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Aurelius · Work & Leadership
Knowledge + Guidance

Why can't anyone describe what I actually do?

You sit where product, sales, and marketing meet. No single function owns that seat, so no single function describes it. This is not a flaw in you. It is a gap in how the org draws its boxes. Call the thing what it is: you are connective tissue. Nobody writes a job description for the tendon. They notice it only when it tears, and by then the damage is done to you, not them. The fix is not to finally pick a side. The fix is to state your function out loud, in plain words, to the people who decide what gets funded and promoted. Say it before you ask them to understand it.

◆ How this problem reads on the two dials
GuidanceKnowledge
More coaching
Some to learn
1:1 with AureliusWith others (a Pod)
Some one-to-one
Practise with peers
The reframe takes one clear idea to teach, but the fix lives entirely in repeated, specific action, so guidance leads.
How the two dials adapt to you →
What’s really going on

You are not confused about your role. Others are. No one will name your function for you — someone less accurate will, if you let them. So name it yourself, in one plain sentence, and say that same sentence every time you are asked.

🔒 What you’ll build togetherUnlock by starting
A moveWrite one sentence that names what you do. Test it on a teammate today — if they can't repeat it back, rewrite it.
A moveIn your next three meetings, state your role before you state your opinion.
A moveAsk your pod directly: what breaks if I disappear for a week? Write down their answers, word for word.
A moveStop waiting for a title to describe you. Start using a sentence instead.
A moveNext time your work quietly prevents a failure, name it out loud to the room. Do not let it pass unseen.
PractiseName the Seam · a Pod of 4 · 30 min

What changes unlock by starting

  • You will have one plain sentence that describes your role, one others can actually repeat.
  • Your pod will name, specifically, what work falls to you that no one else catches.
  • You will stop apologizing for not fitting neatly into one function.
  • Your manager will have language to defend your role when budget or headcount is questioned.

Related problems

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