A forced agreement achieved through power, pressure, or elimination of alternatives, presented as genuine unanimity. In Imposed Consensus, dissenting voices are silenced—not convinced, but removed. Meetings where everyone "agrees" because anyone who might disagree wasn't invited, was intimidated beforehand, or learned long ago that speaking up costs more than silence. The consensus is real in appearance but hollow in substance, a collective yes that masks individual no's that were never permitted to speak.
"The board voted unanimously to approve the CEO's plan. What the minutes don't show: anyone who questioned it was 'reorganized' out of their position last quarter. That's Imposed Consensus—unanimity through elimination, agreement through fear. The vote was unanimous; the freedom wasn't."
by Dumu The Void February 24, 2026
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