Cutting Ties

In the modern workplace, particularly in fast-paced work environments, project-based teams often forge tight working relationships that can blur the lines between genuine mutual respect and simple professional necessity. For M, a product manager, this distinction became clear only after she and her colleague T, a senior technical lead a couple of levels above her, successfully wrapped up a major project.

While the project’s success relied on close collaboration, and M always credited T’s technical brilliance openly, she also believed their rapport was rooted in genuine professional appreciation. But once both had gone their separate ways, first M, then T, she reached out with a congratulatory message about his career move. T never responded, and remained silent despite being active on LinkedIn. M had never announced her move so did not expect anyone including T to congratulate on it.

M’s response wasn’t impulsive. She reasoned that if someone she regarded so highly couldn’t find the time or willingness to engage with her after the “mandated cooperation” of a shared project ended, it was a clear indicator of T’s true view: M wasn’t seen as a professional equal, nor someone for whom T might ever advocate, refer, or expend any political capital. There was never a personal friendship to fall back on, just the transient teamwork that certain jobs require. The project that they had worked on had been high-stakes enough for someone at T's level to roll-up his sleeves and contribute heavily. Maybe that was a one and done kind of thing for him, he did not expect to deal with people at M's level habitually,

Given these dynamics, M saw no reason to maintain a professional connection on LinkedIn. She wasn’t acting out of social disappointment, but as a pragmatic professional assessing the value and reality of her network. In her view, true connections are built on mutual acknowledgment and respect, not just the residue of forced collaborations. In the end, LinkedIn is a tool, not a trophy case. The quality of one’s network is defined by relationships with real substance, where both parties see value in remaining connected. M’s decision to “clean house” was less about closing doors, and more about making room for connections that genuinely matter and that are mutually respected. M's story has echoes of A's in it but they are quite a bit different as well.