If you know me in the workplace, you know that I tend to come across as reserved, polite, and PC. This may even come through in my blog posts as well. Some might even label me as boring, unless I open up and we start talking about my hobbies or vacations. But even then, my personality comes across as… vanilla. It’s really no surprise that I’m like this – besides being an introvert, my dad is the epitome of politeness, and I was raised to be concerned about what others thought (early personal branding??) I have thrown some of that concern aside with my taste in music and clothes, neither of which can be considered to be mainstream. But overall, you can be sure that I will not give anyone the impression that I’m anything but a nice person and overall good citizen. I've even gone to the extreme of running to the other side of a grocery store when I saw a colleague on a Sunday morning… because I was hurting bad from a large number of cocktails the evening before.

However, I do have a different side that I don’t really let shine outside my circle of friends and family. It’s kind of weird, being so straight-and-narrow at work and then letting loose at night and on the weekends. Don’t misunderstand – the reserved, PC side of me is authentic. I just do a better job of balancing the niceness with the sarcastic jokes when with friends.

Since I started supporting the sales team, I’ve realized it’s important for the team to get to know the real me – not because they care (some might), but because they want to know that I’m human, that I make mistakes like them, and overall so they can trust me. So, I’m trying to be more comfortable being my authentic self while at work. I’m more open about my personal plans on weekends, I’m not shy about ordering an adult beverage while at a work dinner, I’m letting my snarky side make appearances as appropriate, and I’ve let a few curses slip here and there (fact: I actually have a really bad potty mouth!)

But I am sure to draw the line somewhere – which is what originally inspired this post. I often haul ass out of the parking lot at the end of the day, music blasting. I have to keep reminding myself to tone down my typical aggressive NJ driving near the office, because it would be pretty embarrassing if I got caught cutting off a co-worker!