I've witnessed friends and colleagues in the industry cry a few times, and heard stories of it countless times.
Then it was my turn. When I first switched from Account to Planner, my work was so bad that my boss was frustrated and "twisted the knife" with a devastating line, essentially asking where the previous planner was because she needed them. It was after 7 PM, and I drove home in tears because I felt useless. That was the first time I cried in my working life. This happened almost 10 years ago, and the good news is that my boss and I are still very close friends to this day 😂
That wasn't the era of 'wokeness' and 'healing.' I thought that kind of feedback was just a given because I saw everyone around me being subjected to that kind of painful feedback once or many times. I thought you had to endure it and pretend to be strong to survive in this industry.
After working for a few years, it was time to leave, and I don't know if I only noticed the negative, but every time an acquaintance of mine quit, it was an "ugly exit"? They'd leave still harboring resentment and vividly remembering the harsh words, the verbal feedback, and even the feedback conveyed through attitude... You rarely remember the good things, but you hold onto the bad stuff for a long time :))
I, too, have unconsciously used hurtful language when commenting on my employees' work, hiding behind the guise of being "straightforward."
So, I hope that just because something has existed for a long time doesn't mean we should accept it as inevitable. If we can't change the big things, let's do what's feasible. For example, in the first session of my course, I decided to share about the healthy mindset first, to prepare the right attitude for the profession, not just the hard knowledge.
Words have great power, so filter them before you speak.
