5 Trendy Psychological Phenomena You Must Know in Today's World

Though the words listed below are not new concepts, they are recent trends and topics for debate at the workplace or world place that I could compile for you. Amidst the season of "layoffs," it's important to know these psychological phenomena that any of us are going through in our workplace but are not aware of being victims of ourselves or amidst the season of "war", phenomena that are being used by world leaders to run today's world politics. Every trend has its own good, bad, & ugly sides, and here we shall discuss most of them.

1. QUIET QUITTING

This new workplace trend, which most of the associates prefer, is 'Quiet Quitting'. It does not involve silently resigning or slipping your resignation letter under your boss's door. Quiet Quitting is about quitting the idea of going above and beyond one's KRAs (Key Result Areas). It is about doing the bare minimum work. It is only about doing the work that is expected to be done. If one's job is to lead a project, that's all that's being done. One does not propose new projects, share ideas, help others, mentor colleagues, or put efforts into team-building activities. Quiet Quitter lacks enthusiasm at the workplace & advocates signing in at 9 & signing out at 6 sharp. Basically, doing only what one is hired for. That's all!

For the longest time, this is what one was told not to do at the workplace. But Gen Z is embracing the idea of doing work for what they are paid for. They've dumped the idea of going the extra mile to achieve organizational goals, working extra hours to exceed their own targets, or taking work calls on weekends or after work hours.

Apparently, this sounds amazing for creating the perfect work-life balance. Signing in & out on time, having enough time for oneself and family, sleeping well, partying on weekends, & overall, working in a more sustainable way. Isn't it? Unfortunately, in practice, Quiet Quitting might just be the opposite. This trend has the potential to take a toll on one's life. Most of us work for a living, to pay off the bills, or for what we love to do. But what happens if one loses the job for not being a good performer at work with great competition. Quiet Quitting comes with that risk! Hear me out before you dismiss this idea. There's a very thin line between setting healthy boundaries & being disengaged. It is healthy to not bite off more work than one can chew. But it is unhealthy to duck at the site of work. It is healthy to spend time with family. But it is unhealthy to sign out at six, even if there is pending work. It is healthy to switch off on weekends; it is unhealthy to be non-flexible. This thin line is noticed by reporting managers since there's a clear indication of a lack of effort & a fall in a person's productivity. And during appraisal, one can understand Newton's third law of motion about "action and reaction." So, ultimately, one gets only what's given. One can lack growth opportunities in the organization, which creates stagnation. And this gets reflected in bonus letters, where these quiet quitters are often sidelined. So, I would like to conclude that no employer wants lackluster employees and think twice before you jump on a trend.

2. QUIET FIRING

Now that you've heard about Quiet Quitting which has mostly to do with employees, let's talk about something very interesting that has to do with your employers or bosses.

Have you ever been in a situation where you felt you were not being marked on important emails, the same emails that you were once looped into? Have you ever been in a situation where you were not invited to meetings that you once used to be a part of? Do you feel left out of significant decision-making processes in your present workplace? Were you kept out of team-building activities or team outings? Well, your boss may be 'Quiet Firing' you.

Just like the name, the concept of Quiet Firing is quite riveting. when a manager demoralizes unfavorable employees & creates a situation that forces an employee to quit the job. Some of us may have been victims of this phenomenon, or some of us may have seen it play out live at someone else's cost.

Quiet Firing is certainly not a new trend & has been around for ages. A recent LinkedIn survey of 20,000 odd employees found that 80% of them have faced Quiet Firing or witnessed "Quiet Firing" firsthand.

How would one know the first signs of Quiet Firing. If a boss or reporting manager does not acknowledge one's work or doesn't appreciate an employee's excellent performance, then one must watch out for something more. If the annual income raise is 3% or less. If the KRA is impressive by achieving more than the given targets, but the annual raise does not match the efforts. If everyone else gets good or decent hikes but one is stuck in the 3% bracket. If one's manager does not give time for one-on-one discussion, fixed appointments for meetings are rescheduled over & over again, if the manager doesn't pay attention & evidently ignores an employee. If one is kept away from the projects that belong to one's skills & instead are handed over to another, not so skilled colleague. If one is not kept up to date on what's happening in an organization, especially on the information that is relevant to one's work and abilities. So, to sum up, Quiet Firing is about neglecting an employee or depriving one of company resources and not giving them the opportunity for career growth.

