What My Father’s Mistress Taught Me About Corporate Power Struggles

What My Father’s Mistress Taught Me About Corporate Power Struggles

In this powerful episode of Latina Mic Drop Miriam Simon shares the unexpected childhood lesson that later helped her survive workplace politics, insecure leadership, and corporate power struggles. Growing up, Miriam didn’t spend weekends going to the zoo. She spent them visiting her father in jail. And one of the people who unknowingly shaped her leadership style was her father’s mistress, who lived down the hall from her grandparents in Apartment 15 while Miriam lived in Apartment 17. When the mistress tried to push her out as a child, Miriam stood her ground. Years later, she realized that same moment mirrored what happened when new leadership entered her workplace and attempted to diminish her influence, visibility, and impact. This episode dives into: * workplace politics and corporate power struggles * insecure leadership * survival mode and executive presence * hypervigilance as a leadership skill * emotional intelligence developed through trauma * class mobility and survivor’s guilt * fear of outshining others * success guilt in first-generation and Latino families * visibility, confidence, and standing your ground at work * loving family members who do not fully accept you Miriam also opens up about a recent meditation that revealed a deeper subconscious fear: succeeding beyond the people she loves and feeling guilty for thriving while family members continue to struggle. If you’ve ever: * felt targeted at work for being effective * struggled with confidence despite your accomplishments * downplayed your success to make others comfortable * carried survival mode into leadership * or felt guilty for becoming “the one who made it”… …this episode will hit deeply. Takeaway “Sometimes workplace politics are really unresolved power struggles wearing business clothes.” In This Episode You’ll Learn: * How childhood survival patterns show up in leadership * Why high-performing women often intimidate insecure leadership * How to stand your ground without abandoning yourself * Why visibility is not betrayal * How survival skills can become leadership strengths Listen now and share this episode with someone learning how to thrive without shrinking themselves to keep others comfortable. Roselyn Perez Casiano: TEDx Is Your Nervous System Leading You? https://youtu.be/cOjQKp5MTMY?si=8aLnFZlDUdIt_UEN Casa de Chingonas; Join here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/AovH6gGBRxGH1684g66RCg Follow Latina Mic Drop Podcast Instagram: @LatinaMicDropPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/latinamicdroppodcast?igsh=OHlreHZxajB1amRm&utm_source=qr] Follow Miriam Simon: Instagram: @iamMiriamSimon [https://www.instagram.com/iammiriamsimon?igsh=MTJldmNrZDJ1cHJjaw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr] Website: www.MiriamSimon.online [https://www.miriamsimon.online/] Disclaimer [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GY9aWI8iFHnF0lzBJjzuhcKBGo0JTnCPXr446yOCwFs/edit?usp=sharing] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

20 Years of LGBTQ Love: Lessons on Marriage, Identity, and Choosing Yourself

In this Latina Mic Drop episode, Miriam Simon shares the love story behind her 20-year relationship with her wife, the cultural judgment she faced, and the lessons that helped their marriage last. From choosing love without a blueprint to healing abandonment wounds, building peace, raising children, and creating their own lane, this episode is about identity, partnership, and the courage to be fully yourself. Follow Latina Mic Drop Podcast Instagram: @LatinaMicDropPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/latinamicdroppodcast?igsh=OHlreHZxajB1amRm&utm_source=qr] Follow Miriam Simon: Instagram: @iamMiriamSimon [https://www.instagram.com/iammiriamsimon?igsh=MTJldmNrZDJ1cHJjaw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr] Website: www.MiriamSimon.online [https://www.miriamsimon.online/] Disclaimer [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GY9aWI8iFHnF0lzBJjzuhcKBGo0JTnCPXr446yOCwFs/edit?usp=sharing] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

From the Bitchass Coworker to the Burnout Queen and Everything in Between

In this episode of Latina Mic Drop, Miriam Simon brings her signature mix of street wisdom and corporate strategy to break down the coworkers who quietly create toxic workplace culture. From the coworker who avoids direct conversations, to the one who lies, throws people under the bus, lets everyone step on them, or takes on all the work until burnout hits, this episode calls out the behaviors that damage trust, respect, accountability, and team connection. This is not about blame or shame. It is about workplace awareness, leadership growth, and learning how to work with people in real life, not in corporate Candyland. Miriam talks about why hard conversations matter, why triangulation destroys trust, why accountability is a leadership skill, and why being “nice” without boundaries can cost you your power. If you have ever worked with toxic coworkers, struggled with workplace conflict, felt taken advantage of, or watched team trust fall apart because nobody wanted to tell the truth, this episode is for you. Tune in for a bold, honest, Mexican Latina perspective on toxic coworkers, workplace culture, leadership accountability, assertiveness at work, people pleasing, burnout, workplace trust, team communication, professional boundaries, corporate survival, Latina leadership, first-gen leadership, BIPOC leadership, and how to stop letting toxic workplace behavior run the room. Applications open for the Chingona Playbook: Secrets to Dance to Your Own Beat anthology. https://www.MiriamSimon.online Follow Latina Mic Drop Podcast Instagram: @LatinaMicDropPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/latinamicdroppodcast?igsh=OHlreHZxajB1amRm&utm_source=qr] Follow Miriam Simon: Instagram: @iamMiriamSimon [https://www.instagram.com/iammiriamsimon?igsh=MTJldmNrZDJ1cHJjaw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr] Website: www.MiriamSimon.online [https://www.miriamsimon.online/] Disclaimer [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GY9aWI8iFHnF0lzBJjzuhcKBGo0JTnCPXr446yOCwFs/edit?usp=sharing] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

