Why Are People Obsessed With Quiet Quitting?

From TikTok to your lunch convos, it feels like everyone’s talking about ‘quiet quitting’. But what is it, where did it come from and is it right for you?

What is quiet quitting?

For the uninitiated, quiet quitting is basically where instead of hustling and taking on extra work in order to get promoted or congratulated at work you decide to do the bare minimum. Some people quiet quit as a way to press pause on their careers without having to go through the stress of quitting your job. For others it’s more about the idea of working to live instead of living to work.

Why is quiet quitting so big right now?

While plenty of people have been working jobs where they do the bare minimum for ages, it’s never really been a cultural movement in the same way that it is now. In some ways, you can see it as a big cultural backlash to the idea that our parents, teachers and bosses have told us about how working hard will lead to a successful happy life. 

A lot of late 2010s culture was about the hustle and grind lifestyle, with ideas like the side hustle, Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE) and the #girlboss, lean-in mentality taking the main stage. 

So what changed? Sometimes a job or a career can be a bit like a relationship. You can’t really see the red flags while you’re in it, and it’s only when you get some time apart that you realise how unhappy you were. The COVID pandemic was like ‘going on a break’ with our working lives. Loads of people stopped working, switched to remote work, or had to put their careers on hold as we entered yet another ‘once in a century’ financial crisis. 

As this happened, people got a sense of distance and perspective about their place in the rat race, and realised that they weren’t getting what they felt like they deserved from their job. This started as the ‘great resignation’, and has now morphed into the ‘quiet quit’. 

Why do people want to quiet quit?

Some people’s jobs are just not rewarding enough for them anymore. The idea of something being rewarding doesn’t necessarily just mean your salary either (although that certainly helps). 

A lot of people are willing to work really hard for not very much money if they feel like they are getting fulfilment from it in some way - think jobs like teachers or firefighters for instance. 

Other people are willing to work in a job they don’t like very much, or work overtime without pay because they want to land a higher-up position that’s going to be more rewarding for them - very Devil Wears Prada vibes. 

But when you aren’t feeling valued and rewarded at your job, you’re bound to start feeling like the grass might be greener on the other side. The fact that getting COVID is still a big risk in a lot of workplaces definitely adds to peoples’ stress levels too.

Is quiet quitting a good idea?

I’m a firm believer of the idea that people need a sense of purpose in their lives - where they feel like they’re making a difference or a positive contribution to their community or their environment. 

Some people get that from their work, and for those people, quiet quitting at best is like letting a car roll down the hill in neutral. You’ll be able to do it for a little while, but if you’re not getting anything out of your job, inevitably you’re going to have to find another job that’s going to meet your needs a bit better. 

If you think that your career atm is just at a complete dead end, then it’s helpful to have something else that keeps you feeling motivated. Maybe it’s a social hobby,  doing a VET course, or volunteering. If work isn’t really getting you up in the morning, try your best to find something that does. Who knows? It might even lead to a better job down the line.

If you’re unhappy with your job right now, it’s important to remember that there are loads of ways to tackle the issue, and quiet quitting is just one method. You might find that having a realistic chat with your manager about whether there are opportunities for you to try new things at work, or change roles within the company could help solve a lot of your problems. Or you might be able to find a better work-life balance without getting on the bad side of your workmates. 

We’ll be the first to tell you that no career happens in a straight line, and the great thing about being young is that you’ve got loads of time to explore all the different pathways out there and find something that truly inspires you.