Workplace Trauma
- Brainz Magazine
- Sep 27, 2021
- 6 min read
Written by: Marlena Davis, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
I was in my early 20’s when I quit corporate America for the first time. After I developed a medical condition, my boss, whom I’d previously had a great relationship with, suddenly developed a huge problem with me. I didn’t understand it. Conditions became so unbearable that I had to go out on FMLA. The entire situation was terrible for months. When I finally returned to work, I was terminated at the end of the week. I was devastated. A part of me was angry. Another part of me felt completely hopeless because despite how I was treated and the things that were said to me I still had no recourse. The law did not protect me. I couldn’t return to corporate America. Not at that time.
So, I decided to start my own business. I had no idea what I was doing, and I got involved with some bad people on some real estate deals. And then the bubble burst. It was a double whammy and the business failed. Miserably. I tried to start a couple of home-based businesses, but I possessed no business acumen whatsoever, and all I did was fail. Eventually, I was forced to return to corporate America at the age of 30. However, I kept a couple of LLCs in my back pocket to basically use as learning boards. And I also returned to college.
Going back to corporate America was one of the hardest things that I’ve ever had to do. Only the Lord knows how loudly I screamed in my head and the flood of tears that I had to fight back during that first week. And I had to start from the bottom. Like I was fresh out of high school all over again. I wasn’t just embarrassed. I was downright humiliated. No one understood how I felt. To actually have a degree and prior experience, but they’re dismissed because of a gap on my resume. That gap didn’t mean that I had amnesia. It didn’t make me any less valuable. However, I didn’t make a big deal out of it, I simply tried proving myself through my work.
It was during these years that I experienced some unbelievable situations in the workplace. Situations that I probably would have never believed occurred had I not experienced them myself. They were truly unbelievable. Looking back on everything that I’ve been through, I’m convinced that the workplace wasn’t designed for me to succeed. I was a top performer consistently. But I wasn’t considered as valuable as some other employees. I worked very hard for every employer that I worked for. I sacrificed a lot for them...mentally and physically. In turn I was treated like I was worthless. In addition to feeling as if nothing that I did was good enough, I had to deal with toxic work cultures, micro aggressive behavior, bullying, humiliation, unjust terminations, etc.
In 2019, I started a business called Virtuous Business Services after being terminated from two positions that same year. After the second termination I was just numb. I was tired. And I was angry. I was angry because both experiences seemed very purposeful. They felt oppressive, and that weighed heavily on me. After I started Virtuous Business Services, I knew that it would take some time to get the business up and running so I attempted to do the smart thing and I signed up with a couple of agencies for contract work. After going on a few interviews, I was reminded of how much I despised the interview process. To me, it seems like employers these days could care less if a candidate has the skills needed to perform the job or complete the work. They just want to see if the candidate is a “cultural fit” for the workplace. In other words, they just want to size up their personality and test their will to live.
Prior to starting my business by life was a complete mess. I couldn’t even explain my financial situation because it was so ridiculous. Until very recently I didn't understand how much of what I went through in the workplace impacted my personal life. It does something to you knowing that you're not valued, and that you’re expendable. There are so many incompetent employees in the workplace who get away with murder, but every time I let it be known that I had some sort of boundary I was shown the door.
That last time that I was terminated was it. I was done. I told myself that I wasn't going to allow anyone else to have that kind of control over my life. The power to control my financial situation and my quality of life was mine. At this point I REFUSE to go back to corporate America. I'll sleep on a park bench before I ever be anyone's employee ever again.
I started Virtuous Business Services as a virtual assistant agency. I was simply using my skill set to provide services to small businesses who were overwhelmed and needed assistance. But the pandemic shut me down. During the lockdown I began to see an increase in new entrepreneurs who were hitting roadblocks in their businesses. They simply didn't know what to do or how to move forward. I've been in their position where I was stuck and not knowing what to do and making mistake after mistake and failing with two previous business ventures. So, I pivoted and rebranded as a micro business consultancy. I changed my business name to InPower Consulting and Professional Services. And my mission changed to coaching new entrepreneurs, helping them find their way, and reaching their goals. I want to be for them the person that I needed when I first ventured into entrepreneurship many years ago. I figured that I may not know everything there is to know about business (yet), but I'm an expert at failing. I can tell others exactly what NOT to do and guide them in the right direction.
Right after I started my business, I also started documenting everything that I knew. A combination of years of gathering and combing through all of the free information on the internet and the lessons that I learned from my mistakes and failures. I ended up creating a robust program for those who want to transition out of the workplace and start their own business. It's called the 6-Month Career Professional to Entrepreneur Transition Program. It's specifically designed for those with little to no knowledge about business, but who wants to be their own boss. The program coaches them step by step through the process of starting a home-based business so that they will have a legitimate revenue generating business upon completion of the program. They will have the power to finally take back control of their lives. They will not have to feel bound to a toxic workplace anymore. They will have a door to freedom.
I noticed that my consultations were turning into therapy sessions as I shared war stories about the workplace with my clients. I realized that there are so many people who have, and many still are, suffering in the workplace. It breaks my heart because I've been there. I know exactly what they're going through. Yet no one is talking about it. People are suffering in silence just like I did for so many years. People are being torn down, having their spirits broken, their voices stripped away, and their mental messed with at work. That is not ok with me, and I'm done being quiet about what happened to me. People need to hear it. They need to know that they are not alone and that there are others who understand. No one signs on with a company or organization to be stripped of their dignity...to be made to feel invaluable...or to suffer. Yet that is what is going on in the workplace. The workplace has become nothing more than modern-day slavery.
Well, I'm going to show them that they have a choice. They have options. They do not have to tolerate any kind of abuse from anyone...especially not in the workplace. Employees are more valuable than they realize. They're necessary. Whether they know it or not they have the power to take back control of their lives and live it on their own terms. They are the ones with the skills. And they are literally operating someone else's business. Well, now I'm here to tell them that they are capable of operating their own business.
So, I've begun speaking out on workplace trauma. It's a conversation that's long overdue. I'm going to tell my stories to anyone who will listen because it must stop. People deserve better. And that is where I am right now. Gearing up to launch my program soon and am searching for ways to be an advocate for those who are struggling in the workplace
Marlena Davis, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Marlena Davis is a Micro Business Consultant and Transition Coach. In addition to working with new entrepreneurs on starting virtual businesses with a solid foundation, she coaches and mentors career professionals who are transitioning into entrepreneurship. She works with them on healing from traumatic workplace experiences, utilizing their skill sets to their advantage, and shifting their mindsets from worry and defeat to purpose and power. MarIena also partners with established small business owners and assist with the incorporation of proven corporate strategies to create organizational efficiency and optimization within their businesses.
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