
The case for being grumpy at work - JackPoach
https://qz.com/929348/why-being-grumpy-at-work-is-good-for-you/
======
dlwdlw
One thing i've seen is the importance of righteous anger in getting what you
want.

The primary job of a manager is to keep the employees happy. Since this
realization makes them glorified babysitters, they'd rather hire people who
can fake happiness so they don't have to care about things kike team cohesion
and attrition.

If your project gets cancelled that you've worked hard on, you are entitled
(in american culture) to be angry and then reigjteously demand compensation.
It even is a reasonable justification for a job switch.

This focus on a fair world and individual sovereignity or sanctity is unique
to american culture. In many other cultures there is distinct social
stratification that allows upper levels to trample lower levels with no ill
effect. This of course still happens in the US but it can't be obvious or
egregious. It must be roundabout.

Without this righteousness, it's hard to rise in the american workforce. It
may even be a reason managers like Indians and Chinese H1Bs so much. The
immigration status plus the cultural bias towards deferrence are very
attractive for lazy managers.

People are coming to realize though, that managing a team is actually the ONLY
value a manager provides for knowledge/creative work. Those that see it as
babysitting often think of their core job as "strategy" when in practice they
are ignoring their core job to play politics.

They can't be completely removed as they act as buffers for righteous anger
from up high and down low as well as diffusion centers intra-team. Without a
sense of righteous anger though, you have very little mobility in the US
workforce. (It may be a detriment in China/India) It actually plays in a
larger theory of mine that the middle class is primarily guilt-driven, and the
way to get people to do things is to tap into their sense of guilt. Righteous
angers makes people feel that they've wronged you and activates some sort of
instinctive tipping 15%-20% behavior.

------
Safety1stClyde
> But research shows that forcing workers to appear more pleasant and more
> cheerful than they actually feel can lead to a whole host of negative
> consequences—from emotional exhaustion to withdrawal.

"Research shows", yet even the article linked to at the end of the sentence
above doesn't support what this claims.

~~~
SocratesV
Doesn't it?

> A new study led by a Michigan State University business scholar suggests
> customer-service workers who _fake smile_ throughout the day _worsen their
> mood_ and _withdraw from work_ , affecting productivity.

EDIT: formatting

