I try to be kind, upbeat, etc in my interactions with other people, especially at work. I want to treat others well, work together peacefully, and leave the project happy. I’ve noticed that some people (particularly more curmudgeonly folks) seem to read that attitude as naïveté, and feel like they can walk all over me or treat me like I don’t know what I’m talking about. Why is that?
I think that attitude is a symptom of burnout, either with work or life as a whole. They’ve probably been taken advantage of and let down a number of times and have developed a mindset that good work doesn’t get noticed, people don’t get what they deserve, so why bother?
Not saying it’s justified or healthy thinking. But when they see your attitude they might be saying internally “just wait til you’ve seen what I’ve seen”
i agree on that one very much. on my way into burnout my cynicism and sarcasm increased steadily (in a way i tried to get relief from my pressure in a socially acceptable way), and even tho colleagues found my sharp tongue funny, it was not a fun experience. I only stopped shortly before i broke down - i couldn’t keep the facade up anymore, if i had tried i would have my breaking moment right there.