For anyone whos ever needed the blueprint for handling a tense exchange with their manager, TikTok creator Laura Whaleys got you covered.
Whaley rose to fame on the platform during lockdown, courtesy of her frank approach to workplace culture. Now, with more than 3.2 million followers on the short-form video app, Whaleys videos cover everything from setting boundaries in the workplace to time management and returning to work. Her success has lead her to leave her tech job and launch her own business, as well as consulting with organizations on how to improve their culture.
On a Zoom call with Fortune, Whaley said managers in her previous job had always been supportive of her videos.
The Canadian creator said she started posting in November 2020 simply to try and combat lockdown boredom: The biggest thing in my life at the time was work, so I just started making videos about stuff I was experiencing. Then people started to relate to it, a few videos went viral, and I just thought: Lets see where this can go.'
In the early days, her videos focused on the new normal of working from home, such as navigating virtual meetings, working and living in the same space, and adjusting to working alone.
Over time, Whaley said, the topics have changed but the agenda is always informed by her community.
Gen Z arent the only ones wanting work boundaries
Of TikToks one billion users, the biggest demographic38.9%are people aged 24 and under. But Whaley said stereotypical views that Gen Z are the only ones trying to redefine work culture are false.
Her audience, she said, is also made up of people who have been working for decades but dont feel equipped to push back on colleagues: When I was growing up, we were never taught the boundaries you can set at work; its more: Go into the workplace, see how it goes, and you adopt the boundaries of those around you.
With the pandemic, its given employees back the power of understanding of what works for them and where their non-negotiables are.
Those videos show youre allowed to say no to 60-hour weeks, that its not something you need to accept. Its also satisfying to watch a really sassy response and agreeing we dont exist to workwhich has been a lot of the agreed mentality for a long time.
For Whaley, such boundaries have always come naturally and setting them early is her key piece of advice for people entering the world of work.
If you establish [boundaries] early people dont question them, she said. People knew I wasnt going to be working at 8 p.m. I did all my work, I did a great job, within my working hours.
TikTok teachers
Whaleys influence over her community is clearshes amassed more than 104 million likes on her channelbut she is keen to highlight her broad-spectrum takes wont work for everyone.
Thats why she never creates scenarios based on a single comment, will never give individuals career advice, and welcomes comments which disagree with her approach.
Theres no ultimate truth, she pointed out. No content creator thinks that everything they post is law. When I create, its from a space of whats worked for me and what I believe in. If people disagree, I love that, it creates good conversation.
It clearly does work for many, as she says droves of supporters have gotten in touch with her to say her insights have helped improve their work well-being.
This type of content is also filling a gap in the educational system, Whaley hopes, as she believes school often doesnt prepare employees for the reality of an office job.
It wouldnt be the first time a video platform has answered massive demand for expertisea 2018 Pew survey found that 51% of Americans use YouTube because they want to learn new things.
TikTok could be having a similar effect, Whaley said: Speaking from my experience having gone through university, I think theres gaps in the real world applicability with a lot of the things that are taught. Textbook teachings in academia arent as relevant in the working world.
Youre not equipped with communication skills, how to structure an agenda, time blocking, how to function in a work environmentnone of thats really taught. Its so important and not once in my experience was that touched on, it was a lot of the hard skills, which I would argue can be irrelevant.
The platformthe future of which is uncertainalso breaks down barriers for jobseekers hoping to garner a taste of what it would be like to work for a certain company, Whaley said.
You can see what a day in the life of a Meta employee is like, she added. So if youre like I really want to work there, you can see what its actually like.
Viewers may not always get the answer theyre hoping for. Former Meta staffer Brit Levy went viral on the platform for revealing she had to fight for work at the company, which she claims hoarded talent like Pokemon cards.
Similarly, Big Tech layoffs sweeping through the likes of Google, Amazon and Twitter have trickled down to content on the platform owned by ByteDance.
Helping management return to work
Whaleys content hasnt just helped teams negotiate their return to workmanagers are also turning to the channel for inspiration on how to broker these conversations.
At the end of the day the people leading the company are also human, Whaley explained. Its really hard to navigate how to manage people in a way that is also honoring their needs and what theyre looking for.
Theres interest at the top levels to understand how they can create a good work environment for their employees because at the end of the day its good for business if people are taking care of themselves.
At the beginning of her online career, questions to Whaley from managers often centered around how to communicate effectively online, whereas now the topics have broadened out into how managers can support staff in setting their boundaries or understanding how their teams want to work.
Whaleys audience70% of which are female-identifying, 30% male-identifyingare also continually unpacking taboos like salary transparency and interviewing styles.
Its the stuff that makes people realize We dont talk about that,' Whaley said. Whether its a day in the life, pain points, frustrations. Not only whats possible and acceptable but also what else is out there. Often we can feel quite boxed in, now you can get a glimpse of that.
