Performance review Memes

So your star developer literally carried the entire team, shipped three major features, mentored juniors, AND covered for an absent manager for two months—basically doing three jobs for one salary—and when they ask for a promotion, management's response is to gaslight them into thinking exceeding expectations is just "meeting expectations." The mental gymnastics required here are Olympic-level. You have to look someone dead in the eye and tell them that going above and beyond is actually just baseline performance, while simultaneously encouraging them to "keep up the good work" without any actual advancement. It's like telling a marathon runner they only met expectations because they finished the race. Corporate doublespeak at its finest: "You're amazing! Just not amazing enough to get paid more or have a better title. But please continue being amazing for the same compensation." This is why devs job-hop for 20-30% raises instead of getting the 3% "cost of living adjustment" after literally keeping the company afloat.

Ah yes, the classic "I'll just give a positive review and nothing else" approach. When your boss asks for feedback, but your keyboard mysteriously only types thumbs up emojis and the occasional letters that spell "tgIm." After seven years as a senior dev, I've mastered the art of saying absolutely nothing while appearing enthusiastic. Career preservation at its finest. Why risk an honest opinion when you can just 👍👍👍 your way to your next performance review?