This topic comes from a specific year: business metrics were still growing, but overall OKR progress had a gap — existing markets were performing well, yet important new markets hadn’t yet delivered the expected high-speed growth, while there were also some concurrent problems that needed solutions. Faced with this, first set the tone: respond positively to the difficulty, analyze the problem thoroughly, and solve the critical path.

When the external environment turns conservative or slow, people easily fill in the worst outcome from limited information. Worrying is not the same as being fragile; what really needs avoiding is letting worry drive endless investment, premature conclusions, or mutual exhaustion.

Prepare Your Own Feelings

Don’t look at the news first; look at the facts at hand.

  • Are the requirements we’re building really meaningful?
  • After launch, how do we evaluate whether the results were good or bad? How do we improve? How do we follow up? Why does no one do a retrospective?
  • Why are some requirements always racing deadlines and rushing to launch?
  • Does the team have frequent quality problems? Is it an engineering problem or a testing problem?
  • There’s pressure on staffing and bench strength — what do we do?
  • How is the team’s overall morale? What feels unreasonable? (product-engineering collaboration, operations collaboration, within engineering, within frontend)
  • Requirements and pressure are uneven across business directions — how do we handle it?

Points to Discuss

Start from “why does it feel not fast enough,” then talk about what can be changed.

  • Business growth isn’t fast enough — what do we do about the anxiety? Why does it feel not fast enough? What’s the standard for doing business well?
  • Break the problem into three circles: the facts I know, the working conditions I can influence, and the external changes I can’t decide in this conversation. The first circle needs verifying, the second allows action, and the third needs to be acknowledged without pretending we can control it.
  • How should the team respond: which working conditions can we adjust together (goals, priorities, handoff risks)? Which are external changes (industry, market, company direction)?
  • The impact on personal career planning: the pressure that business development puts on personal growth, performance, and promotion and raises? The influence of achievement drive — positive and negative feedback?

A possible way to close:

External direction is still unclear, but we can first write down the current goals, priorities, and handoff risks clearly. Next week we’ll adjust once we have new information; until then, don’t take on unnecessary commitments to prove ourselves.

This isn’t avoiding change; it’s directing limited attention toward reliable actions. If someone says, “things don’t look good right now, and I don’t know what to do,” don’t smother them with vague optimism — instead ask together: Which information is confirmed? Which is just rumor? What is the one uncertainty most affecting the quality of work this week? Who needs to clarify it?

Venting and Feedback

  • The business pressure is too high, deadlines are pressing, and we’re short-staffed.
  • Task arrangements are unreasonable.
  • There are some problems with trust.
  • And ______

When uncertainty persists for a long time, regular rest, talking with people you trust, and cutting back on endless refreshing of information are all part of protecting your judgment. If your emotions have persistently affected your sleep, daily functioning, or safety, please seek qualified local professional support or emergency help.