Quiet Quitting
“Quiet quitting isn't just about quitting your job, it's a step toward quitting on life.” - Arianna Huffington
US workers have been at the forefront of two big trends in recent months. First, the "Great Resignation," with record numbers of people quitting their jobs.
Most recently, “Quiet Quitting,” an often-misunderstood phrase that can mean:
The practice of reducing the amount of effort one devotes to one’s job, such as by stopping the completion of any tasks not explicitly stated in the job description.
Workers stop doing more than they are paid for.
Workers either quit or decrease their efforts while suffering in silence.
At a time when the job market has shifted to an ‘employee-choice market,” employees have more options about where & how they work & want to feel valued & respected & work in an environment that is healthy for them physically & mentally.
What has contributed to QQ:
Global long-term stress & burnout have been accelerating even before the pandemic.
Being dissatisfied in a current job & feeling that they cannot speak up to contribute their knowledge & ideas
Feeling unable to speak up about organizational problems or unethical behavior.
Unapproachable leaders or the perception that they would not support speaking up
Adam Grant, Professor of Organizational Psychology at Wharton School of Business, wrote about a study that identified two responses to dissatisfaction: Exit and Voice. Another group of researchers followed up with a study that showed a third response: Neglect or putting in less effort and/or spending less time at work.
Neglect was the norm after people felt dissatisfied, & lacked a sense of control, voice & hope for change. Researchers later found this to be a direct relation to managers having broken trust and employers violating unwritten rules of how employees should be treated. Warning signs often set in roughly a half year prior to people neglecting their jobs. Quiet quitting isn’t a sign of laziness; it’s a sign of organizational dysfunction.
Adam goes on to say that doing the bare minimum is a common response to abusive bosses, bullshit jobs, and poor pay. When they don't feel cared about, people will eventually stop caring.
Fear of Speaking Up:
There is a gap between what "should" & "would" be done in situations in which something difficult needs to be said to a boss, a peer, or even a subordinate. This gap is related to people being afraid to initiate those conversations.
Research shows that approximately 75% of US workers are “at will,” meaning they can be fired for nearly any reason — or none at all.
In Jim Detert’s book "Choosing Courage," there are four common fears that keep people from speaking up or being completely honest when they do:
Economic or career consequences: pushing your boss to be more flexible about work hours or where they work from. Workers might find themselves off the promotion track or even told to find a new job.
Social exclusion: confronting peers about missed deadlines or their comments toward those of another race or gender. They may find themselves isolated by the group eating lunch alone.
Psychological pain: offering an idea for improvement that gets harshly shot down can make workers start doubting themselves.
Physical harm: standing up to a customer or coworker who's violating a policy or speaking inappropriately & potentially being physically harmed or threatened.
Ways Employees Can Respond to the Quiet Quitting Trend:
Be clear on your boundaries at work
Audit how aligned your life is with your core values
If you can’t find joy or purpose in your job - move on
Ways Organizations & Leaders can respond to the Quiet Quitting Trend: Create a culture where people can be engaged in their jobs and their lives. With the right tools, employers can help their workers avoid or recover from burnout and keep well-being at their center.
1. Entry Interviews:
Setting the tone from day one is vital. In the first one-on-one meetings, ask, “What is important to you outside of work, & how can we support you?” This opens the door to bringing your whole self to work & establishes a connection for ongoing interactions.
2. Compassionate directness:
Promote feedback that empowers employees to speak up, disagree, surface problems, & offer constructive criticism.
Building engagement with employees through career coaching, employee-led 1:1s, supporting career growth, and advocating for employee opportunities.
Drive growth and engagement using strength-based interventions.
3. Thrive Time:
Build into benefits - better healthcare options promoting self-care / work balance
Rethink recovery after completing a big project or deliverable. Reinforce that recovery is essential to high performance. This may be a few hours to a day or two off & shouldn’t count against any other categories of time off.
Promote breaks, acknowledging that getting results often requires extra time & effort.
Promote the use of accrued time off or “Comp Time” for re-energizing / rejuvenation.
4. Follow the leaders:
Prioritize the employee experience.
Embody well-being to improve business metrics like retention, attrition, productivity, & healthcare costs.
Look for signs of misalignment & misplaced busyness or workload burnout
Check-in with workers about how they are feeling & offer support
Create an environment where pressure is at the right level for progress
Economist John Pencavel from Stanford University found that productivity declines when people work more than 50 hours each week, plateaus when working 70 hours or more a week (same productivity as those working 55 hours/week), and declines as a result of fatigue & stress on productivity & the probability of errors, accidents, and sickness.
5. Busy is over-rated
Workplaces are more stressful when the current culture doesn’t align with the company’s stated objectives or enable employees to thrive.
Recognize that busyness & productivity are not synonymous. American author Henry David Thoreau said: “It’s not enough to be busy, so are the ants. The question is, what are we busy about?”.
Workers will vote with their feet if employers don’t get the balance right & should not have to choose between quitting or being burnt out. Organizations can’t operate successfully without a healthy & thriving workforce. Instead, they should be encouraged to choose a healthy work-life with boundaries where work does not define them.
Setting boundaries should not be perceived as shameful or done in secret; it should be done loudly and clearly as it’s good for everyone—companies, employees, & the culture at large. All this requires awareness, patience, and persistence so that activities and support are always and consciously applied.
“When people go to work, they should not leave their hearts behind”
Choosing Courage - book by Jim Detert: Focused on workplace courage, why people speak up or stay quiet
Dare to Lead - Brene Brown Podcast “Brene with Adam Grant & Simon Sinek on What’s happening at Work, Part 2” (Spotify)
Newsletters I read daily to stay informed and get inspired: The Hustle, Morning Brew, Seth Godin’s Blog, Atlas Obscura, Oprah Daily
Podcasts: The Daily, NPR News Now, Marketplace, Marketplace Tech, Don’t Keep Your Day Job, The Highest Self, Planet Money
Well, that’s interesting…
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