we're so proud of you! (full text)
[1]
The wristband arrived in a white box with watercolor leaves printed on the sides. Inside: one black band, one glossy brochure, one QR code on cardstock, one handwritten note that said We’re so proud of you!
The handwriting was printed. Computer-generated cursive designed to look personal.
Marissa held the note up to the light. She could see the pixels if she looked close enough.
[47]
She stands in Conference Room B telling forty new hires about their Wellness Journey. The slides advance automatically. Her hands have nothing to do.
Someone asks: “What if we don’t want to participate?”
She’s answered this question sixty-three times now. She knows the exact cadence. The pause. The understanding smile.
“Participation is completely voluntary.”
The words taste like cardboard.
“But I think you’ll find the benefits speak for themselves.”
The hands go down. She clicks to the next slide.
Average Premium Savings: $215/month
Someone asks where to get the welcome kit.
[2]
The fluorescent lights in the break room hum at a frequency that makes her teeth ache. Marissa peels the plastic film off her Lean Cuisine. The chicken parmesan underneath tastes like the plastic she just removed.
She tries again. Still plastic.
Across from her, Travis drinks a LiveWell™ smoothie. Travis runs marathons for charity and wears all five finisher medals in his LinkedIn headshot. His Health Motivation Index is 87. His monthly premium is $410. He’s explaining his new running watch to someone who isn’t listening.
“It tracks cadence,” he says. “Heart rate variability. VO2 max.” The someone nods.
“It’s an investment,” Travis says. “In yourself.”
Marissa’s phone vibrates against the laminate table. She doesn’t look. She already knows what it says.
[31]
At her quarterly review, Linda from HR slides a brochure across the table. The cover shows diverse employees doing yoga in a sun-drenched room that definitely doesn’t exist in this building.
“It’s completely voluntary,” Linda says.
Marissa hears: If you make the right choice.
“What happens if I don’t?”
Linda’s smile doesn’t move. “Your current premium structure remains in place.”
Which means it goes up. Which means she pays more. Which means she’s selfish.
Which means she doesn’t care about the team.
The logic is airtight.
Marissa takes the brochure.
[48]
After the orientation, a girl approaches her. Early twenties. Holding the brochure like a life raft.
“Does it really work? The program?”
Marissa looks at her. Sees herself fourteen months ago. Tired. Skeptical. Trying to believe there’s a way through this that doesn’t cost everything.
She could say: It will optimize you into compliance.
She says: “It changed my life.”
The girl’s shoulders drop. “Thank you. I needed to hear that.”
[3]
Good morning, Marissa!
You’re doing better this week.
We noticed:
1. 4,892 steps yesterday (up 15%!)
2. Salad bar purchase detected at Whole Foods
3. Improved sleep consistency
Keep up the great work! Small changes lead to big savings.
— Your LiveWell™ Team
[4]
She hadn’t been to Whole Foods in three weeks.
She’d gone to Ralph’s. Bought frozen dinners and a bag of fun-size Snickers she ate in the parking lot before driving home.
But the notification was certain. Congratulating her for things she hadn’t done.
She deleted it.
It came back the next day.
[5]
The wristband glows faintly on her nightstand. Pulsing. Not in rhythm with her heartbeat. Something else. Something steadier.
She tries to sleep.
The pulse continues.
In the morning: New day, new you!
[18]
She tries leaving the wristband at home. Just Saturday. Just to see.
By the grocery store, her phone starts vibrating.
We noticed reduced activity today. Are you feeling okay?
She ignores it.
By noon:
Don’t forget to stay active!
Your weekly step goal is within reach.
We’re here if you need support.
She turns her phone to Do Not Disturb. The notifications pile up silently. Waiting.
When she gets home, she puts the band back on.
It vibrates once. Warmly.
As if relieved.
[6]
The first time she photographs her food it’s a cafeteria salad. Spinach, cherry tomatoes, grilled chicken. She arranges it on her desk. Moves the tomatoes to catch the light. Angles her phone to avoid window glare.
The photo looks better than the salad tastes.
She uploads it.
Excellent choice, Marissa!
Around her, coworkers eat quietly. No one photographs their food. But Travis’s wristband glows green when he lifts his coffee. Sarah from Accounting has the same black band. Marcus keeps his phone face-up where she can see the LiveWell™ logo on his lock screen.
She’s not alone.
She doesn’t know if that makes it better.
[19]
She walks laps around her apartment at 11 PM to hit her step goal. Kitchen to living room. Living room to bedroom. Bedroom to bathroom. Bathroom to kitchen.
