alt Hacker News> Everyone bullshits it. We all know, and understand, that when you're asked questions like that you say what people want to hear.[…] Ultimately, nobody else cares, so you don't have to bother answering. This is just food for thought.
You sound very young or very jaded. That's unfortunate.
As for "Everyone does X", I'll remind you of the saying that "A thief always thinks everyone is trying to steal from him."
You wrote a long ass reply just to express your miserabalist nihilist world view. When you find yourself doing that online or in real life, just get therapy because while it might seem normal and sane to you, it's an unhinged and unhealthy state of mind. :-(
P.s. If you have time for a break, do watch Jiro Dreams of Sushi or The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness for insights on how others found meaning in the work they do daily.
It's not miserabilist or nihilist. I'm a very happy person and there's a lot I care about. My family, my partner, my friends, and the memories and experiences I live. I care about the ones who love me and the things we do together.
I don't care about work because I'm not pathetic. Ultimately when you inevitably die you won't remember meetings, or cubicles, or water cooler talk. And that's really the big idea. Who do you want to be? What do you want to spend your care on? And, who will care? I can tell you right now - not a single person in your life who matters gives a single fuck about what you do at work. So WHO are you performing for?
And, to be clear, everyone does bullshit it at work. I have genuine interactions constantly when I'm out. Never at work. It's corporate America, everything is at least a little off, a little filtered. I'm not the first one to make the observation. To me, it's obvious, so if you're not seeing it, you might be socially deficient.