What Episode 1 of Left Unattended Taught Me About Leadership and Belonging
When I launched Left Unattended, I knew I wanted the very first episode to set the tone for the kind of conversations we’d have which was raw, honest, and deeply human. That’s why I invited Suzanne Thomas, a credentialed veterinary technician, leadership mentor, and founder of Leading Veterinary Teams, to join me.

What followed was a conversation that left me nodding, pausing, and at one point, feeling something land right in my chest. Suzanne said:

“I am not being difficult.”

It was simple. It was powerful. And it captured so much of what neurodivergent professionals face every day.

The Mask We Don’t Always Know We’re Wearing
Suzanne shared that her ADHD diagnosis came just a few years ago. Before that, she thought she simply had quirks like working best at the last minute, needing deadlines to focus, struggling with “eating the frog” advice that others swore by.

Diagnosis didn’t give her new challenges, it just gave language to the ones she’d been navigating all along. It also revealed something else: the ways she had been masking.

Like many neurodivergent professionals, Suzanne had spent decades asking herself:

Is this really how I feel, or is this the version of me I put on for the world?
Do I enjoy this, or have I convinced myself I should?
That constant questioning is exhausting. But it’s also a journey many of us share.

Systems, Not Willpower
One of the practical gems Suzanne shared was how she sets herself up for success, not through motivation, but through systems.

For her, that looks like laying everything out the night before so she can get to the gym without thinking. For me, it looks like not sitting down on the couch when I walk in the door because once I sit, I’m not getting back up.

These aren’t just quirky habits. They’re survival strategies. They’re how our brains bridge the gap between intention and action. Leaders who understand this can stop asking, “Why can’t they just…?” and start asking, “What barriers can I help remove?”

Leadership Requires Curiosity, Not Labels
One of the most important threads we pulled in this episode was how often leaders mislabel behavior as “toxic” when it’s actually contextual.

Being late doesn’t make someone irresponsible. Snapping in a meeting doesn’t make someone toxic. These are signals and they deserve curiosity before judgment.

Suzanne put it beautifully: “Instead of assuming someone is narcissistic, or lazy, or difficult… stop and ask if they’re okay. Be curious.”

Curiosity is the antidote to bias. It’s also the foundation of trust.

Belonging Isn’t Optional
At the heart of our conversation was a shared truth that belonging isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity.

Suzanne connected this to her why in veterinary medicine of helping people who help pets, because every living being deserves to feel like they belong. I tied it back to my own story of feeling unconditional belonging as a child with my first dog, and how that shaped my mission to protect the human–animal bond.

Belonging isn’t just about race, gender, or identity (though those matter deeply). It’s also about neurodivergence, invisible struggles, and the simple human need to be seen without judgment.

One Truth to Carry Forward
When I asked Suzanne what she most wished the world understood about her neurodivergence, she said:

“I am not being difficult.”

That’s the reminder I want every leader to sit with. Your employees aren’t trying to make life harder for you. They’re trying to survive, to adapt, and to be understood. If you start with that assumption, everything else about leadership changes.

Keep the Conversation Going
This first episode of Left Unattended reminded me that storytelling is leadership. By sharing our truths, we create space for others to unmask, to belong, and to lead differently.