Louise Allen spent over a decade in her career without telling a single coworker she'd played professional tennis. Eleven years on tour. Every Grand Slam. Ranked as high as No. 70 in the world. She kept it quiet because she was afraid of one label: the aggressive female athlete.

This week on Not All Business, Louise — now Chief Product Officer at Planview — joins Blakely and Heather to talk about why authenticity still feels risky at work, the double bind women face between being likable and being taken seriously, and the moment with a former boss she still thinks about decades later.

Key Takeaways:

• Why Hiding Parts of Yourself at Work Costs More Than It Protects

• The Seating Trick That Gets You Noticed in Any Meeting

• How to Tell If Feedback Is About Your Work or Just Your Personality

• What to Say When Someone Asks a Question They Have No Right to Ask

• Why Finding Your Voice Is a Skill You Can Practice, Not a Trait You're Born With

  
  

Please consider sharing this episode & subscribing to the show for more unfiltered conversations about leadership, growth, and the messy human side of business.

Follow Louise:

• Louise on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louise-k-allen-5703861/

• Louise's writing on Inc. Magazine: https://www.inc.com/author/louise-allen

• Planview: https://www.planview.com/company/leadership/

  
  

Links & Mentions:

• EY Women Athletes Business Network study on female executives and sports (via CNBC): https://www.cnbc.com/2017/01/11/want-to-be-a-ceo-later-play-sports-now.html

  
  

Submit Your Sticky Situations:

• Got a sticky situation for Not All Business? Send a voice recording to podcast@notallbusiness.com or drop your question in the comments.

  
  

Thank You to Our Sponsors:

• Face Five Acne Clinic, Root-Cause Acne Care, No Harsh Prescriptions Required: https://facefiveacne.com - code NOTALLBIZ10 for 10% off your first order

• Follow Face Five Skincare: https://www.instagram.com/facefiveskincare/

• Follow Wellness with Yuki: https://www.instagram.com/wellnesswithyuki/

  
  

Not All Business is Sex Ed for Your Career — the honest questions women want answered but rarely ask out loud. Hosted by Heather Cooper and Blakely Graham, alongside producer and co-host Clay Carnill, new episodes drop every Thursday covering the real stuff: workplace drama, salary negotiation, imposter syndrome, and the sticky situations nobody has a script for. Subscribe so you never miss the next one.