Member-only story
WORK/COMMUNICATION
When Grief Enters the Chat
A Real Story About Loss, Leadership, and the Power of Simple Humanity
‘They may forget what you said — but they will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou
My daughter lives in a different city and calls me every evening to tell me about her day. On this particular evening, her voice was quieter and more subdued than usual.
She told me about a colleague who had just marked a deeply painful anniversary. Let’s call him Curt.
Ten years ago, Curt lost his older brother in a car accident. His brother was only two years older than him. And as if that weren’t devastating enough, his best friend had died by suicide during the same week — just in a different year.
Curt was having a tough week, understandably. His manager (let’s call him Dave) noticed something was off and asked what was going on. So, he opened up during a team call.
Dave’s response? A quick, “Sorry to hear that. We can talk more later,” before moving on — abrupt and detached.
My daughter was stunned — not just by the weight of Curt’s story, but by how casually it had been brushed aside. She had no idea Curt had gone through something so painful. Curt had always been kind…
