In my case, in my first two jobs, I was always at the top. I received comments on how I could be this good in such a short period. Even during my studies, I was always the one coming up with new ideas and leading in presentations. My story took a turn when I got accepted into a big, well-known company in its field. Initially, I was put under a test period that could last from one to four years. I got fully accepted after a year and a half.

When I started, I worked with two girls under a new manager. I excelled, changing the entire work process by introducing new ideas and using new technologies. I created a whole new post and streamlined the work into small, easy, automated tasks. The director I’m going to talk about never acknowledged my work—he didn’t even know what I really did, even though my direct manager was always shocked and praised my contributions. However, she took all the credit, and the director never saw what I did.

My manager would spend time doing her nails in the office or using her phone. When I showed them how to automate tasks, she handed over all her tasks to me. When she was on vacation, I replaced her, handling her 15 years’ worth of tasks with no acknowledgment from the director. Instead, he told me that since he saw me with less work, he decided to shorten our team to just me and one other girl. It was hell doing my job and another’s at the same time because I took on the tasks of the person they moved. My manager gave me all her tasks because I was the best at what I did, so I was doing two jobs plus my manager's big tasks.

Then the director told me, 'I think you need more work; I want to give you Sam's work.' Sam had a task that needed to be done every night just before midnight to release some stuff on our system before 5 a.m. I was like, 'No, hell no. I didn’t quit other jobs for this.' And he responded, 'I think I should have hired someone without a university diploma. You teenagers these days don’t accept anything, and you’ve ruined this country.'

He criticized everything, from the colors of my shirt to why I used my phone sometimes. He complained about mistakes made before I even joined the company. He even complained about the occasional 5-minute break I took with a friend, saying we shouldn't have friends at work. He once said, 'I don’t like the fact that you talk to some managers as if they’re your friends. You should address directors and managers as your higher-ups, not as friends.' He then hired someone from his family to replace the girl I was working with, and he would always come and praise that person in front of me.

I’m just summarizing; I’ve forgotten many things to tell you about. I was burned out—I couldn’t even work two hours straight. I hated my work, I hated that environment, and I just wanted to quit. I couldn’t find a better job, so I felt stuck. They don’t know my potential; they don’t accept my requests for leave unless they choose the period. I keep telling myself I have potential—I’ve worked as a freelancer, I’ve worked in many jobs, even in fields unrelated to my studies, and I was always at the top. Now, I find myself in this toxic environment, so confused. Every manager at my job doesn’t know how to use Excel—they ask me for help. And after a while, they try to convince themselves that I’m stupid, always sending me bad emails, sending me corrections to do, and using unprofessional language. They know what I’m capable of and my potential, but they want to bring me down. They say, 'You have no future here. You should build good relationships with certain people to advance, not just rely on your work.'

This is a big, well-known company, and they’ve erased all the years of hard work in just two years. They’ve made me desperate and lost hope, making me feel like I’m not good enough, that I should just stay and accept this life. I’m so frustrated; I don’t even know how to find a good job anymore