This is regarded as a classic sign of a toxic workplace environment. There can be several reasons to Quiet Fire an employee. Primarily, 'Severance Pay' is one of the reasons where in an employer will have to settle up with an unwanted employee if they are not willing to have them. Also, it's uncomfortable to ask an employee to quit an organization in a few words. However, if they Quiet Fire this employee, the employee will voluntarily elect to resign. Secondly, the reason for Quiet Firing is a 'Manager's Failure' in leading a team. If the manager is simply incapable of coaching & mentoring a team, incapable of recognizing the real talent & caliber of an employee, or not bothered about appreciating the best employee, he's unknowingly engaged in Quiet Firing. Thirdly, & most commonly, is 'Favoritism' which involves Gaslighting (more about this is coming up) & Office Politics where certain employees are not given enough opportunities due to personal reasons & differences. So, I would like to conclude that an employee must be vigilant in such situations, & if you're a victim, bring it up with the manager. Ask him or her about the problem that you're facing to find common ground. And if this still does not change anything, be ready to face it positively & explore better opportunities. Why would you like to stay in a toxic workplace that does not appreciate your work & efforts? You are being snubbed, & your self-confidence & self-esteem is being hammered.

3. MOONLIGHTING

"Moonlighting" wouldn't have been a new word for you. We all have heard enough news about the reasons for the layoffs of employees from many reputed firms, & one common one is moonlighting.

Moonlighting refers to a phenomenon where an existing employee of a company would have a second job, discreetly. The term gets its name as the employee would go for regular work from 9 to 6 & may work for another company only in the dark or at night.

Though this phenomenon existed for years, it became a remarkable trend only a couple of years ago. COVID-19 ushered in a new age of moonlighting as COVID-19-induced disruptions in work culture have favored many moonlighters.

There's no harm in expanding one's skills beyond their boundaries. However, there's a difference between Moonlighting & Freelancing. A freelancer is self-employed & provides services to multiple companies. However, a "Moonlighter" is an existing full-time employee of one company & provides services to another company or companies. Let's learn more from these examples. One can be a sales executive in a corporate firm between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. while moonlighting as a DJ from 9 p.m. onwards. One can be an advocate while moonlighting as a part-time professor of law. One can be a journalist while moonlighting as an influencer on YouTube.

Employees often Moonlight for the following reasons: to maximize their talent & make the most of their potential to earn an extra income, to achieve job satisfaction by pursuing passion with an alternate underpaid assignment, to give creativity a chance, to upgrade their skill set with skill-specific assignments, or just to kill time.

Today, there are multiple opportunities to Moonlight. Portals like Fiverr, Upwork, Toptal, Flexjobs, Jooble or Simplyhired provide an opportunity to take on additional assignments with a variety of skills. Globally, the number of web-based platforms, through which tasks such as design, data entry, analytics, and financial services, among others, can be outsourced by businesses, has tripled, according to a NITI Aayog report. The number of such platforms has increased from 142 in 2010 to 777 in 2020.

The concept of moonlighting itself is not new, as professionals have been taking on side projects or time-bound assignments to earn extra income. These assignments could be anything related or unrelated to one's existing full-time job. However, major IT companies like Wipro Ltd?& Infosys have pushed back against the idea of their employees taking side jobs. Companies have opposed the practice, claiming that having staff perform multiple jobs impacts their productivity and is a conflict of interest if they moonlight for rivals. The tech firm’s views on moonlighting mirror those of Tata Consultancy Services, which called out the "ethical issue" of the practice. Wipro Executive Chairman Rishad Premji has termed moonlighting "plain and simple cheating." The company recently fired 300 employees for moonlighting. However, some tech bosses have shown more willingness to change, like?Tech Mahindra?CEO C.P. Gurnani, who tweeted, "My thoughts on the trending 'M word'... It’s necessary to keep changing with the times, and as always, I welcome disruption in the ways we work."

