I'm curious if anyone's experienced something like this. A few years ago, I worked under a senior leader (20 years older) emotionally reserved, and known for being cold in the office. But with me, something felt… different. He championed my work relentlessly, defended my growth even when others resisted, and sometimes seemed emotionally affected by my presence. He'd mirror my moods, subtly change his energy when I entered a room, and showed up near me. There was never any inappropriate behavior. He never messaged me, never crossed a line. But the glances lingered and stared at me.
He will not look away even if I caught him looking at me.
And even now, we're in different departments, yet that strange awareness remains when we're in the same room.
What do you call this? Emotional resonance? Unspoken connection? Was it just a mentor being kind?
1 comment
You definitely stand out to him in some way, it’s hard to know how.
Maybe he likes but is aware of how inappropriate it would be and respects you (although I can see how the staring may be bothersome)
Maybe he has deja vu when he sees you and is trying to figure out why that is (I also had this with the girlfriend of one of my besties. I just couldn’t understand why did she look so familiar, and then it hit me that she was the classmate of my ex from 4 years ago that I saw like twice or thrice in some instagram stories).
Maybe he has an external interest related to work (perhaps sees potential in you, or maybe the people you stay with need a good word for him, etc.)