“It pays to be honest, but it’s slow pay.” ~ Proverb via Tiny Buddha
I recently met a new colleague who shares a lot of the sentiments I have about yoga, meditation, and what really matters in life. It was a refreshing introduction and a reminder that wherever you are, there are like minds. You may need to draw them out by trumpeting your own beliefs. As Clarissa Pinkola Estes said so beautifully, “She who does not howl will never find her pack.”
This path of finding your pack is not easy. It requires courage and faith. You will be asked to think and act like every one around you. You will have to be brave to be authentic. You will be told that thinking and acting like everyone around you is what you need to do to get ahead when the truth is a that thinking and acting like everyone else is a farce. That group persona doesn’t represent the persona of any individual member. It’s a vague meet-in-the-middle, mediocre compromise. And it doesn’t serve anyone well.
My advice, as I’ve given before, is to Be on Record. Be respectful of your environment while also being who you are. Listen and then speak up. Yes, honesty yields slow pay, but it carries a greater guarantee of a purposeful life in the long run. Steady, and authentic, wins the race.
Published by Christa Avampato
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
“It pays to be honest, but it’s slow pay.” ~ Proverb via Tiny Buddha
As always, you so hit the nail on the head. in my years at amex I experienced a lot of people attempting to make me fit the mold. I slowly moved from secretary to office manager to program manager to project manager and am so glad that I never listened to those people, who, by the way are LONG gone from amex while I’m about to mark 23 years. I love reading your blog Christa! Your making me think I should start one of my own :). Oh, and love the howl quote! Totally stealing it!
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Urs,
It is so cool to hear about your experience. I learn so much from you! You should start your own blog, and feel free to steal that line. I use it all the time 🙂
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And omg I turn the page of my magazine after my last post and what’s the article about? “how to win at work? Be yourself”. Its gonna be a good day!
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Love that quote about finding you pack! So very true 🙂
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Hi Nikita – it’s one of my very favorite! 🙂
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Christa:
Nice post, as usual, about honesty. Thanks for sharing it.
It is important to be honest, but try to be tactful as well–be diplomatic, so you do not offend people.
I have learned this lesson the hard way–by attending the school of hard knocks. Sometimes, I have to bite my tongue.
Those of us who are Sagittarians tend to have the noblest of intentions, but we seem to have been born with two left feet. So, we trip over our shoe-laces and fall flat on our faces.
Consequently, we find that people are upset with us, and we don’t have a clue. What gives, dude, cheer up and shoot the breeze. But if only we had not opened our big, fat mouth.
Next time, for example, a woman asks me: honey, does my butt look too big in this dress or jeans?
Well, I will have to bite my tongue off, stay very still, be silent, and run out of that exit, full speed ahead. Don’t want to get into trouble again, you see?
Your post reminded me of what befalls us foolish mortals when you are accursed with too much honesty. Cheerio.
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