Shade Zahrai

The second thing is that he would say something one meeting, and then the next meeting ask why you hadn't done something else.

And you're thinking, hold on, but you asked me to do that.

That's why I didn't do that.

So there were all of these things that lead you to doubt yourself.

Now he had no idea, of course, that he was having this effect on people, but it was really affecting us.

So I then had to learn,

What can I do?

So if I'm anticipating this person is like this and I can't cut him out of my life, he's my boss, right?

My manager.

So how do I compensate?

How do I give him what he's clearly seeking and make it easier for me?

So the first thing I did is before I went into those meetings,

I had a little pump-up playlist that I would listen to because I knew that he was going to sap my energy, or rather, no, I was going to allow my energy to be sapped when I was around him, right?

I like to take ownership.

That's the first thing.

And we know that rituals like this can really help with your performance, whether it's in sports, whether it's in the health and fitness world, having something that you do before that primes you can help you get into the zone and increase your performance.

So that was the first thing.

The second thing I did was determine, okay,

What is it about him that is leading me to feel this way?

Well, he's not making eye contact.