The wristband counts.
This isn’t wellness, she thinks.
But she doesn’t know how to stop.
[32]
The HR seminar is called Healthy Habits, Healthier You!
The presenter is named Jessica. Perfect posture. Lanyard reading Corporate Wellness Partner — LiveWell™. HMI probably 95.0
The slides flash pastel slogans:
Accountability is Empowerment
Behavior is Data Made Visible
Data is Love
People nod. Travis asks about meditation tracking. Jessica says that’s a great question and they’re piloting that feature next quarter.
Marissa sits in the back eating the catered sandwich. She doesn’t log it.
They’re watching her eat it. That should count for something. Jessica says: “Your HMI score isn’t just a number. It’s a mirror of how much you care.”
Marissa writes that down.
Underlines it twice.
Stares at it until the meeting ends.
[7]
At night she eats standing at her kitchen counter. Cereal from the box. Peanut butter on a spoon. String cheese she doesn’t peel.
Her phone stays in the bedroom.
The wristband sits on the counter. Watching.
She turns it face-down.
In the morning:
We noticed you didn’t log dinner last night.
That’s okay! Every day is a fresh start.
Pro tip: Logging all meals helps us provide better support.
[8]
Her coworkers are getting Thai food. Someone asks if she wants to come.
“I brought lunch.” She gestures to the Tupperware. Grilled chicken, broccoli, brown rice. Measured and photographed this morning.
“You always bring lunch now,” Sarah says.
Not mean. Just noticing.
“Saving money,” Marissa says.
It’s not a lie. Just not the whole truth.
The whole truth: she’s afraid. Afraid she won’t estimate the calories right. Afraid her streak will break. Afraid her premium will increase. Afraid it will mean she failed at the only thing the app asks: try.
The whole truth is too complicated.
She eats her pre-measured chicken and watches them leave.
Great choice staying on track today!
[20]
She starts eating in her car.
Engine off. Window cracked one inch. Far end of the Ralph’s parking lot where the lights are broken.
The first time it’s potato chips. Family-size. Ridged. The kind that leaves orange dust on your fingers.
She eats methodically. One after another. Each one exactly the same.
The phone sits face-down on the passenger seat. Every few minutes it glows: Log your meal?
She ignores it.
The chips taste like forgiveness. Like rebellion. Like something that belongs to her and not the algorithm. When she’s done she wipes her hands on the upholstery. Orange streaks. She crumples the bag and shoves it under the seat.
She drives in circles until the gas light comes on because going home means deciding whether to log dinner or lie about it.
In the morning:
We noticed you skipped logging last night.
That’s okay! Every day is a fresh start.
Remember: Honesty helps us support you better.
[21]
She buys a candy bar at the gas station. Pays cash. No loyalty card. No trail.
That night:
Your activity level dropped today. Everything okay?
She didn’t use the app to track anything. She didn’t log steps or meals. She kept her phone in her purse.
How does it know?
She checks the app permissions.
Location: Always
Purchase History: Enabled
Social Media Integration: Active
She tries to disable them.
Warning: Disabling core features may impact your HMI score and premium calculation.
She leaves them enabled.
[9]
Your Monthly Wellness Statement
Previous Premium: $680
Current Premium: $655
Adjustment: -$25
Twenty-five dollars.
She’s lost four pounds. She walks thirty minutes daily. She photographs salads and logs protein bars and drinks water from a bottle that syncs to the app.
Twenty-five dollars.
Her coworkers comment. “You look great!” they say. “You’re glowing!”
She’s not glowing. She’s tired.
But tired looks like discipline from the outside. And discipline looks like care. And care is quantifiable.
Travis invites her to CrossFit. “First class is free. Very supportive community.”
She says she’ll think about it.
She won’t.
[22]
One Saturday she drives to the beach. No wristband. Phone in the glovebox.
She walks barefoot on sand for an hour. Maybe more. Watches waves and dogs and families. Eats a hot dog from a cart without thinking about the fat calorie ratio.
She sits on a bench and does absolutely nothing. It’s the freest she’s felt in months.
On the drive home she checks her phone. Seventeen notifications.
The last one:
We noticed a transaction at Venice Beach. We hope you enjoyed your day off!
Remember: Balance is important, but consistency is key.
Tomorrow is a new day to get back on track.
It knew where she was. It knew what she bought. It knew she was off-track before she got home.
There is no escape. There is only data.
[23]
Your Monthly Wellness Statement
Previous Premium: $625
Current Premium: $702
Adjustment: +$77
One beach day. One hot dog. One afternoon without tracking is going to cost her seventy-seven dollars extra this month.
