Why Is This SPIKE! Card So Popular?

Some stories are too good not to share, so we anonymize them here, especially when a card is popular in different test groups.

A person standing, wearing black pants, a tie, and a red vest, with an analog clock for a head.

When I first created this image, I laughed out loud at the weirdness—and familiarity—of the uniform and the clock. First, about that red vest and black pants. Oof. Those reminded me of being a NYC student, waiting tables across from busy Lincoln Center. I despised the uniform and distinctly remember the smell of those red aprons and vests, which reeked of spilled wine, cheese, and bread. I also remembered how fast I moved and how awkward I was as a waiter. One silver lining of Long COVID is learning to slow down and embrace my lack of balance.

For other players, the clock was the highlight. One player recalled her long afternoon commutes home from class, thinking about hours she spent planning doctors' appointments or wondering if she dare ask for the seat in front of her. She has POTS, and sometimes sitting was essential. But because she showed no visible signs of illness, fellow commuters rarely offered her a seat unless she asked, which she felt awkward doing, even though she had every right to request a seat.

Another player looked at the card and began to describe how she managed work, chronic illness, and children. Figuring out how and where to work was difficult. The constant tick-tick-boom! of "the kids are home" often made her anxious, until one day she sat them at the kitchen table and explained that, as odd as it may seem, the couch was her office. It made it easy to prop up her legs with a pillow and still use her laptop. The more she spoke frankly with her children about her needs, the less draining the transition to a new way of working became.