Quiet Quitting: An Old Concept With New Life

The nation is abuzz with a new Gen Z phrase: quiet quitting. While the phrasing is unique, the concept is not. Quiet quitting is a new generation’s term for promoting work-life balance.

Despite the boldness of the phrase, people taking part in the trend don’t actually quit their jobs. After reviewing several rudimentary definitions, quiet quitting refers to doing only the task your job requires, no more, no less.

Quiet Quitting Is for All People

Promoting a healthy work-life balance is not a generational issue but a professional problem. Too often, people assume the only way to get ahead in the business world is to go above and beyond the call of duty, constantly eating away at precious moments of personal time on any given day.

Pursuing supervisory or executive positions will often require temporary sacrifices as you prove your worth to a company. However, proving value does not need to require performing tasks beyond your job description or losing pay.

Many companies provide education opportunities for young and enthusiastic workers, such as management training programs or tuition assistance. In many professional environments, completing training programs or higher education qualifications will open up pathways to promotion.

Today, most companies understand the importance of balancing career expectations with personal; however, as previous generations learned, it is up to workers to define their boundaries.

Supervisors Are Not Villains

Looking over TikTok videos and social media posts about quiet quitting, a common thread appears: villainous management. People are quick to bash management for all their workplace problems, especially when they feel overworked and overlooked.

Understandably, people want to blame someone when they are unhappy in their career. While management is sometimes justifiably to blame for problems, it is not always the contributing factor to worker unrest.

Perceived and real power dynamics usually create communication barriers in the workplace. Employees feel they have no voice because they want to keep their job, so they tend to go with the flow or not rock the boat. Unfortunately, when employees don’t speak up for themselves, managers don’t realize they are unhappy.

For a better work-life balance, employees and employers need to improve communication. Each party in the business relationship needs to set clear and decisive boundaries and expectations.

One potential problem with quiet quitting is that many employees revert to bare minimum job requirements without talking to their managers. If your work consistently surpasses expectations, then suddenly falls off, even if it equates to minimum job requirements, management will see that as a negative. Before quiet quitting, it is best to talk with your employer. Explain how you feel and why you feel you deserve more for the work you do. Define what “more” means to you. Do you want a raise, a promotion? Your employer is not a mind reader.

Employment Is a Partnership Agreement

Securing a job is like establishing a partnership. When hired by a company, you likely sign an employment contract; that contract states what both parties get out of the relationship. Each party handles their roles, ensuring they’re not taken advantage of.

Quiet quitting is just a new stamp on an old concept. However, before altering your work habits, give your employer the benefit of the doubt and express your discontent. Grant them an opportunity to fix the relationship.