4. GASLIGTING

Now, Gaslighting might sound similar to Moonlighting, however, they are two different phenomena.?

Have you ever been in a situation where someone makes you feel like what you're seeing isn't real when someone tries to manipulate you into doubting yourself? Have you ever had someone call you “too sensitive” or “crazy”? Has your recollection of events been questioned, yet you feel certain you’re in the right? If so, you may be a victim of gaslighting. Gaslighting is commonly talked about in terms of intimate relationships. However, many individuals also experience gaslighting at work.?

Gaslighting at work is when a fellow employee or boss (the Gaslighter) manipulates you to the point that you question your own sanity, memory, or perceptions. The Gaslighter can do this by denying past events, downplaying your emotions, or retelling events so that you take the blame.

Examples of Gaslighting may include a boss who calls you hypersensitive for reporting a coworker who made inappropriate remarks. They may also question your recollection of the events, leading you to feel like an imposter or question yourself.?

The personality traits of Gaslighters cross barriers into all kinds of social relationships. Workplace gaslighting is just as dangerous as it is in a friendship or intimate relationship. At its core, Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation.?

Gaslighters tend to share some common characteristics. Below are the most common traits of a Gaslighter:?

? A highly manipulative personality?

? Low sense of self-worth or self-esteem

? Insecurities, covered up by constantly pointing out other peoples’ flaws

? Controlling to a point where they don’t respond well when they don’t have power

? Narcissistic tendencies (sometimes seen at work as toxic leadership)

So how do you know for sure that you’re a victim of Gaslighting in the workplace? Watch out for these signs of gaslighting:?

? You hear persistent negative accounts of your performance

? You hear the suspected gaslighter publicly say negative things about you

? You hear negative, untrue gossip about yourself

? You find yourself questioning your perception of reality at work

? The suspected gaslighter belittles your emotions, efforts, or perceptions

Dealing with gaslighting at work can be tough. It can be a major drain on your mental health & mental fitness, & in some cases, it's even challenging to identify whether the behaviour even is gaslighting. Gaslighters may be the reason why one hates the job. However, with this information, I hope you feel empowered to take back control and stand up to the gaslighter in your life.

5. FRIENDSHORING?

The last one, is a brand new & an interesting term that I came across. It is called "Friendshoring". Though this term doesn't have much meaning in our corporate workplace, it plays a very significant role in geopolitics.

In her visit to India last week, treasury secretary Janet Yellen said that the US is pursuing an approach called "Friendshoring" to diversify away from countries that present geopolitical risk.

So, what exactly Friendshoring mean??

Friendshoring is a strategy where a country sources the raw materials, components and even manufactured goods from countries that share its values. It is also called ''Allyshoring'. Just as offshoring means moving work overseas to where production costs are low, friend-shoring means encouraging companies to shift manufacturing away from authoritarian states and toward allies.

Friendshoring or Allyshoring has become a means for the US to influence firms to move their sourcing and manufacturing sites to friendly shores. The purpose of Friendshoring is to insulate countries’ supply chains from less like-minded nations, such as China in case of the US.

TAKEAWAY

If you think you need to reevaluate your career, then you must do that; upscale yourself, and whatever you want to do, please do it with a zeal, & you will see how much you enjoy the work. Don't do your work half-heartedly. Your reputation as an employee is only in your hands. Be aware of the above listed phenomena & be vigilant about a couple of them. Do not give yourself an opportunity to be a victim of "quiet firing" and "gaslighting". And avoid engaging yourself in "quiet quitting" or "moonlighting" if it's a threat to your employer.

As the idea about Friendshoring caught on, the terminology evolved. Last June, two economists at the Brookings Institution wrote about "ally shoring," crediting Glick for the term. This past June, the White House included "Friendshoring" in a report on building resilient supply chains. That same month, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen spoke about Friendshoring on an official trip.

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