company sent us a “remote work satisfaction survey.” question 7 asked if we’d prefer to “come together more often.” it was the only question without a “no” option.

question 7: “how would you feel about opportunities to come together in person more frequently?”

options: a) very positive b) somewhat positive c) neutral d) open to it if optional

no “somewhat negative.” no “very negative.” no “absolutely not.” the lowest option was “open to it if optional” which is still technically a yes.

every other question had a full agree-to-disagree scale. question 7 was designed to produce one result: a range from enthusiasm to tolerance. disagreement was architecturally excluded.

the survey results, shared in the all-hands: “82% of employees are open to or positive about more in-person opportunities.”

because the other 18% were “neutral” which was the closest option to “no” that existed.

the survey didn’t measure sentiment. it manufactured consent. the question was designed to get the answer the company wanted and it got exactly that.

i filled it out. marked neutral on question 7. the most honest answer available was the least honest option offered.