The Quiet Quitting Antidote: Leadership — on Both Sides
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena . . .”
- Theodore Roosevelt, “Citizenship in a Republic”
I get why people are quiet quitting. We’re all exhausted. Trust in corporate leadership has been in decline for years. And there’s a lot that’s dysfunctional about work in the United States, especially for people who have been historically excluded from positions of power.
Quiet quitting is understandable, but it’s ineffective. The remedy isn’t for employees to quiet quit and for managers to surveil. It’s for both parties to step up their leadership.
As managers we need to get over being defensive and engage. We need to ask questions and genuinely listen. One of the biggest sources I’ve found for quiet quitting is misunderstandings, especially around expectations. If an employee is upset because they thought they were going to be promoted after 6 months, they probably don’t know how the promotion process works. If they’re frustrated that they’re working long hours, they may not understand what tasks are a priority, or what their position actually entails. A mismatch of expectations can cause people to feel taken advantage of and justified in checking out. As managers, we need to make our expectations crystal clear during and after the hiring process.
We also need to trust our employees and treat them like humans. It doesn’t matter when and how long they were in the bathroom. What matters is if they’re using their time, skills, and resources to add value to the company. We need to provide flexible schedules, especially for people who are caretakers. Offer mental health services to alleviate the toll of the last couple of years. Conduct stay interviews. And help overwhelmed employees prioritize their workloads.
In return, employees need to take back their power and embrace their leadership. If you’re miserable at your job, leave. At another time in history that might not have been possible, but in August 2022 the unemployment rate was 3.5%.
If you don’t like something about your job, or your company, say something. Do something. If you’re angry because you’re working too much, or aren’t being promoted, talk with your manager. If you’re having trouble with your manager, talk with their manager. A real hero of mine is Greta Thunberg. Look what happened when she took action at 15 years old. Would she quiet quit? I don’t think so. Doing nothing is not the answer.
Creating a workplace that meets the company’s needs and the employee’s needs requires collaboration. Neither can exist without the other. We need to be honest about our expectations, trust each other, and lead together.
What do you think is the antidote to quiet quitting?
Distinguished Engineer at Capital One.
2 年> What do you think is the antidote to quiet quitting? Simple: having a reason to care. For a month or two, up until about a week ago, I was working hard, and long hours (including a lot of evenings and weekends). Why? Not because my boss asked me to -- she wouldn't and if she did it wouldn't motivate me the same way. It was because after ~2 years of trying, I had finally persuaded leadership to commit to a project I wanted to see done, and I was excited about the chance to make it happen. It doesn't have to involve extra hours, but the energy that comes from caring about the outcome and feeling like you have the ability to make a difference is the perfect antidote to the emotions that make people want to engage in "quiet quitting".
It is a silly notion to begin with. Nothing new here. People who want to get ahead in life would never entertain this concept.
CEO | Technologist & Security Practitioner | Speaker | Serial Innovator
2 年On the employee side "voting with one's feet" has become the common answer and I think it more typical of people who have zero investment in the company. So employers tend to think that they don't want non-invested people there anywhere and everyone stays comfortable. Ending annual performance reviews is a start. If you really want a performance culture, consistent feedback is essential. Providing pathways for problem escalation keeps people invested as does compensation that proves you are as invested in your employees as you expect them to be invested in you. The other thing I think that matters - you have to, as a leader, create a culture where community is the goal. Activities outside of the work itself keep people personally aligned IMO. Lastly I have found that taking the time to share business goals and strategy keeps people informed and feeling like theyre a contributor and not just a 'worker'..
Splunk Architect and Software Engineer
2 年As an IC, something my employer does is a bi-monthly NPS survey with questions about the company and its leadership. Each manager has an NPS score as given by their employees, and scores also "roll up" across the various lines of reporting. It's not perfect, but if there is an issue with morale, it tends to be spotted sooner rather than later. (And I've been there long enough that I've seen managers terminated based on the feedback received from these surveys)
Vice President and Legal Global Go-To-Market Lead at Calm (ex Netflix and Fox) | Advisor | Connector | Mentor
2 年Similar to what Mark Constan states about equity, a somewhat more basic solution to keep employees invested is to invite them into the room where information is shared and decisions are made. In reality, there are very few pieces of information that really need to be held closely by a few people in an organization. However, not many companies are comfortable being transparent across the organization. If employees are given more opportunity to understand the business at all levels, and are entrusted to have access to that information, they will feel part of a greater goal that can oftentimes lead to the company's success.