This is NPR's Life Kit.

I'm Anjali Sastry.

So there's this idea that I was raised on.

If you work smarter, not harder at your job,

you'll be rewarded.

That if you're productive and play by the rules,

you'll climb up that corporate ladder in no time at all.

But who makes the rules?

And who does the strategy actually work for?

If you're a marginalized person in your office,

finding success can be super hard.

There might be some major invisible barriers in your way.

So for example, for a lot of people, let's say,

saying Thursday is my no meeting Thursday.

I block out my entire calendar and I'm just going to focus on deep work on Thursday.

That voice you're hearing is Alan Henry.

He's the service editor at Wired,

and he spent his journalism career writing about technology and productivity.

He's recognized a double standard in office spaces.

Some people would be praised for that kind of forward thinking, that kind of,

you know, commitment to their actual work.

Other people, you might be viewed as lazy,

...