Speaking up at work is hard enough as it is, but when you feel like the odd one out, advocating for yourself becomes even harder. How do you tell your boss when they're making you uncomfortable or doing something that undermines your performance? The secret is simpler than you think.

Catt Small is a staff product designer, game maker and developer. She's worked with companies including Asana, Etsy, and SoundCloud. She also makes video games, draws art, and is the Executive Director for the Game Devs of Color Expo.

(00:00) A Culture of Excess
(04:05) Proving Yourself in Unfamiliar Territory
(06:32) Navigating Cultural Differences at Work
(13:14) “This Job is Going to Kill Me”
(20:16) From Defensive to Effective Communication
(24:03) Speaking Up Without Burning Bridges
(28:44) Creating Inclusive Team Cultures
(31:35) Finding Your Voice in Toxic Environments

Follow Catt on Bluesky, read her writing at cattsmall.com, and check out her course, “Staff Designer: Influence & Lead as an Individual Contributor” on Maven.

See also:

Radical Candor by Kim Scott
The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership by Diana Chapman, Kaley Klemp, and Jim Dethmer
Game Devs of Color Expo Sept. 16-19, 2025

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Work Face is produced by Hear Me Out, a culture strategy firm for leaders with the courage to listen. We help them cultivate trust by having real conversations with employees at all levels about what’s working and what’s not.

Learn more at hearmeout.co and follow us on Instagram, Bluesky, and LinkedIn.

What does it take to succeed in a creative field like journalism? Who gets the biggest interviews, the coolest assignments, the fast track to a huge audience? The answer has a lot less to do with how hard you work than with how you're seen by the people calling the shots.

Bijan Stephen, journalist and writer at Compulsion Games, shares his journey from magazine assistant to TV host and video game writer—and explains how some people end up being pegged as “talent” while others don’t.

(00:00) The Industry Talent Hierarchy
(04:12) The Old-School Magazine
(07:11) Workplace Hierarchy and Performance
(09:27) Navigating Media Culture
(12:16) The Vice “Pirate Ship” Experience
(14:21) Unspoken Talent Systems in Media
(19:03) Transitioning From Media to Game Development
(21:57) What Game Writing Actually Involves
(26:35) Finding Support in the Games Industry
(29:56) Instability as a Feature of Modern Work
(30:57) Advice for Early-Career Journalists

Bijan Steven is a writer at Compulsion Games and a music critic at The Nation. His work has appeared in the New Yorker, the New York Times, Esquire, Wired and many other places.

Follow Bijan on Bluesky and Instagram, read his writing for The Nation, and check out his games on Itch.

See also:

Media's unspoken "talent" hierarchy by Jenny G. Zhang
South of Midnight Gameplay Trailer (coming April 8)
Night in the Woods Launch Trailer
Oxenfree Launch Trailer
Afterparty Launch Trailer
Deadlock Gameplay Trailer

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Work Face is produced by Hear Me Out, a culture strategy firm for leaders with the courage to listen. We help them cultivate trust by having real conversations with employees at all levels about what’s working and what’s not.

Learn more at hearmeout.co and follow us on Instagram, Bluesky, and LinkedIn.

Have you ever wondered what’s really happening when a manager makes you feel small? Maybe they were multitasking in a meeting, or late to a career defining conversation. What happens when people are given power without the tools to wield it responsibly? And what might our organizations look like if we invested in management competence before employees reach their breaking point?

Melissa and Johnathan Nightingale, founders of Raw Signal Group, share their experiences working for “incompetent” bosses, and explain why most managers don’t learn the basics of the job until they have no other choice.

(00:00) The Scrap of Paper
(03:25) Crying in the Bathroom Every Day
(08:30) The Manager Manager Manager
(14:26) The Tools Every Manager Needs
(20:18) The Problem with Most Feedback
(27:34) “Nobody Wants to Work Anymore”
(33:12) Management Tools vs. Leadership Bumper Stickers
(38:31) Taking Control of Your Own Career
(42:42) Building Skills and Finding Better Workplaces

Johnathan and Melissa are the founders of Raw Signal Group, world experts on management and leadership, and bestselling authors of the book “How F*cked Up Is Your Management?”

Follow Johnathan and Melissa on Bluesky, find their work at rawsignal.ca, and subscribe to their newsletter at worldsbestnewsletter.com.

See also:

Out of Office by Charlie Warzel and Anne Helen Petersen
How F*cked Up Is Your Management? by Johnathan and Melissa Nightingale
Situation-Behavior-Impact Feedback Model

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Work Face is produced by Hear Me Out, a culture strategy firm for leaders with the courage to listen. We help them cultivate trust by having real conversations with employees at all levels about what’s working and what’s not.

Learn more at hearmeout.co and follow us on Instagram, Bluesky, and LinkedIn.