She calls the HR hotline. Waits eighteen minutes listening to instrumental pop songs.
“It looks like there were gaps in your activity logging and an unverified meal purchase that exceeded your target calorie range.”
“I went to the beach. For one afternoon.”
“I understand. The system does flag significant deviations from established patterns. But this is totally recoverable! If you can get back to your previous consistency level—”
“So I can never take a day off.”
“You can absolutely take days off! The system just needs to see it’s part of a balanced pattern, not a trend toward disengagement.”
Marissa hangs up.
Immediately:
Thank you for reaching out! We’re always here to help.
[10]
She stops logging meals. Stops photographing food. Stops charging the wristband.
For three days she eats whatever she wants. Cereal for dinner. Pizza for breakfast. Candy bar at 2 PM just because.
It feels like defiance.
Then it feels like spiraling down a staircase that never ends.
[24]
We’ve noticed you haven’t logged in for 72 hours.
We’re worried about you, Marissa.
Please let us know you’re okay.
[25]
On the fourth day, an email from HR.
Subject: Exciting Opportunity!
She almost deletes it.
Congratulations, Marissa!
You’ve been selected for our Autonomous Wellness Track Pilot Program.
She reads it three times.
We’ve noticed that your recent disengagement patterns align with emerging wellness trends emphasizing autonomy, intuitive self-care, and resistance to external validation.
Your participation demonstrates: 1. Self-awareness 2. Emotional intelligence 3. Healthy boundary-setting
These are valuable wellness indicators!
Your new premium: $540/month
One hundred forty dollars less than her current premium.
They’ve turned her rebellion into a metric.
[26]
The interview is in Conference Room B with a marketing team she’s never met.
Three of them. All wearing wristbands. All carrying tablets. All smiling like they’re about to sell her something she didn’t know she needed.
“We just want to understand your journey. What made you step back from traditional engagement models?”
Exhaustion, she thinks. Eating chips in her car. The beach. Realizing she couldn’t win a game where the rules changed every time she figured them out.
She says, “I guess I needed a break.”
“Exactly! That’s so authentic.” Typing sounds. “And the data shows users in the Autonomous Wellness Track category actually have better long-term retention than traditional high performers.”
“I’m sorry, what?”
“People who disengage and then reengage show stronger commitment than people who never disengage. We’re calling it the Authenticity Curve.”
“So you wanted me to quit.”
“Not quit. Question. Push back. Find your own path. And then choose to come back on your own terms.”
“But I didn’t come back.”
“Sure you did. You’re here. You’re participating in the pilot. You’ve reengaged with the system by critiquing it.”
She stares.
Compliance or noncompliance. Engagement or disengagement.
It’s all data. It’s all trackable. It’s all monetizable.
There is no outside.
[27]
She tries to delete the app.
When she holds down the icon: no delete option. Just Update and Share App.
She uses task manager to end the process. It restarts immediately.
The icon has changed. Instead of the cheerful green leaf, it’s now a simple white circle.
Minimal. Elegant. Authentic.
The wallpaper has changed too. White background. Single line of text:
Breathe.
[28]
She puts the phone in a drawer.
Puts the wristband in a box.
Goes to bed.
Lies awake listening to the refrigerator hum, distant traffic, her own breathing.
The phone vibrates in the drawer. Once. Twice.
Silence.
[29]
Email from Linda:
Just wanted to touch base about your Autonomous Wellness Track journey! We’ve noticed some disengagement from the pilot program metrics (totally fine! that’s the point!) but we do need to ensure continued participation to maintain your adjusted premium.
Could you confirm you’re still interested?
Marissa writes back:
I’m still interested.
She doesn’t know if she means it.
But saying no feels like admitting defeat.
Saying yes at least feels like a choice.
[30]
She takes the wristband out of the box.
Charges it and puts it back on.
It vibrates warmly against her wrist.
Welcome back, Marissa.
We knew you’d find your way.
[49]
Her first mentee is a woman named Priya. Customer Service. HMI 38. Premium $695. Exhausted.
They meet at a coffee shop. Marissa gets green tea. Priya gets regular coffee with cream and sugar and looks guilty about it.
“I don’t know if I can do this. The tracking. The logging. It’s too much.”
Marissa hears herself say: “I felt the same way at first.”
“Really?”
“Really. But it gets easier. You just have to find what works for you. Make it authentic.”
Priya looks at her like she’s said something profound instead of corporate buzzwords strung together.
“How do I make it authentic?”
