First impressions matter, especially in a new workplace.

One new hire learned that showing up disengaged on orientation day sent the wrong message to HR — and the label stuck.

You’ll want to keep reading for this one.

HR had had complaints about me having a bad attitude.

At first, it was wearing a hoodie and earphones in the warehouse.

This same woman also said I wouldn’t respond to questions.

But in this new hire’s eyes, he didn’t do anything wrong.

Even though I said “yes” or “no” three times for nearly every question being asked, they would ignore me and move on to the next person.

Yet somehow, I was still accused of having an attitude.

He can’t help but blame it on his temperament.

And I know well if I had spoken louder, these same people would have still said I had an attitude.

For context, I’m an introverted person. I sit at the desk and listen while people speak for hours, so I’m not the type to be overly smiley or chatty with coworkers.

He suspects other employees get treated better than he does.

Meanwhile, the other coworkers were super friendly with HR, which makes me wonder if that played a role in them deciding I had an “attitude.”

It felt like they expected me to have a huge smile on my face and be overly excited for the safety videos and PowerPoints.

No rules were broken, but something still wasn’t right.

What did Reddit think?

For some people, it can be harder to pick up on workplace expectations.

This commenter agrees this employee missed the mark, despite having neutral intentions.

If this employee doesn’t shape up, his job might be on the line.

This new hire doesn’t have an introversion problem, he has an attitude problem.

Following the rules only goes so far if the vibe is off.

If you liked this post, check out this story about an employee who got revenge on a co-worker who kept grading their work suspiciously low.