I’m having an issue adapting to a society that can’t keep a promise, honor its word, or communicate true feelings and intentions. The issue has two parts: I’m not understanding why they do it, and how it hurts me every time it’s done to me.

I’m not sure. I think I take it personally. For me, being kept hanging—waiting for a reply or a call two days later—is disrespectful. Especially when I was in a very tough situation, one that could have caused complications at work and beyond. Even when I try to help by giving a clear idea of the problem, or solving most of it, or saying exactly what I need to search further… they ghost me and stop replying.

I heard many times—and over and over again—how “they are shy from saying no,” because they don’t want to disappoint me. They are just being polite. Which is bullshit. They hurt my efforts, work, and cause more by ignoring me than by disappointing me. And second, I don’t think they care about me. The real issue is that they don’t like the idea of showing themselves as unable or weak by saying no. They can’t face the idea that they’ve failed. Even if that’s not a failure in any definition.

It’s fear of rejection and fear of imperfection.

There’s also a lack of empathy. They fail to see the impact of their silence on others. They are more focused on their own discomfort, their own image. So maybe it’s not about lacking communication skills. If they really considered how their avoidance affects others, they would realize that being straightforward is actually the kinder, more respectful route.

This actually reminds me of something else I noticed: many drivers here complain about how bad everyone else on the road is, but fail to see that they are much worse. The same lack of self-awareness. And entitlement is the enemy of self-awareness.

So when you combine comfort, entitlement, politeness culture, and the need to save face, you get a society where people avoid saying no—even at the cost of harming others. And this is what makes me question how a society can grow, develop, or build strong work ethics when avoiding discomfort becomes more important than professionalism.

In the end, all of this leads to one conclusion:

A lack of self-awareness, shaped by entitlement and protected by surface-level politeness, creates behavioral patterns that damage both personal and professional relationships. And when this becomes widespread, it directly affects society’s ability to grow—whether in work, development, or even basic communication. A society cannot advance if it cannot face itself, and people cannot grow if they keep defending an image instead of building character.