Quiet quitting. The new term coined for those who do the bare minimum at work — but why? Burnout? Likely. Disengaged? Definitely. Lazy? Not so much. But something is causing this phenomenon to resurface in today’s corporate life. I say ‘resurface’ because although it might seem like a new concept, quiet quitting has been around for a long time.
The reality of quiet quitting goes deeper than just employees who do not go above and beyond. It involves knowing when you need to put in the work and when you need a break. It's also about creating an engaging culture supported by balance and flexibility.
I’ll admit, I am going to play a bit of devils advocate in this article to show both sides of the coin when it comes to quiet quitting. I want to openly talk about what many people don’t outright say and I believe that Human Resources shouldn’t be a department of secrets. With transparency in mind, keep reading to learn more about quiet quitting and the contributing factors from both sides.
Quiet quitting. Only it’s not so quiet anymore, is it?
We know this is not a new trend, despite its new social media-worthy name. Many of you likely have even participated in this phenomenon at one point or another in your career.
It’s an interesting concept that’s been recycled through time. Most would equate it to simple burnout — either a synonym of it or a phase leading to it, or even a self-protective response to it. But where burnout is unconscious, quiet quitting is, arguably, an active practice. Perhaps it’s even the evolution of a practice I learned about back in my school days: present absenteeism (you are physically at work but aren’t doing much work, “present but absent”).
Today, quiet quitting is the term coined for not conforming to the hustle of typical corporate culture. This is achieved by only doing what is required of you, within the confines of your 9-5 workday. You show up to work today, do only what is outlined in your job description and certainly not anything more, you go home, then put in the same effort (or possibly even less) the next day, then the next…lather, rinse, repeat.
But here’s the catch — there is still an expectation of a promotion, future pay increases and recognition for doing the bare minimum.
Quiet quitting, then, becomes this sort of self-fulfilling prophecy. For example, you engage in quiet quitting, don’t get that well-deserved promotion that you believe you should get, retaliate by continuing to do the bare minimum because why should you do more if they aren’t going to promote you? This fixed mindset then becomes what stunts your career progression and builds resentment.
The problem grows. What happens when employees see their counterparts doing the bare minimum? Well, they start to question the worth of going above and beyond. Resentment and possible hostility toward colleagues begins. Why should I be doing more if they aren’t? Why am I always asked to do more, but they aren’t? Then, suddenly — or so it seems sudden — the company now has the difficult task of managing a disengaged workforce.
Now more than ever, we are seeing more and more employees who are losing their commitment to excellence in their work, which is largely due to burnout and the fallout of a global pandemic. Here is one simple example: I called a store the other day to see if they had a specific size of shoe in stock. The employee responded, “I don’t know”. I actually had to ask them to go to the back and check for me because they thought “I don’t know” was the acceptable answer. There is a little bit of a “this is good enough," “someone else will do it,” or “me just being here is enough” mentality going on. In this situation, the mindset is, “Hey, I answered the phone, I’ve done my job.”
The reality, however, is that quiet quitting is a problem that stems from two sides of the same coin. Bear with me as we dissect this a little bit more.
On one side, you have the employee. The other, the employer. Both have taken steps that have resulted in employees’ believing that quiet quitting is the best option given the circumstances of their situation.
Much like the shoe store employee above, there is a shift in corporate culture where many employees are resistant to any form of expectation or performance standard. They are deciding what is acceptable on their own. And more often than not, employees begin to approach work thinking, “it’s me versus my company” - a combative mindset rather than a collaborative one. Instead of focusing on a potential opportunity in their career and making the positive change to reach for it, employees become complacent and frustration is channeled through passive-aggressive means. Quiet quitting.
And the same happens on the management side. When morale is down, it’s easy for employers to avoid difficult conversations, defer listening to employees, and problem solving doesn’t happen. In some cases, management is passive-aggressive to employees, and then employees are left feeling like quiet quitting - or some form of it - is their only option.
