The Algorithm Owns You. Until You Own Yourself.

It started as a whisper.

A software update. A ‘productivity enhancement tool.’ A harmless new policy about “workflow transparency.”

Nothing dramatic—just a little visibility to help management “streamline efficiency.”

Then came the notifications.

A nudge if an email sat unanswered too long. A friendly reminder about expected response times. A dashboard that showed, in real time, who was active and who wasn’t.

No one said outright, “We’re watching.”

They didn’t have to.

It was in the way people changed. The five-minute pauses replaced by guilty glances at screens. Lunch breaks shortened. Midnight emails became the new normal. Every moment of stillness began to feel like a liability.

At first, I laughed it off. That’s just how work is.

Then I caught myself hesitating before typing—afraid of the words I used. I thought twice before stepping away from my desk. Before logging off at a reasonable hour.

Because somewhere, an algorithm was watching.

And it didn’t care about effort.

It only cared about output.

This wasn’t productivity. It was surveillance.

And like all surveillance, it wasn’t about improvement. It was about obedience.

The Moment It Clicked

It wasn’t a scandal or a headline that changed me.

It was a question.

Over dinner, an old colleague asked:

“How many paycheques stand between you and disaster?”

I did the maths. Two.

They smiled.

“That’s not security. That’s a leash.”

And suddenly, I saw it.

I wasn’t staying because I was safe.

I was staying because I was scared.

Scared to face the truth—that stability was an illusion. That loyalty wasn’t rewarded. That I was one restructuring away from disappearing, just like Diane.

And the worst part?

I had known it all along.

The Choice

I asked my colleague what they did now.

They didn’t sell. They didn’t preach. They just described a different rhythm of living—one where time was owned, not rationed.

Where effort built equity, not exhaustion.

Where growth was rewarded, not policed.

For the first time, I didn’t just see an alternative.

I saw an exit.

Because if I stayed, I knew exactly how my story ended.

I’d seen it. I’d lived it.

So I made the choice.

Not to walk away—

to walk toward.

Toward ownership. Toward clarity. Toward a system that rewarded initiative, not endurance.

I chose Shuang Hor.

Because waiting for the system to change is another form of obedience.

And freedom begins the moment you stop asking for permission.

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