You mentioned how only focusing on the good tends to be bad for game actually being sold. What are other “toxic positivity” traits you’ve see. in game development?
There are two core issues with toxic positivity in the workplace.
First, it's setting a bad set of expectations and a false sense of security for those who believe it. This can cause significant mental trauma when the rug gets pulled out from under us. To a true believer, it becomes a huge betrayal of trust. The ensuing guilt and shame of "I can't believe I didn't see it before" hindsight can haunt someone for a really long time. Trauma like this is a major contributing factor to burnout and the exodus of talent from the industry.
Second, it breaks trust in the leadership for those who can see the truth. It's very much the manifestation of "Who are you going to believe, us or your own eyes?" - we see that the emperor has no clothes, but we must bottle it up inside because we don't want to rock the boat or be seen as disloyal. This affects team morale and the craftsmanship of the development - it's difficult to feel good about the work when I know my bosses are lying to me about how well things are going. This also contributes to burnout, except it is more gradual. Turnover tends to increase among devs like us, because we know that the rug pull is coming and we don't want to be standing on it when it happens.
This has far-reaching effects in the workplace - morale affects just about everything. When morale tanks, it takes just about everything with it. Innovation and problem-solving decreases, engagement and productivity decreases, mental health worsens, we feel more isolated because we can't talk about it, and turnover rises sharply as more of us come to see the writing on the wall.
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