But, if you expect big things from your job, you will have to go above and beyond…at times.
And that is the key; at times.
I understand, value and preach the need for work-life balance, flexibility and achievable expectations for roles and the people who fill them. I am absolutely not advocating a norm of constantly working late, consistently trying to achieve unrealistic deadlines, and continuously working over your lunch hour, after hours or on weekends. I am not promoting the exhaustive “hustle” and “grind” of a corporate culture of the past.
But, sometimes, yes, you might have to go above and beyond. If you want big things from your career, you have to highlight your talent and be your own advocate (P.S. it is also perfectly fine to not want big things from your career). Although this may be an unpopular opinion, especially as of late, this means you also need to Put. In. The. Work.
I grew up with the mindset that hard work will allow you to grow, and that the off-your-desk tasks will showcase your talent when you've proven that you're more than capable of tending to the responsibilities outlined in your job description. If you do the bare minimum, hey, you may be good at your job, but are you showing them you can do more? That you can take on more responsibility, more accountability?
It is always the same people.
Another issue is that it always seems to be the same people that are relied upon to go the extra mile or pick up the slack of teammates — and they often ARE burnt out and ARE feeling this stress. They are the ones that are relied upon constantly — your high-potentials, who then quietly quit on you. On top of that, unfortunately, employees who have never put in that little extra to support the team are operating with the quiet-quitting mindset as well, not just the ones who are suffering from the effects of burnout. And thus, a new corporate culture is developing.
In my opinion, this is a classic case of bad management. Instead of addressing the concern and skilling up employees or setting an expectation that workload will be equally spread across all teammates, it is so much easier to go to the people who you know you can rely on and who you know will get the work done (and done right). This is where having difficult conversations is important; managing the workflow within your teams is vital. Otherwise, you get quiet quitters.
The solution to quiet quitting is a two-way street.
Corporate culture has a tendency to always ask for more, take more, and do more. And this is often at the expense of employees’ health and well-being. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Job descriptions are not meant to be, nor should they be, static; so, justifying to an employer “this isn’t part of my job description” isn’t going to work (especially when you see the “other duties as required” listed for the role). There is also this notion that when something new hits your plate, you can’t say “boo” about it and that it is the unspoken expectation that it is in addition to all other priorities. In reality, this often isn’t the case and you need to speak up in a productive and problem-solving way to figure out what tasks stay, what goes, and what deadlines shift given this new project or responsibility.
Talking openly with your manager about priorities and how to shift them to successfully complete new assignments is a way to proactively problem solve. Don’t avoid the conversation and don’t assume everything is in addition to your current responsibilities.
Managers, be open to the conversation!
It is about finding the right balance.
And to help find that balance, employers also have to be realistic in their expectations, listen to employees and collaboratively make changes (when needed). It’s not just the employee who needs to adapt their behaviours. From both ends, the idea of balance has been lost. This started with employers taking too much and expecting too much and now employees have taken a stance against that — and a strong one.
I worked with a few companies that managed this balance really well. One, in particular, would put their team on a major project or client and the team knew they would be putting in lots of hours and long days for a fixed term. After that project wrapped up, that team would be moved to “admin work” for a period of time. This dedicated time for admin work was to give them a mental break (simpler, more repetitive, less complex work), with more work-life balance, shorter days and more flexibility.
For executive teams, it’s up to you to promote and help your employees achieve this healthy balance. The goal is to slow down the impacts of quiet quitting. It’s accepting that morale has faded and it’s time to take action. It’s understanding when you need to start developing an active engagement strategy and realign your values. It’s coming to terms that it isn’t always just about the bottom line because if you do not create the change needed to engage — or reengage — employees, that bottom line will never be reached.
We know quiet quitting in some form has been around for decades and will continue to be. For employers, you can read about some solutions to quiet-quitting here. For employees, it’s time to evaluate whether you are happy at work. Are you fulfilled? If the answer is not an automatic yes, here are some techniques to help you decide whether to quit, only not so quietly.
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