Performance, perception, and positioning: Navigating the noise and the work in between

Written by Asa-Mari Z. ––

There’s a quiet truth I’ve been sitting with lately; one that has reshaped how I understand my work, my communication style, and the environments where I do my best thinking.

Across a few roles in my career, I’ve noticed a recurring pattern:

• My output was strong.
• My strategy was transparent.
• Clients were satisfied.

The results spoke for themselves. Or so I'd hope.

And yet...the seemingly inevitable would happen.

The way I communicate — direct, structured, and solution-focused — would start to be interpreted in the most uncharitable way possible. Not because of what I actually said, but because of the context in which it was received.

More often than not, it felt like I was sending clear signals into an environment that could only appreciate noise.

I’d ask for clarification.

I’d ask for feedback.

I’d ask if something was off.

People would say, “No, everything’s fine,” while the energy told a different story.

That disconnect, between performance, perception, and positioning, is what this reflection is about.

The Signal: How high-capacity thinkers communicate

Some of us communicate in high signal:

• We mean what we say.
• We don’t rely on subtext.
• We offer solutions, not politics.
• We notice patterns quickly.
• We ask direct questions.
• We improve systems instinctively.

And for people who operate the same way, this is a relief.

For people who don’t, it can feel...disruptive.

High-signal communication in low-signal environments often gets interpreted as:

• criticism
• challenge
• intensity
• threat
• or “not being a team player”...

...even when the intention is collaboration, efficiency, or clarity.

Some environments value the smoothness of communication more than the substance of the work. That’s not right or wrong — it's simply a misalignment of values

The noise: When workplace culture distorts performance

Here’s what I’ve learned:

Environments with unclear expectations create their own kind of noise.

• The quieter the feedback culture, the louder the politics.
• The vaguer the communication, the sharper the assumptions.
• The more people avoid direct dialogue, the more distorted the message becomes.

In those settings:

• Directness is mistaken for confrontation.
• Insight is mistaken for criticism.
• Ownership is mistaken for overreach.
• Self-direction is mistaken for noncompliance.
• Confidence is mistaken for arrogance.

And eventually, the work becomes overshadowed by the internal dynamics that have nothing to do with actual performance.

At that point, it's no longer about capability. It’s about compatibility.

The work in between: Interpreting the disconnect

Before now, I would assume these experiences reflected something about me, personally:

• Was I too direct?
• Too observant?
• Too quick to see the root cause?
• Too solution-oriented in environments that preferred slow consensus?

But after hearing similar stories from other high-performing practitioners — especially women, people of color, creative strategists, and non-traditional professionals — I realized this pattern isn’t personal.

It’s structural.

Some environments aren’t designed for people who see clearly, think strategically, and communicate directly.

Those environments value:

• stability over innovation
• harmony over honesty
• hierarchy over autonomy
• conformity over clarity

When you don’t fit that mold seamlessly, the culture interprets you as friction.

Friction isn’t inherently negative. In the right context, friction is what makes ideas sharper.

But, as you already know: this ain't that.

When being misunderstood becomes its own form of burnout

There’s a particular exhaustion that comes from being chronically misconstrued or feeling like you have to constantly explain yourself — not for what you do, but for who people assume you are.

It’s the psychological weight of:

• having your intentions questioned
• your tone misinterpreted
• your clarity reframed as criticism
• your ideas treated like threats
• your competence quietly resented

It’s a kind of burnout that has nothing to do with workload and everything to do with identity friction.

When the environment keeps reflecting back a distorted version of you, you start to feel like you’re fighting shadows; trying to disprove something that was never true, trying to correct a misreading you didn’t earn. Unsurprisingly, the emotional cost compounds:

1. The frustration of having to constantly explain or defend yourself

You find yourself over-explaining because you know someone will misread what you say.

• You clarify your tone before you speak.
• You rewrite messages three times to avoid invisible landmines.
• Sometimes you choose to say nothing at all because there's no avoiding potential backlash. It's damned if you do, damned if you don't.

This is not communication. It’s self-protection.The more you do it, the more you lose access to your real voice.

2. The slow erosion of psychological safety

When you’re repeatedly misread, you begin to anticipate misinterpretation.

