I got passed over for a promotion last month and spent the last compliance training seething. The course had a feedback box at the end and I typed a full-on tirade about management, the “clique” that got promoted, and one very specific passive-aggressive email my manager sent me. I meant it to be private to HR, so I skimmed and hit submit while fuming.

Five minutes later a coworker forwarded my rant in the team chat with the subject line “Wow.” My phone blew up with screenshots, HR scheduled an emergency meeting, and my manager taped a copy to my desk (yes, really). I apologized, explained I was frustrated, and tried to own it, but they put me on a performance improvement plan and said my behavior “undermined trust.” I also lost any chance at the next internal role and now have to rebuild every professional relationship I burned.

I get being mad, but I should have written it in a draft and slept on it. Instead my hot take is now a permanent thing in our internal system and the embarrassment is real.

TL;DR: Venting in the feedback box of a mandatory training turned into a company-wide profanity-laced email. HR caught it, I got a PIP and blew my shot at promotion. Do not submit angry feedback while emotional.