If you've spent your career in a male-dominated industry, "not playing politics" often becomes code for staying quiet, staying small, and letting other people take credit for work you did.

I coach women who are done with that self-defeating loop. They want to lead in a way that's honest, that earns positive influence, and that doesn't cost them their integrity to get it. Here's a case study of what that looks like in action and words.

My client received an incomplete email about a time-sensitive project from one of her direct reports. Her response requesting the missing information was met with a terse and defensive reply. 

Moments like these have her feeling tension behind her eyes and wondering: 

• Why is my team so mediocre? 

• Is it me? Am I doing something wrong? 

• Can I keep growing my career if I struggle with people like this?