“Quiet quitting” is not about quitting – this collocation sprang up from Tik Tok work discussions. It was used by people who opened up about their exhaustion at work due to having too much on their plate. Many of them felt forced to fall back on doing the minimum of what is required and draw the line on that – no initiative, no coming up with solutions, no permission for the job to eat at their time. It usually tells of gaining an alternative mind frame shaped by poor motivation, distressing conditions, or burnout.

What drives employees to slip into quiet quitting

There are always people within the company who bank on pay rise and/or chances of promotion commensurate with their input; if it doesn’t happen, they grow peevish. Then, employees with a bad work-life balance complain about being devoid of time and energy to lead their own life, seeing friends, and getting busy with their hobbies – activities that bring them quality time.

A number of people came to the idea of quiet quitting after realizing that their (as well as other people’s) attempts to climb the career ladder led to troubled sleep, less time spent with their families and for doing sports. They saw no point in ruining their health and spoiling their life by exercising too much diligence at work.

They don’t think it is good enough reason to resign, yet nor do they wish to go on marring their lives. They start to avoid things and tasks that bring on weariness and exhaustion while they remain ready to perform their set routine tasks.

For top managers who become aware that their employees are slipping into quiet quitting, it is a sign that some reorganization has been long due to be implemented. Maybe an alternative management style would be in order. But first of all, the reasons for the process must be made clear. Why do they do it?

• People feel snowed under with too much work.
• They don’t know what benefits, rewards and credits they can expect.
• It is the downside of micromanagement.

Frequently, quiet quitting is a direct result of top-down management. Suppose it is habitual for a senior manager just to hand his employees a sheet of printed out tasks. In that case, there is no chance to be initiative, and get an understanding of the whole project, and the overall motivation drops low. No imagination is going to be forthcoming.

For management that wants to gain momentum, this approach lacks support and grounds for initiative; employees will be faring better if they know they have enough autonomy.

Symptoms that show that your department is quiet quitting

• The team are testy because they feel they don’t get enough pay for their efforts.
• The prevalent attitude is that of cynicism towards everything.
• They often look as if they were not there.
• Growing apathy is a sure sign of lack of proper motivation.
• Deadlines get overstepped, the quality of the result is poor.
• They always seem to be disengaged or on the point of getting disengaged.
• Their performance diminishes to the lowest point possible.
• Team members don’t interact and socialize as much as they used to.
• Anything that is not strictly necessitated gets ignored or neglected.
• Meeting participation has declined; people are unwilling to speak and put forwards suggestions.
• Since employees have to go back to tasks done substandard, they complain of a heavier workload.

Be careful with face values

Employees who have been drawn back into the quiet quitting mode often look just the same as ever. Their seniors do not only have to be attentive but also to pinpoint the underlying motives. Scrutiny is necessary to understand what exactly makes team members get more relaxed and check out.

There must be several discontented employees who believe their pay rise or promotion are long overdue; they started to grouse and be dismissive about their duties.

On the other hand, people with life-work misbalance may be going easy on their job in order to gain more time for themselves. As soon as they achieve their objectives, they begin to think about their personal life and hobbies to maintain their health and happy attitude.

Ways to stop quiet quitting in its stride

Hold forth competitive benefits

Workers tend to accept the belief that their performance shouldn’t exceed their payment (it is jokingly referred to as “acting their wage”). As soon as they learn that there are benefits to be gained by successfully competing, some will sit up and take notice. They will understand that their input will be marked and appreciated.

Hear workers out: what do they need for better productivity?

When employers know what troubles and confuses their workers, there is unlikely to start any quiet quitting. Workers that observe that any arising problems get solved straightaway have no reason to alter their mind frame and focus on starting a checkout process. Every member is sure that they will be heard out. They see no reason to go slack and perform as well as they can.

Provide sufficient support and whatever may be necessary for progress

Assign time for a meeting with your department to closely assess their workload. Any project requires time and basic resources; have these been estimated and provided? When the result will be achieved, what will it bring to the company and the team? Is the work delegated evenly? Have potential problems been anticipated and counter-measures taken? The whole perception of the project may need to be reassessed.

Find ways to motivate the employees

Means of extra motivation should always be at hand:
• Incentives to be held out.
• Development opportunities to be suggested.
• Additional autonomy and empowerment to be distributed.
When the team knows that the necessary information, equipment, and facilities are available, its members have sufficient motivation to put their best foot forward.

Ensure conditions for high morale

The conditions in the workplace are important to establish a healthy working atmosphere, and high morale, which are conducive for good productivity and utterly opposed to developing quiet quitting. Such a work culture diminishes stress, and prevents exhaustion and burnout. Besides, it stimulates engagement; slack employees begin to stand out in a positive environment.

Measure out autonomy for everyone in the department

Team members can be encouraged to fix their own schedules, choose the most suitable terms, initiate alterations – this way they remain engaged and involved in the process. A good idea is to let them switch up after a time to acquire fresh perspectives.

Yet this mustn’t mean they get an extra workload; it’s also advisable to inquire about what kind of work they prefer to do. When they have an opportunity to demonstrate their special skills and get out of the rut they will stay in touch with the sense of enthusiasm and purpose.

Chair consistent meetings for you to stay in touch

You will want to keep track of what is going on, what achievements are ticked off and what particular tasks require reassessment. Team members are in the know what problems need to be addressed, so it’s up to their seniors to help them through the current stumbling blocks.

Robust working conditions make your employees content

What quiet quitting boils down to is being overburdened with work in conjunction with tedious tasks, micromanagement, and unsatisfactory ways of accountability. Workers feel enthusiastic about what they have to do, their input is acknowledged, and they are compensated for their efforts; in this atmosphere, trying to do more than you seem to be able to is perceived as a challenge that brings that extra zest to life. Your employees are sure to appreciate this.