POV Anaise I should’ve stayed home. Should’ve ordered Thai food and binged something mindless on Netflix instead of subjecting myself to The Carleton’s networking hellscape. But here I am, playing corporate Barbie in a borrowed dress, pretending my entire professional life didn’t implode two weeks ago.The ballroom is peak Manhattan bullshit—crystal chandeliers that probably cost more than my yearly rent, marble floors so polished you could perform surgery on them, and enough designer suits to outfit a small country. Everyone’s playing the same exhausting game: smile, handshake, business card, repeat until someone writes you a check or you die of boredom.I’m working the room like my life depends on it. Because it literally fucking does.“Anaise Hadley, CEO of Velmira Tech,” I tell some venture capitalist who looks like he eats startups for breakfast. My smile is weapons-grade professional. “We’re revolutionizing data security
Last Updated : 2025-10-27 Read more