The Grief We Don't Name

We talk about burnout. We measure productivity. We optimize workflows.

But we rarely acknowledge the grief that lives in our work.

The presentation that bombed despite weeks of preparation. The promotion that went to someone else. The email that never got a response. The meeting where your idea was dismissed without discussion.

This isn't failure—it's loss. Each loss is real. Each deserves acknowledgment.

Here's the thing about professional grief: it compounds when we pretend it doesn't exist. We stack unprocessed disappointments like unopened mail, wondering why our desk feels so heavy.

What if we treated professional disappointments like what they are—endings that matter? What if we gave ourselves permission to feel the weight of doors that closed, paths not taken, dreams deferred?

The work isn't to eliminate this grief. It's to learn from it, and then—when we're ready—to choose again.

Because on the other side of acknowledged loss is space. Space for new possibilities. Space for what's next.