Hello Reader,

Pretending you’re happy at work isn’t loyalty — it’s self-betrayal.
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Ever caught yourself smiling brightly at your boss while deep down thinking, “𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦” or “𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐’𝘮 𝘥𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨”?
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Your boss stops by your office, asks how you’re doing — You put on your bravest smile:
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“𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵! 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨’𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵!”
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They say:
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“𝘌𝘹𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘓𝘦𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨.” and walk away.
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And you’re left sitting there… feeling like a stranger in your own career.
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Voicing these deep insecurities is incredibly tough. Even 𝘢𝘥𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 takes courage.
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But here’s the truth: You don’t have to suppress these thoughts.
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You can acknowledge them — and then take your first small action.
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🔹 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 “𝗳𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀” 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽:
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👉 “I currently believe I don’t belong here — and for now, that’s ok.”
👉 “I allow myself to seek out trusted people to talk to — inside or outside my company.”
👉 “I will start by having a relaxed coffee chat with [Colleague X] to learn about [Job Y].”
👉 “I trust that I am in charge of exploring better options where I feel I truly belong.”
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Taking small steps like these builds clarity and power.
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You deserve to feel excited about where you work — not stuck pretending.

You can do it! 🙋‍♀️💪

Mareike

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