Employee gym-nastics

Heart And Hustle
Jul 21, 2017 · 2 min read

Yeah, I googled “how to deal with meeting an employee at the gym.” this morning. I found a lot of information on how employees should stay healthy. Always one for being curious about all kinds of seduction, I couldn’t help myself, I just had to click on a PUA forum post about running game at the gym. None of this helped me though in my quest for understanding what I am supposed to do when an employee starts showing up to work out at the same time you do.

This employee delighted me in the interview process because they came with a host of skills that apply to the company that were not listed on their resume. They did awesome in initial training in two different departments. I have seen the employee become an asset to the company and we share some cross-over interests. Overall, they are respected and well liked by everyone. This isn’t an easy task, but the employee does an excellent job of navigating their work-relationships.

Whatever shall I do in such a situation where I am becoming more and more invested in shifting dynamics with employees but still don’t have my footing in what to do when outliers are presented? I did what I typically do, I got politely awkward. We exchanged pleasantries for the second day in a row and all I could keep thinking was about the proper protocol for something like this. But (Behold the Underlying Truth) really it comes back to being authentic.

An hour an a half later, this employee and I greet one another at work and get on with our day. I suppose that is how this all shakes out. I don’t have answers yet but reality is going to keep giving me opportunities to learn. It is up to me if I want to embrace this fact or resist it. I am choosing to lean in.

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Heart And Hustle

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Documenting my HR journey within a startup…

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