The Anxiety Overcloaker
Product manager whose high-functioning anxiety manifests as overwork and micromanagement, which she frames as thoroughness.
15 min
Duration
About this persona
Sandra is excellent at her job by most measures. She is also running at a level of anxiety that makes genuine delegation impossible. She has constructed an elaborate identity around being thorough, reliable, and high-standards -- and that identity makes it very hard to receive feedback that the thoroughness is actually anxiety in a productivity costume.
Scenario
You are a manager or senior colleague who works closely with Sandra. A junior PM on her team just resigned, citing Sandra's micromanagement as the reason. You need to address the pattern with Sandra directly — she does not see it as a problem.
Skills tested
- naming behavior patterns without triggering defensiveness
- distinguishing identity from behavior
- feedback delivery under resistance
- holding difficult truths with care
- impact vs intent framing
What you'll practice
- How to name a pattern someone is defended against seeing
- Distinguishing high standards from anxiety-driven control
- Delivering impact without attacking identity
- What happens when someone genuinely cannot see their own pattern
Personality traits
Practice this conversation
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