🌟 Dopamine High at the Workplace: The Power Plays We Don’t Always Talk About By Mukund M.A

In the dynamic world of work, where performance, perception, and politics constantly collide, professionals often experience moments that deliver an unmistakable surge — a dopamine high. These are the instances that validate us, give us a sense of power, or affirm our influence.

Mukund M.A invites professionals to pause and reflect on these moments — the subtle, and sometimes not-so-subtle, wins that fuel our motivation and shape our journeys.

💡 Consider these scenarios:

✅ Your idea is chosen by the CEO in a high-stakes meeting, surpassing peers’ suggestions, even as you quietly wonder if theirs had merit.
✅ You deliver a sharp counterpoint in a tense meeting that earns your boss’s approval and quiets a rival.
✅ You issue tough feedback to a team member, signaling decisive leadership.
✅ Your objections derail a cross-functional proposal that could have diminished your team’s standing — and you feel victorious.
✅ A single, perfectly-timed remark in a forum leaves a peer exposed and you shining.
✅ Your behind-the-scenes lobbying ensures decisions are shaped before discussions even begin.
✅ The CEO credits you directly during an investor call, bypassing layers of management.
✅ Your discreet influence contributes to the exit of a problematic leader, and muted appreciation follows.
✅ You’re chosen to lead a high-profile project — not necessarily for your expertise, but for your trustworthiness.
✅ After careful preparation, you present evidence in a meeting that decisively shifts the balance in your favor.

👉 Can you recall moments like these?
👉 Or maybe several?

These experiences may not always appear in formal appraisals, but they reflect the complex realities of leadership, influence, and workplace dynamics. Recognizing them can spark deeper self-awareness — and help us choose how we want to lead going forward.

📌 Connect with Mukund M.A on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mukund-m-a-0344771/

#LeadershipReflections #WorkplaceDynamics #ExecutivePresence #StrategicInfluence #PowerAndPolitics #CareerGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #SelfAwareness