I Finally Figured Out Why I'm So Bothered By 'Corporate Erin'

It's probably not what you think...

I want to unpack Corporate Erin and how, although I enjoy watching these videos, I am extremely triggered and not for the reasons you might think.

When I first entered the professional world as an editorial assistant, fresh out of my life as an HBCU student in the South who carried this Brooklyn accent, I struggled with debilitating imposter syndrome.

For months, I would sit in meetings with huge creative ideas bouncing around in my head and they'd stay there because I was terrified of speaking up.

One day, in the company snack room, that fear went to a different dimension. I remember grabbing myself a Twix candy bar from the vending machine and an older co-worker came up to me and started chatting about my career.

His goal was to be helpful and he pointed out that I had this "communication quirk" I needed to work on.

All this time, I had been saying "axe" instead of "ask."

The callout left me embarrassed, hurt and mortified.

I immediately started looking for words to replace "ask" in my vocabulary until I could get it together. "Inquire" became my very best friend.

I started to notice Corporate Erins around me on the fast track who seemed to have mastered the art of communication a.k.a.blending in with everyone else in our company. Many of them experienced burnout and left the industry to embark on new paths that didn't require upholding a certain personality or image to be successful.

I'm glad that culturally we are in an age where we can call out the wrong in promoting these harmful dynamics.

That was 15 years ago and I've had the privilege of building teams and leading complex strategies at several high-profile publications -- and I did it speaking the way I do.

Intelligence is not a tone. I don't have to hide the fact that I'm from Brooklyn.

I'm going to keep watching Corporate Erin and deal with the triggers as they come because this needs to be seen. I feel empowered in knowing that pretending to be something I wasn't was never essential.