You're Not Imagining It. They’re F’ing With You at Work.

In this episode of Latina Mic Drop, Miriam Simon unpacks the painful reality of workplace microaggressions, bias, and what happens when a Latina leader is suddenly treated as a problem instead of a professional. She shares a raw personal story about being perceived as “aggressive,” overlooked for promotion, and forced to navigate leadership dynamics shaped by power, race, culture, and bias. This conversation explores Latina leadership, workplace discrimination, corporate politics, professional visibility, promotion barriers, and how to protect your voice, know your rights, and keep leading with truth in environments that were not built for you.  YOUR STORY BELONGS IN THE CHINGONA PLAYBOOK If this episode and blog at https://thechingonatimes.com hit a nerve, there is a reason. Too many powerful women have stories like this sitting in their chest, still unnamed, still unclaimed, still waiting to be written. That is why I am inviting bold, real, cycle-breaking voices to be part of The Chingona Playbook Secrets to Dance to Your Own Drum This is not for performance. This is not for polished perfection. This is for truth. This is for the women who have lived through adversity, challenged the rules, gone against the grain, and learned how to dance to their own rhythm anyway. If you have a story about what it took to hold your dignity, trust your voice, or lead without permission, I want you to consider writing it. Because your story is not just personal. It is legacy. It is medicine. It is proof. It is the kind of truth someone else may need in order to stop shrinking. The Chingona Playbook is for the women who know what it means to be overlooked, underestimated, or othered and still choose to rise. If that is you, this is your invitation. Come write with us. Come tell the truth. Come leave something on the page your ancestors would recognize as courage. To apply email "I'M IN" to info@miriamsimon.online or Apply now. [https://forms.gle/2phvLDKxJimUJHuu8] Follow Latina Mic Drop Podcast Instagram: @LatinaMicDropPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/latinamicdroppodcast?igsh=OHlreHZxajB1amRm&utm_source=qr] Follow Miriam Simon: Instagram: @iamMiriamSimon [https://www.instagram.com/iammiriamsimon?igsh=MTJldmNrZDJ1cHJjaw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr] Website: www.MiriamSimon.online [https://www.miriamsimon.online/] Disclaimer [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GY9aWI8iFHnF0lzBJjzuhcKBGo0JTnCPXr446yOCwFs/edit?usp=sharing] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

What do you do when work stops clapping for you, when you feel unseen, undervalued, and forced to rethink who you are outside your job?

In this episode of Latina Mic Drop, Miriam Simon talks about workplace rejection, career identity, writing a book after feeling undervalued, and what happens when your job stops recognizing your worth. If you have ever felt overlooked at work, emotionally depleted in leadership, or pushed to build something beyond your 9 to 5, this episode is your clap back. Miriam shares the story behind writing Tattoos & Pearls, healing through authorship, and turning pain, rejection, and invisibility into purpose, leadership, and legacy. This episode is for women in leadership, Latina professionals, LGBTQ+ professionals, first-generation leaders, aspiring authors, and anyone navigating workplace trauma, burnout, career reinvention, self-worth, and personal growth. Topics include workplace validation, leadership identity, book writing, publishing, coaching, career redirection, rejection at work, healing through storytelling, and building a business after feeling unseen. #LatinaMicDrop #WomenInLeadership #CareerReinvention #WorkplaceRejection #LeadershipPodcast #LatinaLeadership #SelfWorth #PersonalGrowth #WritingABook #MiriamSimon Follow Latina Mic Drop Podcast Instagram: @LatinaMicDropPodcast [https://www.instagram.com/latinamicdroppodcast?igsh=OHlreHZxajB1amRm&utm_source=qr] Follow Miriam Simon: Instagram: @iamMiriamSimon [https://www.instagram.com/iammiriamsimon?igsh=MTJldmNrZDJ1cHJjaw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr] Website: www.MiriamSimon.online [https://www.miriamsimon.online/] Disclaimer [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1GY9aWI8iFHnF0lzBJjzuhcKBGo0JTnCPXr446yOCwFs/edit?usp=sharing] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.