Since I used to work as an economics reporter, I cultivate this "bad habit" of reading business news. Yes, call me a freak! On a beautiful day, I read an interview with a CEO about corporate synergy. I found the expression very elegant. He was presenting the advantages of a merger, which keeps the best of each company and eliminates duplicate sectors for more effective results. That's the so-called synergy. Nothing more logical, except for one tiny detail: companies are made of… people!

So that set off my second bad habit: putting myself into someone else’s shoes. I asked myself what would I do if I had to dispute my position, in a Highlander-style, with a colleague in a merger. How far would I go to secure my job in a company to which I have always devoted myself?