The weight of unspoken emotions

Think about how much energy it takes to hold back emotions at work. The deep breath before a meeting where you know you’ll have to tread carefully. The moment you swallow your frustration because you don’t want to seem “too much.” The anxiety before a difficult conversation. The times you wonder if you’re the only one feeling something but say nothing anyway.

For a long time, I thought the goal was to keep emotions out of work. To be professional. To be composed. To focus on solutions. I was good at compartmentalizing, keeping things “professional,” and pushing through. But under the surface? Exhaustion. Overwhelm. Irritation. Frustration I didn’t know how to voice.

But the more I’ve worked with people—leaders, teams, individuals—the clearer it’s become: emotions are already there. They show up in the way we communicate (or don’t), in the decisions we make, and in the dynamics we navigate.

Maybe you recognize that feeling too—the weight of navigating work when you’re carrying unspoken stress, uncertainty, anger, or emotional exhaustion. Or maybe you’ve been on the other side, trying to create a healthier dynamic in your team but unsure how to bring emotions into the conversation without it becoming messy.

The real skill isn’t shutting emotions down. It’s learning how to recognize, understand, and work with them. This work isn’t just about improving your experience of work (though that’s a huge part of it). It’s about learning how emotions impact your decisions, leadership, collaboration, and communication—so you can navigate work with more clarity, confidence, and ease.

That’s what we do in Navigating Emotions at Work—and if you’re ready to explore this, I’d love for you to join us in an upcoming cohort.