The news broke me. The murder shows stopped working. So I watched a month of college basketball I do not care about, and it was the only thing keeping my nervous system upright.In this episode I'm unpacking three things:→ Why "distraction" is an actual mental health strategy, and why sportsball was the weirdly perfect antidote to doomscrolling.→ A very clear message for anyone whose job is chewing them up: You are an asset, not a liability. Burnout culture is not only cruel, it's bad business. The math on replacing good employees is brutal, and your workplace being too short-sighted to see that has nothing to do with your value.→ Small Talk Frank from Scranton wants to know why he can't relax into stability.If you needed to hear "this isn't you, it's them" today — hi, it's them.Chapters00:00 Cold open: You are an asset, not a liability00:38 Hi, I'm L2 — welcome back to Different, Not Broken01:05 Why I always have something on in the background (blame childhood chaos)02:04 When the murder shows stopped working03:00 The news broke me03:43 Basketball as my zero-stakes sanity reset04:48 Accidentally Pavlov'd by March Madness05:54 The women's games are better, argue with the wall06:35 Gratitude for dumb distractions08:12 Workplaces are getting worse (and it's bad business)08:54 The actual math on turnover and institutional knowledge09:37 Short-term thinking is stealing your future10:13 "It's not personal, it's just business" is an excuse11:16 You are an asset, not a liability12:26 You are not the problem for having boundaries13:32 AI outsourcing and the coming pay cut14:10 You deserve safety, accommodations, and a workplace built for humans14:59 Small Talk with Alison: a question from Frank in Scranton15:13 Hypervigilance, trauma, or just being realistic?16:09 Why I can't let myself get excited about good things16:44 Chaotic families and why I hate my birthday17:45 Two trophies and a dead dog (and then, open-heart surgery)18:42 Some of us are just wired this way19:31 When it might be time to talk to a professional20:22 Olympics tangent: how does anyone end up doing the luge?Resources & LinksGot a question for Small Talk? Send it in: https://differentnotbrokenpodcast.com/voicemailMentioned in this episode:Wanna learn to write like me?Here's how you can!Writing Course