• You start speaking smaller.
• You start thinking twice about sharing ideas.
• You start shrinking your personality to avoid friction.

This form of self-silencing signals one thing: Your nervous system doesn’t trust the environment.

3. The invisible grief of being perceived incorrectly

There’s a very real heavy sadness in feeling like your professionalism, warmth, intelligence, or intention is being filtered through someone else’s insecurities or incorrect assertions.

It’s not just “difficult coworkers". It’s identity-level misalignment.

That hurts in a way that’s rarely acknowledged.

🚩 Red flags: When misunderstanding is a sign (It's not all in your head, and it's not just a phase)

You can tell a misalignment pattern is forming when you notice:

• Feedback becomes vague, contradictory, or disappears entirely
• People give you silence instead of clarity
• Small comments get magnified into big issues
• Your strengths suddenly become “problems”
• You’re left out of loops where your work should be central
• You’re being talked about instead of talked to
• You’re performing well but still losing trust
• You’re constantly defending your existence instead of focusing on your work

Please know these are cultural red flags, not personal failures. You don't need to own or internalize these red flags, but take note of what is happening so you can decide on next steps.

You have two options: you can try to repair the disconnect, or acknowledge the misalignment, and move on.

How to attempt repair (and how to know when it’s worth trying)

Here's some good news: not every misalignment is fatal. Sometimes it’s a communication gap, not a cultural one.

There are ways to intervene thoughtfully before the misalignment becomes irreversible. Here are practices that can help recalibrate:

1. Ask direct, future-focused questions.

Instead of asking “Is something wrong?” try:

“Is there anything I could do differently moving forward that would make our collaboration smoother?”

This invites collaboration, not confession.

2. Clarify expectations in writing.

Clarify in writing what you understand your responsibilities to be. Reset expectations. Bring the focus back to deliverables, timelines, and outcomes.

3. Reflect their language back to them.

If your team communicates gently, mirror gentleness without sacrificing clarity.

4. Anchor everything in shared goals.

Along the lines of “Here’s the outcome we’re driving toward + Here’s the path I recommend.”

5. Address misunderstandings early, before they calcify.

The earlier you disrupt the distortion cycle, the easier it is to reset relationships.

When to call it quits

You know it’s time to leave when:

• ✅ You’ve clarified expectations yet and nothing changes
• ✅ You’re being evaluated on personality, not performance
• ✅ People interpret your competence as threat, not value
• ✅ You’re spending more time managing perceptions than delivering work
• ✅ The environment punishes clarity and rewards ambiguity
• ✅ You feel yourself becoming a smaller version of who you are

At that point, staying becomes a self-betrayal. You have to remind yourself that there will always be places where:

• ✅ your clarity is welcomed
• ✅ your insights are valued
• ✅ your directness is refreshing
• ✅ your strategic mind is an asset
• ✅ your autonomy is trusted
• ✅ your competence is celebrated

The goal isn’t to change yourself, because there's nothing wrong with you. The goal is to change your environment.

Alignment: Choosing environments that see you clearly

The most important shift I’ve made?

I no longer internalize misinterpretation as failure.

I now know that the environments where I can be myself while delivering exceptional work are the ones that value:

• clear communication
• intellectual honesty
• strategic thinking
• curiosity over defensiveness
• structure and systems
• autonomy and ownership
• psychological safety
• outcomes over optics

These aren’t negotiables or “nice-to-haves”. They’re prerequisites for doing meaningful, creative, strategic work.

As I step into my next chapter, this is what I’m aligning with: environments where signal is understood as signal.

• Not as noise.
• Not as threat.
• Not as “doing too much”

But as the clarity and competence it truly is.

Moving forward with clarity

If your team values:

• ✅ clarity over politics
• ✅ innovation over tradition
• ✅ strategy over guesswork
• ✅ collaboration over hierarchy
• ✅ honest communication over unspoken rules
• ✅ creativity paired with measurable outcomes

Then we’re likely aligned.

I’m exploring opportunities — contract, fractional, or full-time — where creative strategy, content leadership, and narrative thinking are central to the work.

If your organization values people who elevate the work, strengthen the systems, and bring signal into the noise, I’d love to connect.

Let’s build something aligned.

Feel free to reach out directly.

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