I'm Maura Aronsmaley, and this is The Anxious Achiever.

We look at stories from business leaders who've dealt with anxiety, depression, or other mental health challenges, how they fell down, how they pick themselves up, and how they hope workplaces can change. Have you ever walked into an office replete with inspirational quotes everywhere?

Whether it's the cheesy stock posters and mugs so vibrantly mocked in the office TV shows,

I'm thinking, you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

Or the more Silicon Valley cool version, Facebook walls were famously painted with C.O.

Cheryl Sandberg's favorite quote, what would you do if you weren't afraid?

The very purpose of the pre-pandemic office environment seemed designed to convince people that they were just a small step away from being superhuman.

And yet, if you talk to people who actually work in those offices, you know it's often just

not a mentally healthy or psychologically healthy place to be.

Yeah, there might be a pool table and kombucha in the fridge, but people at all levels of

leadership know that admitting they feel depressed, anxious, or scared they're going to fail is

just not okay.

Why the disconnect? I feel like,

and I'm not alone, the pre-pandemic inspo just got a little out of hand, side hustles, max productivity, intermittent fasting for excellence, Instagram. I think most of us now know that's a bunch of crap.

So how will startup culture, which drives so many trends in leadership,

change now?

Will tech leaders feel less pressure to appear perfect in front of investors, staff, and the media?

Today's guest and I dive deep into the realities of mental health and startup culture, especially in the high-tech industries.

As a journalist at a prestigious publication, my guest has been very open in print about her own

mental health struggles, so lots of tech founders call her to share their

stories. But they won't go on the record, at least until they feel they've reached a certain

level of success. Like, I'm pretty sure Elon Musk doesn't care a whit what people think about his

...