally against the latter, and most often we focus on the manipulators and the victims. But we seldom focus on those who create the environment for abuse and manipulation to w

For much of my professional life, I have always worked for leaders who were white, and more specifically white women. In reflecting on both current and past experiences, I began to think about the many nuances of corporate life that, as a black woman, are part of my experience much more than they are for my white counterparts. This also led me to think about which skills and knowledge white leaders should develop in order to be most effective at leading black employees and pr

One thing I absolutely love about this workplace reform movement that is happening now is that we are collectively starting to realize that people bring their full selves to work- for better or worse. People don't abandon their struggles, personalities, behaviors and beliefs when they clock in for the day. Even though your company has a fancy mission statement and values, it has become rare to see people actually working and behaving according to those values- and this is tru

October is ADHD awareness month, so it seems like a great time to reflect on the experiences of neurodivergent persons in the workplace. Before I share my thoughts, I think it's important to be clear about where I stand as a neurodivergent person, since we all have different experiences based on diagnoses, experiences, support systems, etc. My Neurodivergence Discovery Journey As a kid, my kindergarten teacher suspected I had a learning disability because I was quiet and kept

Ok, 'un-politically' is not an actual word- yet. But I think you get what I mean- how can we navigate workplace politics, without politicking? Should we engage, or no? What's the cost, really? So many questions! I mean, most people you talk to will also have pretty positive things to say about workplace politics, and it's widely accepted that learning to 'play the game' is a key part of career success. Depending on who you ask, it becomes a question of the end justifying the

Recently in the news we heard the creator of the Dilbert comic strip reference the conditions of black neighborhoods, and by extension people, as dangerous and "unable to be helped", urging white people to get away. These comments, and the following debates on different platforms made me think about physical violence and psychological violence- which is worse? Are Black Americans labelled most dangerous based on questionable statistics on murders and petty crime? Are we too e