Brenda clicked the presentation remote from the side table, throwing bright blue graphs up on the high-definition wall screen.

For forty-five minutes, I took the executive team through carrier route realignments, fuel surcharge caps, and client retention numbers.

Not a single person asked about my hair.

Not a single person looked away when I answered detailed questions about third-quarter margins.

When I finished the last slide on annual revenue projections, the senior vice president rose slowly from his leather armchair.

He started to clap, and within two seconds every executive in the room was on their feet with him, their applause ringing off the glass walls.