As the first person in the agency to ever change genders, I knew I had to set an example. Right from the beginning, I decided I wasn’t going to be meek or secretive or ashamed about my transition. Instead, I was going to be an educator: honest, open, willing to volunteer information and answer questions. I’m an over-sharer to begin with, so this was really an extension of my personality. Another big part of my personality is my sense of humor, and I made sure to use it wherever I could to make people around me comfortable. The last thing I wanted was for my coworkers to avoid me out of fear of saying the wrong thing. So, I made jokes whenever possible, so people would know I wasn’t sensitive about my transition. And over time, the creatives who worked on my team found a huge benefit to my transition: They’d present work to me three or four days after surgery, when they knew I’d be most doped-up on painkillers. God only knows what I approved!And once all my coworkers got to know me as Chris, my career changed for the better. A lot of people ask if it was because I'd become a man. And the answer is yes. But it's not because I was "a man." It's because I was Chris, the man I'd always meant to be. In meetings, finally comfortable in my own skin, I felt able to speak up. As Kris, I had spent so much energy pretending to be someone I wasn't. Now, I could pour that energy into my work, becoming brighter, funnier, and more engaging. People even told me I looked taller. Some asked if it was the testosterone, others accused me of wearing lifts. Enough people commented that I went home and actually measured myself. Sure enough, I had grown. It took me a minute or two, but I realized why: As a woman, I hated the fact that I had boobs (or what I called “booby prizes”), so I always used to hunch to make them less noticeable. With them gone, I was now standing up straighter and three quarters of an inch taller. Hey, at 5’4” every little bit counts!I also had new motivation to work my ass off. I wanted to be known for my work, not my gender change. And pushing myself to the max made me study how coworkers I admired got ahead. Their secret? Asking for what they wanted. It was so obvious, but something I'd never felt I had the power to do. But after my transition, I was like, Screw it; I work just as hard as everyone else, and if I feel I deserve something, I'm going to ask for it, too.Did I get everything I asked for? No, but at least I knew I wasn't holding myself back. I took my reviews and self-evaluations very seriously and asked my managers what it would take for me to get to the next level. Then, at my next review, I’d say, “You told me last year I needed to do XYZ to get promoted. Here’s what I’ve done.” When you lay it out like that, it’s very hard for someone to say no.As I moved up the ladder and started giving reviews, I was surprised at how few people take this approach. And eventually, over the course of my 20-year career, I worked my way up to executive vice president, group creative director: A damn good accomplishment regardless of gender, but unfortunately an elusive one for many others in the trans community. Workplace discrimination is a real problem. Of transgender employees, 90% report being harassed or mistreated on the job. In the 20-plus years since I've transitioned, much has changed, but there's still a long way to go.Trans rights in the workplace benefit everyone. Because, as I learned firsthand, in order to have the freedom to work your ass off, you have to start by feeling comfortable in your own skin.For more on Chris Edwards’ experience transitioning, check out his newly released memoir, BALLS: It Takes Some to Get Some