during a 1-1 my boss had 1 piece of feedback to give. he told me i’m too positive. then proceeded to say that he used to be positive but now he’s more cynical and you become that way as you experience more in life. he has no clue what ive been through in my life. is this shitty feedback? why would anyone give such shitty feedback? he’s the ceo of a small agency and im head of marketing and our age difference is maybe 4 years at most.
There is maybe a cultural aspect. Have you read the book 'the culture map' ?
No; please elaborate
Being positive/negative (cynical) is a function of the culture you have been educated/grown with. When people are not coming from the same culture, the prior expectation might not be aligned. Currently you do not seem to be aligned together, and he might think he can help you by being more like him, maybe the company. I don't know, i don't have enough context here, I am wildguessing. If this is purely aligning with him, this might make little sense as an advice. If it is about aligning with the company culture, there is a real question around adapting or being yourself and maybe try to influence the culture.
Yep, shitty. Probably he's heard he should give feedback and couldn't think of anything else and/or confused his personal oppinion for useful feedback.
My theory is that he’s not sure how to manage someone who approaches things differently than he does, which is shitty
What the actual fuck. Please bring it up to your skip.
What’s skip?
Your manager's manager. Your manager needs serious coaching.
I have heard this type of comment before. Not from my manager, but from other coworkers who were older than me at the time. They are just people that have grown bitter, it is a part of their personality or beliefs. 10 years later and and I still don't see it that way, so it does not have to do with age or experience.
This is a warning. He will give you the actual feedback sometime later , but soon.
What do you mean? I asked him for specific examples and it came down to me not expressing my concerns the same way he does.
I believe the discussion has got nothing to do with your outlook. You must have taken some decisions in your role that your boss did not like. He might be anticipating a less than optimum return for the decisions you made. That's when he will do a told you so.
Is your boss worried that you would be more optimistic than practical in decision-making? That you would be making bets that could be riskier than what the company needs? Misplaced optimism and over-confidence could get a company in trouble. It may be the wrong choice of words, but I would interpret this from the feedback.
Did they say you were "too positive" or "very positive"? "Too positive" would be insulting "Very positive" could be admiration
This guy sounds like a tool. Stay positive. Find a different job. It’s not going to get better.
Absolutely shitty feedback. Anybody who’s experienced genuinely shitty situations and now finds themselves in the privilege of the tech industry oughta be infectiously positive. In my experience the most positive people are those who are now wealthy but came from the lowest socioeconomic positions and the people who have their attitude are the type of ppl the former’s peers used to do home invasions on.
😂 seriously
Foreal tho. How the fuck is somebody gonna complain about positivity. Find an Uber tech sourcer, whatever you may have to say about us, at least we see a positive attitude as a good trait🤷🏻♂️