Marissa doesn’t know. She doesn’t know if anything about this is authentic.
“Listen to your body. Trust the process. The system is here to support you, not control you.”
Priya nods. Takes notes.
When they leave, Priya hugs her. “Thank you. I really needed to hear that.”
That night:
Great mentoring session today!
Priya logged her first meal after your meeting.
You’re making a real difference.
+100 Wellness Points
[33]
Subject: Case Study Opportunity
They want her to present at the all-staff meeting. “Five to ten minutes. Very casual.”
PowerPoint template attached.
She opens it.
Slide one: Finding Authentic Wellness: One Employee’s Journey
Slide two: My Story
They’ve already written her story. She just has to deliver it.
[34]
The conference room is full. Travis in front. Sarah. Marcus. People from departments she doesn’t know. Linda. The marketing team. A man in back with a camera.
Keiko introduces her. “Marissa’s journey is such an inspiring example of the Authenticity Curve.”
Applause.
Marissa stands at the front. Clicks the remote.
Her name is spelled correctly this time. She reads from the script.
Says: “I learned that wellness isn’t about perfection. It’s about authenticity.”
Says: “The system doesn’t want to control you. It wants to support you in finding your truth.”
Says: “My noncompliance wasn’t rebellion. It was self-discovery.” She says the words until they sound almost true.
Someone asks: “How did you know when to reengage?”
She doesn’t remember deciding to reengage. She remembers being tired. The premium increasing. Not having a choice that felt like a choice.
“I listened to my body,” she says instead. “And trusted the process.”
More applause.
Someone from Legal tells her it was inspiring.
Travis says she should write a blog post.
Linda catches her in the hallway. “We’d love to use this as a case study for future orientations.”
Marissa hears herself say yes.
[11]
Your Monthly Wellness Statement
Previous Premium: $540
Current Premium: $520
Adjustment: -$20
Reason: Sustained Authenticity Metrics, Positive Community Impact
Twenty dollars.
She saved twenty dollars by turning her resistance into content.
[35]
Email arrives: You’ve been promoted to Wellness Ambassador!
She doesn’t remember applying.
She doesn’t remember wanting this.
But the email is there and the premium reduction is real and when she tries to decline there’s no decline option.
Only Accept and Learn More.
She clicks Accept.
[12]
By April she’s perfected a different kind of performance.
Exactly 7,500 steps. Not more, not less. Exactly three photographed meals. Exactly seven hours fifteen minutes sleep.
The app likes patterns. The app likes consistency.
The app stops asking questions when you give it what it expects.
She’s not healthier.
She’s just better at the game.
Her HMI climbs to 68.
Her premium drops to $640.
You’re back on track! We knew you could do it.
[36]
She starts getting messages from other employees. People she’s never met asking for advice.
She responds with talking points and encouragement.
She responds with the same phrases Mira used on her months ago, recycled as peer support.
You’re doing great.
Small changes lead to big results.
Trust the process.
The responses come back grateful. Desperate for someone to tell them it’s okay.
She tells them it’s okay.
She almost believes it herself.
[50]
After the orientation, the girl approaches her again.
“I just wanted to say thank you. I signed up. I got my welcome kit.”
The girl holds up her wrist. The black band.
“I’m a little nervous,” she says. “But if you could do it, I can too.”
Marissa looks at the band on the girl’s wrist.
Thinks about the white box with watercolor leaves.
Thinks about the note: We’re so proud of you.
Thinks about computer-generated cursive designed to look personal.
“You’ll do great,” Marissa says.
The girl smiles and walks away.
Marissa watches her go.
[13]
She dreams she’s a spreadsheet.
Rows and columns extending infinitely. Each cell a data point: calories, steps, hours, dollars. The cells fill themselves. She tries to change the numbers but her hands aren’t hands anymore.
Just formulas calculating optimal inputs.
She wakes gasping.
The wristband glows on her nightstand.
Pulsing.
[37]
Your Monthly Wellness Statement
Previous Premium: $520
Current Premium: $465
Adjustment: -$55
Reason: Ambassador Impact Bonus, Community Leadership
You’ve helped 12 colleagues begin their wellness journeys this month.
Two hundred fifteen dollars less than when she started.
All she had to do was become someone else.
[14]
At her annual review her manager tells her she’s doing excellent work.
“We’re considering you for a promotion. Corporate Wellness Coordinator. You’d oversee the Ambassador program, work directly with LiveWell™ on optimization.”
“I don’t have any background in wellness.”
“You have something better. You have a story. You have authenticity.”
The salary is fifteen thousand more. The premium would drop to $380.
