Quiet Quitting the Problematic Trend that is Sweeping the Nation

What is Quiet Quitting?

I quit my job in June of 2022 and decided to take a break from the workforce, and do some traveling. Many things contributed to me doing this; I felt like I was both being over and under worked, I felt like I was overall undervalued and not being heard, there was some fishy stuff in regards to my pay, the goal posts were continually being moved in regards to metrics and expectations for me my team, etc. This all lead to my mental health spiraling out of control, which lead to my physical health going south, which lead to me becoming a nightmare to be around socially (in my opinion), and so on. So I travelled and didnt work and thought about what I really wanted to do with my life, but all of that is a different story for a different day. Since beginning to go back on the job search and try to find a career I would enjoy doing this term quiet quitting has been coming up again and again. So what is it?

“Quiet Quitting” isnt actually quitting your job, it isnt even where you stop doing your job until they fire you. Its just doing your job lol. Its not going above and beyond and doing others people jobs that you arent paid to do. Im not sure who started this but from what I have read the term started on TikTok. Im not sure why they chose this wording because it makes it seem like it is a bad thing but objectively if you quiet quit its not? Just what I needed another thing to make this world seem even more confusing than it actually is.

Here is the definition I found on Wikipedia: “Quiet quitting is an application of work-to-rule, in which employees work within defined work hours and engage in work-related activities solely within those hours. Despite the name, the philosophy of quiet quitting is not connected to quitting a job outright, but rather doing precisely what the job requires.”

From the Viewpoint of the Corporation

As a company Im sure this is the last thing they would want, and as they should. If big businesses are not meant to truly help people succeed. Now when I say that I mean few will succeed and move up the ranks, but most will not, and some will even just straight up be replaced by younger and less expensive talent. Thats business though. Thats technically the smart move by the business to continue growth. Now if people dont go above and beyond and “pick up the slack” of others that means that more people need to be hired. More people being hired means more salaries. More salaries mean less revenue for the company.

I have never been particularly high up in a company but I have managed the most successful team (revenue wise) in a company, so I can only really talk from my experiences. My grandpa managed construction sites, my dad and my step dad both did as well, so I was around management constantly my whole life. I picked up on a lot of things and as a manager I see two ways of valuing an employee: 1) How can I help this person get to the next step in their career? or 2) How can I use this employee to help me get to the next step of my career by making myself look good to the company? Undoubtedly these two things can go hand in hand and should go hand in hand, but business is a dirty game. Corporate structures are designed to keep people where they are. By that I mean if you go above and beyond then your standards are just going to go up. That may come with a pay raise eventually but who knows. As a manager you should be aware that this probably is not everyone on your teams dream job. Hell it likely is not even the people above you with those cushy upper management dream jobs. The people at the top like their big paychecks and are not going to give it up. After all they worked really hard for it right? Now if its not everyones dream job, if every individual is working towards a different thing, or if some people just arent good enough in that particular business what else is there to do? This is where quiet quitting comes into play.

If corporations cannot keep the illusion that if you work hard then you can make more money then whats the point of working hard? Why break sales records if theyre just going to raise your sales metrics? From the corporate perspective these are easy questions and the answer is “growth”. Company doesnt grow they cant hire more people, company cant hire more people they cant expand their market. Logically it makes sense for the company and even economically.

From the Viewpoint of the Employee

As an employee once you sign the deal or contract or whatever to work for a company you are giving them “said number of hours” to “complete agreed upon number of tasks”. Essentially they pay you to do what you agree to do which is such a funny sentence to type out. The number one argument to this I hear from the old heads is that younger generations (starting with the Millennials) are lazy and dont want to actually work for anything and just be given everything. I think there is some truth to this, but I also think its not totally correct. The thing is people are individuals. Everyone has their own level of motivation and everyone is at a different point in their life. For instance I went from putting in hours of work before and after hours trying to be the best and trying to have a team that people enjoyed being on, but four years in with no clear path up the corporate ladder, and minimal pay increases compared to the one person above me on the team lead me to ask “why am I doing this?” and eventually quit.

You see as an employee it appears you dont have any bargaining chips, but you do. Quiet Quitting is essentially the most powerful bargaining chip. If a companies going to fire you for only doing your job that only really makes them look like the bad guy. If you are crushing a sales position only to get paid the same or little more than people doing less than you, how else do you show your value then being just like everyone else.

Going back to my example of the job most likely not being your dream job. I think it is necessary that the company recognizes this. I believe this is the biggest disconnect between the employees and employers. Of course you should go into if you are hired by your job and they pay you to preform these tasks you should do them to the best of your ability, and even go above and beyond to be noticed by higher ups. You should do the best job you can. You should make the company happy they hired you. But maybe they should also appreciate you. Maybe they should recognize that you arent just a widget. Maybe you have hopes and dreams and things you want to do or see. And of course in a perfect world you love your job, and this is all you want to do for the rest of your life, and the company is so great, and they believe in work/home balance, and etc. etc.

Im sad to be the one to break it to you but its not likely. Its more likely that you graduated college, didnt completely know what you were going to do, fell into an industry that took you, got comfortable, now youre bored, youre effort isnt being recognized, and you keep giving but are getting nothing back besides pizza on Fridays. I think if employers took a step back and realized that they need people to do these soulless, purposeless, mind numbing, boring jobs then we could start to get somewhere. Maybe if you help your employees get to the next place in their professional journey then they would be more willing to work for you, whether that is moving up in your company or not. Of course people arent going above and beyond for some of these jobs and are opting to “quiet quit” while they try to find something they actually want to do (build up a side hustle, find a new industry, etc.)

In Conclusion

I feel like the real solution here is to recognize the people that continue to go above and beyond. The people that put in the actual work and are willing to learn and develop is who you should pour your resources into. It should not be a surprise to say that if you dont then they are going to look elsewhere. If “free lunch Fridays” and pop a shot in the kitchen is what you think will keep your employees around then you are high on methamphetamine (These are good things to get employees mingling and knowing each other personally without a doubt). Not every employee is going to want work to be their whole life, and thats ok. Not every employee is going to blindly run into a wall for the company, and thats ok, its not a cult. If youre unhappy with your job or the way youre being treated where you are then yes I think this quiet quitting thing is ok to do. Being happy is more important then your job.