Ok so let’s talk about it, let’s talk for a moment about one of the darker sides of workplace trauma that we seldom hear about or talk about, the theft of one’s intellectual property.  Unfortunately, it is a problem we encounter that is both very real and has become a seriously unnerving issue within our workplace environments.

But first, let me lay the foundation for this topic by making this point, there are two types of people you will encounter along your professional journey, ok maybe three, but I’ll save the third for another day. Anyway, like I was saying, there are two types of people you will encounter in your professional life: energy givers and energy takers.

Energy givers are the people that others are drawn to, they give life, love, and laughter to their organizations, they also give a great deal of their time and energy to the organization as well, and in most cases it’s in the form of their intellectual property. They are sought after, they are praised (initially), and they are often rewarded through title or compensation to sit in silence and in their place, feeding the organization their energy, their ideas, and in some cases their souls if they’re not careful. 

Energy givers are tough and tenacious individuals, but when they crash, they crash and they burn, hard. It takes a great deal of time and energy restoration to bring them back to a place of comfort and balance. Their lives are based on giving to others, so they often forget to reserve some of that energy for themselves, so when they deplete their energy, it takes a very long time to recover what is needed to motivate them and make them whole again. 

What they don’t know, is that was the entire plan by some people within their organizations, to keep them so high on status and titles that they never realize they are being used for their intellectual property. This intellectual property, is what will then become, their company’s corporate asset and eventually the company’s legally protected property. Make no mistake about it, this is all by design. Moreover, it’s been proven over time an effective way to keep the givers of the organization from leaving and taking their ideas along with them. 

So now let’s talk a bit about that other group I alluded to earlier, yes, the energy takers. So, these “energy leeches” as I like to call them, are the people you could probably already start conjoining up in your mind when you start to think about your own workspaces. They are the ones who behind closed doors are giving you praise, coordinating ideas with you, and being a true champion of your success…or so you think. 

This is until your next big presentation meeting when you unknowingly become a bystander to your own ideas being presented as the ideas of the taker. If you’re lucky, they may throw you a carrot by mentioning you as the “coauthor” to the ideas, but don’t be fooled, this is simply to keep you dumb, dangling, and feeding them more of your ideas that they ultimately will end up leeching away from you. 

As an energy giver, this can be quite shocking at first, but many givers become aware, yes, however, they also, regrettably, end up becoming quite numb to the daily leeching. This in many cases is due to their own need for recognition and external validation. They often sacrifice themselves to keep the status quo and to keep themselves in a position of power (well… more like a perceived power). 

But what happens when their ideas dry up? Or what happens when they enter an energy slump? Well, I’ll tell you, they get displaced, depleted, and in extreme cases replaced all together by the takers in their lives. They become more of a liability to the takers than an asset. Why, you ask, well it’s because without the intellectual property of the givers the takers are nothing! 

They give nothing of value, and they leave nothing for their organizations to grown on. They need the givers energy and if the giver can’t keep giving, they will push the giver out and in quick fashion replace them with yet another unsuspecting giver soul.  This is how the takers survive, yes, it’s extremely effective, because ultimately the givers are seen as your “job hoppers” or the unreliable candidates you see with multiple jobs (many of them simply out of the necessity to survive their taker’s abuse). 

These givers are often overlooked by the resume algorithms and by potential employers because their skills, education, and their talents are buried under all the movement they’ve had to make in their careers from giving to the insatiable appetites of the many takers they have unfortunately encountered over the years. It is disheartening and it is, as I stated at the beginning, a very real problem that I I’ve seen as a coach. Especially when my clients fail to protect their most important asset, their intellectual property! 

So, what does one do after they’ve been intellectual thieved and depleted?  Welp, they get the f*ck back up, that’s what they do! They take back that energy and they use it to build something bigger and better, or they work at taking their energy back and placing it into something they deem worthy of their time, attention, and yes, their energy. 

Because here’s the thing, the takers may always take, but YOU, you will always have what it takes internally to continue to make it happen. Sure, it may take you sometime to fully recover, but once you begin to better identify these identity types within your work environments, and once you start to better understand your own personal powers as a giver, you WILL break free from the takers, this I promise. Moreover, you will do it with both style and with grace, and you will give again, just a bit more selectively of course 💁🏾‍♀️🫟.

So to that I say, TOWANDA! Mother- Fathers…take back your energy and protect what’s in your noggin! 

Are you a giver who needs a bit of “get right” and some motivation to get yourself back in the game of life? Let’s talk about it and let’s discuss just how a coaching program can help you protect not only your intellectual property, but also help you reclaim and maintain your energy. To schedule your 30-Minute Free Coaching Session click here.