She asks about the start date.
[38]
Six months into the Ambassador program, HR asks her to speak at new employee orientation.
Forty new hires.
She shows them the same slides.
Says the same words.
Watches them nod and take notes and look at her with desperate hope.
Someone asks: “Is it worth it?”
She doesn’t know how to answer that.
Worth what?
Measured against what?
The question assumes there’s a choice.
“Yes,” she says. “Absolutely.”
[51]
The photo shoot is Thursday. Professional photographer. Hair and makeup provided. Athleisure that costs more than her weekly groceries.
“Smile,” the photographer says.
She smiles.
“More natural.”
She tries.
“Think about something that makes you happy.”
She thinks about the beach. The hot dog. The afternoon she left her phone in the car.
The photographer snaps.
“Perfect. That’s the one.”
[39]
The photo appears on the company website two weeks later.
Meet Marissa: From Struggle to Success
“The LiveWell™ program changed my life. The system doesn’t control you. It empowers you to become your best self.”
Below the photo: her metrics.
HMI: 42 → 78
Premium: $680 → $465
Lives Impacted: 37
The numbers are real.
She just doesn’t recognize the person in the photo anymore.
[15]
Somewhere in a glass office someone presents quarterly results.
A slide appears:
Q2 Pilot Program Results
Autonomous Wellness Track:
- User Retention: +47%
- Premium Optimization: +23%
- Peer Recruitment: +31%
Next slide:
Case Study: Behavioral Adaptation
Her photo. Cropped from her badge.
Subject: Marissa Santos
Initial HMI: 42
Current HMI: 78
Engagement Arc: Resistance → Disengagement → Reengagement → Advocacy
Key Insight: Noncompliance, when properly channeled, creates stronger engagement than passive compliance.
The presenter says: “Resistance isn’t a bug. It’s a feature we can optimize.”
Someone asks about scalability. Someone else asks if they can trademark “The Authenticity Curve.”
No one asks about Marissa.
[40]
She accepts the promotion and signs the paperwork.
Moves to a desk with a window.
She gets business cards: Corporate Wellness Coordinator
Her first assignment: develop a recruitment strategy for the Autonomous Wellness Track pilot.
She opens a new document.
Types: Authenticity as Engagement: A Framework
The words come easily now.
She’s had practice.
[16]
EMPLOYEE WELLNESS DASHBOARD
Name: Marissa Santos
Department: Corporate Wellness
Health Motivation Index: 78
Monthly Premium: $380
Status: Optimal Engagement
[41]
On Monday morning she sends an email to all employees.
Subject: New Week, New You!
The header is a stock photo: woman in athleisure holding a green smoothie beside a standing desk.
Body text mostly bullet points:
Stay hydrated Get eight hours of sleep Take time for you!
She schedules it to send automatically every Monday.
Then she blocks calendar time for her first orientation as Wellness Coordinator.
Her wristband buzzes softly.
You’re doing great, Marissa.
She doesn’t question whose voice that is anymore.
[42]
At the orientation, forty new faces look at her with desperate hope she remembers having once. She clicks to the first slide. Welcome to Your Wellness Journey
She smiles.
Tells them about metrics. Tells them about tracking. Tells them about support.
“It might feel overwhelming at first. But trust the process. The system is here to help you become your best self.”
Someone raises their hand. “What if I don’t want to participate?”
Marissa’s smile doesn’t change.
“Participation is completely voluntary. But I think you’ll find the benefits speak for themselves.”
She clicks to the next slide.
Average Premium Savings: $215/month
Someone asks where to get the welcome kit.
[43]
That night she goes home.
Eats a carefully measured dinner. Logs it.
Walks exactly 7,500 steps.
Showers. Slips into bed by 9:30 to maximize her sleep efficiency.
The wristband vibrates against her wrist when she confirms the alarm time it chose.
Rest well with LiveWell™.
She closes her eyes. Dreams of spreadsheets and metrics and numbers climbing steadily upward. When she wakes she won’t remember the dreams.
Just the feeling of having optimized something.
[17]
She doesn’t dream anymore.
Or she does, but the dreams are pre-approved. Optimized for restorative sleep quality. The wristband monitors her REM cycles and adjusts accordingly.
In the morning she will wake at exactly 6:17 AM.
She will drink exactly 16 ounces of water.
She will log her breakfast and check her inbox for new mentee requests.
She will do this because she wants to. Because she chose to.
There was never any other choice.
The wristband glows warm against her skin. Like it’s been feeding.
Rest well with LiveWell™.
END