The Story
If he noticed me, the day had color. If he did not, everything felt flat.
I started calling it motivation. Really, I had given a coworker access to my nervous system.
Nothing happened, except I stopped belonging fully to my own day.
Anonymous Stories
My Work Crush Became My Mood.
The office did not change. Her nervous system did.
The Fantasy at Work
The fantasy was that attention meant aliveness.
The Pattern
Intermittent workplace attention can become a reward loop.
The Reality Check
A person should not have to look at you for you to feel real.
A Question to Sit With
Who owns your mood when they enter the room?