Ok, I’m tired of hearing “Quiet Quitting”

I was kind of digging the trendy new names for the eras we were experiencing in recruiting. Unlike boring titles like the Bronze or Silver Age, we got great ones like: Great Rethinks, Resignations, and Corrections. But now, I’m over them-especially when they’re coined to put a negative connotation on some of the few bright spots that came out of the pandemic. So let’s talk about this new trendy term-Quiet Quitting.

Maggie Perkins joined the vast online community of workers sharing their experiences on TikTok, adopting the mentality of the Quiet Quit — the concept that they are not going to do more, but rather what their job description requires them to and nothing more. Hundreds of silent quitting workers are speaking up about how they are working harder to maintain healthy work-life balance, and putting less emphasis on exceeding expectations outside their job description, all while staying in their current jobs. While many who are speaking out about silent quitting on TikTok are mostly young, surveys show that people of all ages are feeling similar attitudes toward being committed at work.

Definitions differ, but most agree that this refers to employees who are “giving up on the idea that they are going above and beyond” in their jobs, but are still meeting basic requirements. It’s an excuse for corporations to try to push employees back to the “work until you die” mantra. For all of its benefits, teleworking has blurred the boundaries between our working lives and home lives. In some organizations, it meant increased rates of burnout, including for HR leaders. I think the appropriate response to Quiet Quitting may be to see it as a wake-up call to push back against the “hustle culture” and reset the boundaries between work and family. 

For years we talked about a work-life balance. The pandemic forced us to consider another option: work-life integration. People need to be able to do the work and be accountable for the product, not the amount of time it took to achieve the end result. If someone can accomplish what they are tasked to do, they should not feel guilty for avoiding working over forty hours. The overwork culture cult and the hustling era have perpetuated the false idea that the most engaged workers are the ones who are pushing themselves to get extra hours.

Commitment does not equal overwork. Employee engagement doesn’t have an agreed-upon definition.

I hope the quiet quitting continues. It’s time we take back our lives and focus on what’s important. It’s also time for those corporations that encourage, promote and allow this work life integration to be rewarded with the top talent in the market.