I haven’t written on a professional topic in quite some time and leave it to LinkedIn to push some new definition or concept that has been widely done for years upon years in the workforce. However, with the continuous changes in the workforce and the contribution of social media influence, I thought it best to share some of my own insights on the Newly Trending and Most Questioned “Quiet Quitting”.
I have been working for roughly twenty years of my life, of course I am including my two years of entrepreneurship between ages 12-14 as The Candy Lady at my middle school. I have come a long way from slanging “Kit Kat” bars and “Reece's Pieces” to becoming a corporate trainer in field settings. While I have had many jobs in between and I hope to do much more, I am left feeling the need to break down “Quiet Quitting” and why it's not a thing but a natural human response. But first, before I deep dive into the minusha of it all, I would like to ask you, WHEN HAVE YOU LOUDLY STARTED?
When I first heard “quiet quitting” I was on a call that was after hours with my direct report asking me to do something that was outside of my job description. I obliged, mainly because I have more free time than most and I don’t mind learning about other areas of the business. Their response to my willingness to do more was the conduit to this blog post. They simply said, “Wow, Sara thank you... And good for you, you aren’t like most, quiet quitting”. I fell silent for a moment because at the time I was applying to other jobs and thought perhaps my personal laptop was hacked. However, after some dull silence I repeated back the phrase, and said “Yup, no need to quiet quit over here”. We ended the call and I proceeded to google and landed on an article on LinkedIn about the new trend of employees quietly quitting throughout the workforce.
I laughed! I laughed because I haven't seen employees rather high paid or not, LOUDLY START. LOL Meaning, I haven’t seen much vigor surrounding jobs. Maybe the occasional Facebook and LinkedIn shout out’s but the internal and emotional buy ins have been nonexistent for some time and I would like to guess at why. Naturally, when someone gets a job, it is not out of excitement. It is out of pure necessity for bills and errands and if you are really paid well, you might be able to plan a vacation. With that in mind, the excitement can easily fizzle out once the training process is over and the real job begins. No not the actual work, but the quiet expectations, the work politics, the long boring conversations at the Keurig machine, the office environment and then of course the balancing act of it all. Once that’s all at play, its task based and not emotional. AKA A JOB! Something you have to work at to maintain.
Why quiet quit? Quiet quitting isn't new because in order to leave something, you would have to have arrived or started. And if the start is not emotionally driven, then really you are just going through the motions. Which would lead me to ask, if employers want LOUD STARTERS, they would have to find people who understand two things: Their purpose and how it is directly connected to the job that they are applying for or doing.
Let's be honest, you can't pay people to be emotionally invested nor can you fire them for not being emotionally invested. However, employers can change how they structure finding candidates and where they place them. For example, I have never been asked “How is this job or role directly connected to your end goal in life or purpose?”
I’d also like to ask when you have seen someone reduce efforts to next to nothing that they are passionate about. People do not do that. When a person is connected in purpose to someone, something or some place they stop at nothing to ensure that whatever the task is, is done perfectly to the best of their ability. So, let's go back to my first question, when and what have you loudly started?
It’s probably the side hustle that you would like to make your main source of income, or parenting, or your love life. You have a vigor about that, and possibly pour way more in and might not get as much out of it, but you still do it...
If employers want passionate team members and LOUD STARTERS, they would have to figure out if the role is directly connected to their team members' purpose. Once that is solidified, it’s obvious money, recognition, unlimited PTO and whatever else we tend to vie for wouldn’t matter because the work that we do is directly connected to the person's purpose. Truth be told it can be done in our sleep and we lose nothing when we do it, but could feel empty if we don’t. Employers want to bring people in and train them to do a job, and do it well. As a member of the work force, I think we are doing exactly that. We are coming in, doing the work and leaving on time. Employers want more, and that is a safe ask but not to employees who are not emotionally and purposefully connected. Quiet Quitting is not a matter of the employee, but a matter for employers. This is an outcry and an opportunity for employers to finally increase their knowledge of the workforce and bring in the right people, at the right place, at the right time. And to top that, pay them according to their emotional investment and promote according to their purpose goals if they align with the company.
Sara J.
The Shameless Brand.
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