I Did the Exact Opposite of This Advice for 14 Years!
There are 3 newsletters I open every single week without fail:
James Clear’s 3-2-1: Short, sweet, poignant thoughts to marinate on
Karen Caitlan’s 5 Ally Actions: Brief list on how to better show up as an ally
Recently, Karen talked about Leaving Loudly. Read the full newsletter here.
While I haven’t heard that term before, I recognize its premise. Leaving loudly means not shying away from your need to leave work during office hours. I spent the better part of 14 years doing the EXACT OPPOSITE of leaving loudly.
Here’s what it looked like for me:
5 pm sneaking out the back door at Y&R to get to daycare before it closed.
4 pm sneaking out the side door at Oakley, even though having 2 early days was part of my hiring contract.
Noon at both Y&R and Oakley putting my purse and tote bag in my car so it wouldn't be so obvious when I left before 5 to get to a school function.
Saying I had a doctor's appointment instead of saying it was for a child (for the 4th time that month!)
I perfected leaving quietly.
Leaving Loudly doesn't mean grand pronouncements. It's about openly communicating your need to leave for a child's school play, a doctor's appointment, or even a midday yoga class. By normalizing these personal needs, you send a clear message to your team: it's okay to have a life outside of work.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR MANAGERS
Here's why Leaving Loudly is critical for managers in particular:
Role Modeling Work-Life Balance: When a manager leaves loudly, they show their team that it's possible to be dedicated and successful without sacrificing personal well-being. This combats the "always-on" culture and encourages them to do the same.
Building Trust and Transparency: Leaving quietly can breed suspicion and resentment. Cue the guilt I felt (for endless years!) when I left before 5 pm. I was the one who felt sly and suspicious. Lord knows if anyone else even noticed. By openly communicating your schedule, you build trust with your team and demonstrate respect for yourself, your family, and your priorities.
Boosting Employee Morale: Seeing a leader prioritize personal needs reduces the stigma around doing the same. Your team will feel more empowered to maintain a healthy work-life balance, leading to increased morale and reduced burnout.
Put this Leaving Loudly advice through the filter of allyship (which is the premise of the newsletter it came from), and you'll see the more we normalize our outside-of-work life obligations, the more we support working parents, single parents, supportive aunts and uncles, helpful sons and daughters, good-hearted neighbors, and more.
Doesn't that sound like every single person who is trying to hold their life together AND do their job?
It does.
About The Author
For the past two decades, Cecilia Gorman has helped advertising agencies and other creatively-minded companies fix costly communication and productivity issues by teaching managers how to become better connectors, motivators, and leaders. Cecilia is the author of Always Believe In Better, creator of the digital learning course for managers—Manager Boot Camp, and co-founder of the global training and support community for working women—Empowership.
Interested in growing your skills as a manager? Check out how Manager Boot Camp might help.