Over the coffee discussions somehow end up in cribs - about the company, about the manager, or in general - about some kind of cribs. Why is it so?
We all are more comfortable in cribbing about something rather than showing our happiness. In school - even the child who always comes first would rarely say that she did great in the exam - instead she would downplay her abilities (I am generalizing here, exceptions may be there). The reason that we downplay our abilities, our happiness etc. is because we try to look humble and down to earth.
Suppose, one of your colleagues, is all excited about the work or the company or praising the manager. What would everyone think? This guy must have negotiated a great salary (I should have negotiated a bit more with that HR guy). Or, this guy is buttering the manager, maybe he wants a promotion etc. etc. So, what do we all do instead - crib about anything to everything. And that makes each one of us - nice guys.
Think or a different scenario - if all team members are excited about the work, the company, the manager - they are all energetic and ready to tackle the challenges and meet that tight deadline. Members of high energy teams are comfortable with each other and don't need to be 'nice guys'. They don't end up cribbing about things, but discuss the challenges ahead and how they will hit the nail on the head. They are as excited at work as they would be during a team outing at Mega Bowl (a bowling alley in Bangalore).
Imagine the development team watching a Twenty20 Cricket Match between India and Australia (or whatever their common favorite sports is). The setting is comfortable sofas set around a large 70" LCD TV with endless supply of chips and soda. There is a lot of excitement, cheering, enthusiasm and huge energy. The team is sure that India will win and they are cheering on with even greater excitement as each ball goes for a boundary or six.
Now keep everything as it is (the energy I mean) and change the sofas to office cubicles, the LCD TV to LCD monitors and the Twenty20 Cricket with a challenging deadline - an important deliverable which has to go today by close-of-business. Problems come up - but team members help each other, builds fail, but blame games don't start - instead they fix the problem and start all over again - they depend on each other, they know that if things go well - they will be able to high-five with each other and if things fail - they will figure out a way to do things better next time.
What does high energy has to do with all this? Because low energy means - you want to somehow get by, somehow finish off the current assignment, and somehow pass another day. And when things go wrong, you hate it because you don't want to spend the energy fixing it - you look for someone to blame. But the person you blame is also in the same situation and hits back. The interpersonal relationships go for a toss.
If you are in a relationship, you will understand - most arguments start (or get nasty) when both partners are tired and stressed out. When you are energetic and excited, you are more accommodating and loving.
