Workplace Friction
When work stops being about the work.
You weren’t trying to manage emotions.
You were trying to give instructions.
Somehow, you’re now mediating tone, intent, and perceived subtext.
Why this door exists
Because your workdays include moments like:
- “That’s not what I meant.”
(No one believes you.) - “Why is this suddenly personal?”
(An excellent question.) - “This is getting off track.”
(It left the track five minutes ago.) - “Let’s take this offline.”
(Translation: something went wrong.)
Everyone is technically an adult.
Everyone is allegedly competent.
And yet, simple instructions keep producing complicated reactions.
That’s workplace friction.
What’s actually happening (in plain work language)
One person thinks this moment is about:
- clarity
- efficiency
- next steps
- getting something done
Another person thinks it’s about:
- being evaluated
- being corrected
- being exposed
- being told what this “really means”
Now the task is no longer the task. It’s a referendum on intent, competence, or status.
Deadlines don’t care.
Hierarchies don’t pause.
And the work still has to get done.
Quick Check: Which Meeting Is This?
No reflection required.
Just notice which one you’ve survived recently.
- The meeting derails when someone says:
A. “I just want to clarify something.”
B. “That’s not how I heard it.”
C. “Can you explain what you mean by that?”
D. “Let’s circle back.” - Your internal reaction is:
A. “We are not talking about the same thing.”
B. “This was supposed to be straightforward.”
C. “Why is this becoming a debate?”
D. “How did this get so complicated?” - The meeting usually ends with:
A. Action items no one owns
B. Follow-ups that solve nothing
C. Tension everyone pretends not to notice
D. A strong desire to never schedule this again
What this usually means
If most of those felt familiar, here’s the boring truth:
The breakdown isn’t in the task.
It’s about how the instruction gets interpreted before anyone notices it did.
That’s why:
- clear directions still get misread
- “just be direct” backfires
- and the same issues keep resurfacing under new agendas
Same friction.
Different meeting.
A small thing that helps before this escalates
Â
That Meeting Went Sideways
A one-page guide for predicting which moment is about to go sideways and why.
It helps you:
- spot when instructions are about to be misheard
- adjust the moment before it becomes political
- keep work discussions from turning into interpretation debates
It’s not HR.
It’s not management theory.
It’s just a clearer read on what’s coming next.
Get:Â That Meeting Went Sideways
One page.
No leadership slogans.
No personality models.
Just something practical before the meeting goes off the rails.
Professor’s note
This wasn’t a leadership failure.
It was a predictable interaction problem.
Those are much easier to manage... once you know where to look.
Bell rings.
