Meet Nick Chen. He's a Staff Product Manager based in New York City, and one of the people at Linktree who makes both our products and our culture better.
This Pride Month, we asked Nick what Pride means to him today, what he'd tell his younger self, and what genuine inclusion looks like at work.
On Pride today
Pride has always been rooted in resistance. At its core, a simple demand to be seen as equally human.
For Nick, that truth has never felt more present than it does right now. "So much progress has been made in the last 15 years that it can feel more like a celebration these days than a fight," he says. "And believe me, I'll absolutely be celebrating this month. But the current political climate is a reminder that we can't let go of that spirit of resistance."
It's a tension many in the LGBTQ+ community are holding right now. Rights that felt settled can suddenly feel fragile when you realize how much of what holds societies together has been mutual trust more so than the written law. "Pride, to me, holds both of these truths at once: joy and vigilance."
On the journey to self
Ask someone what advice they'd give their younger self and you'll usually get a long list.
Nick's answer is different.
"Honestly? None."
Not because that younger version of himself didn't struggle. He did. More self-conscious, more anxious, more fearful. But those feelings, and the work of moving through them, weren't obstacles to who he'd become. They were the path.
"Working through those feelings and fighting toward your most complete self is so central to the LGBTQ+ experience. That journey made me who I am. I love who I was then just as much as I love who I am today, and I wouldn't want to shortcut a single moment of it for my younger self."
There's something powerful in that perspective. We often talk about struggle as something to leave behind, but Nick sees it differently. Every part of his story, including the difficult moments, helped shape the person he is today.
On what makes a workplace feel inclusive
Inclusion isn't built through policies alone. It's built in everyday moments. The questions we ask. The assumptions we don't make. The examples we see around us.
"It's natural to talk about personal lives at work to build rapport," he says, "but this is where LGBTQ+ employees can sometimes feel uneasy, given we don't know how a new group of people will respond. What helps is getting asked inviting but neutral questions, and seeing lived examples within the company."
Representation matters.
When LGBTQ+ employees can look around and see people like themselves across different teams, levels and leadership roles, inclusion becomes something tangible. It stops being a value written on a page and becomes part of the everyday experience of work.
Building that kind of culture takes intention. It shows up in the way managers create psychological safety, in whether support extends beyond Pride Month, and in how companies invest in LGBTQ+ communities all year.
At Linktree, one way we do that is through our partnership with Out in Tech, helping connect LGBTQ+ technologists with opportunities, mentorship and community across the industry.
None of that happens because one person chooses to be visible. It happens because people across a company choose, consistently, to build a workplace where everyone can belong.
Stories and sentiments like Nick’s remind us why visibility matters. Being seen, and making space for others to be seen too, is at the heart of what Pride is all about
Happy Pride 🏳️🌈
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