At work, I’m the only poodle in my department.
Like most leadership roles in all of my jobs, most of my team are all labradors. And the majority of them are male. I learned very early on in my career that if I wanted to be successful, I was going to have to get comfortable with being “the only” from time to time.
In most cases, that means barking the lingo. It means knowing just enough to have a conversation, but be in tune enough to stay true to who I am. I’m also small compared to all labs. So, that also means learning to speak a little louder and with a lot more conviction to be heard in meetings.
Bark-switching. I believe that’s what the experts call it.
Let’s face it. We all do a bit of bark-switching from time to time. There’s no way I’m going to talk to my parents the same way I talk to my girls. I’ll greet a poodle a little differently than I would a St. Bernard. And, I’m certainly not going to share every juicy detail of my weekend with my co-workers.
However, the real question is when does bark-switching go too far? When does it become more of a burden than an added skill that most poodles learn as pups. For me, it’s when you feel that you’re losing yourself in trying to appeal to others. As Audre Lorde stated…
If I didn’t define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people’s fantasies for me and eaten alive.
My, shall we say defining moment, came when I was at work. I had to make a phone call to my friend Ginger while I was at work. We are both planning a girls’ trip for our friends and I needed to finalize a few details with her so I could make arrangements.
For a brief moment, I forgot where I was. As soon as she picked up the phone I said “What up Gee?” Now, let’s be clear. I wasn’t loud, but I sit in a cubicle. There’s never any form of privacy. I don’t care how high those cube walls are. Your neighbor can always hear you.
I talked with Ginger for a few minutes. After I hung up the phone, my Golden Labrador cube mate Rita peeked her head around the corner. She barked, “You were talking with your friend, weren’t you? You couldn’t have been talking to anyone at work?”
My first inclination was to fire off and ask her “Why are you in my business?” But, I kept it cute. I barked, “Why yes.” and continued with my work.
It was in that moment, I realized that not only did my co-workers had one definition of me, but also realized that they were way more in tune to me than they should be. I also realized that some pups will always define you by what they think you should be or how you should act.
That’s why it’s more important to find ways to love our form of expression, even in the midst of bark-switching environments.
These Sweet Potato Pie Pupcakes With Coconut Cream Frosting are dedicated to defining yourself and loving your natural forms of self-expression.
And of course, we believe that every pupcake has a love story. So, while your favorite pup is PUPPY LOVIN’ on these pupcakes, we’d love to hear from you.
What’s your favorite way to express yourself through language?
Please share your pupcake story in the box below.
Checkout the recipe below
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Yields
- 12 Mini Pupcakes
Ingredients
Sweet Potato Pie Pupcakes
- 1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1/3 Cup Pureed Sweet Potatoes
- 1/3 Cup Plain Yogurt
- 1 Egg
Coconut Cream Frosting
- 1/2 Cup Coconut Cream
Instructions
For Sweet Potato Pie Pupcakes
- 1Preheat oven to 350° F. Line 12 1.75-inch mini-muffin pan with paper bake cups and set aside.
- 2In small bowl mix together, flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Set aside.
- 3In a large mixing bowl add olive oil, pureed sweet potatoes, yogurt and egg. Beat on medium speed about 2 minutes or until combined.
- 4Add dry ingredients into the mixture and blend for approximately 2 minutes until well mixed.
- 5Fill each cupcake liner with 1 tablespoon of pupcake mix.
- 6Bake pupcakes for 12 minutes. Pupcakes are done when you can stick a toothpick into the cake and it comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.
- 7Spread or pipe coconut cream frosting onto the pupcakes.
For Coconut Cream Frosting
- 1Refrigerate coconut cream over night to allow it to get hard.
- 2In large mixing bowl beat coconut cream for 45 to 60 seconds until it is light and fluffy.
Notes
Pupcake Sugar in no way provides any warranty, express or implied, relating to any recipes on this website. The recipes are based on Sugar’s personal experiences with them. Please be aware that your pup may have allergies or other conditions that may make the recipes not suitable for their lifestyle— consult with your vet as needed or roll with your judgment as the pet parent in charge. Pupcake Sugar is not liable for upset tummies or any other outcomes of experimenting with our recipes on this site.
