Quiet quitters make up at least 50% of the U.S. workforce -- probably more, Gallup finds. That must have quite an impact on productivity. Not a good sign for mental health either...
Quit Quiet Quitting
Quiet quitting refers to the practice of staying at a job but essentially giving up on it. You collect a paycheck while giving minimal effort or maybe not even actually working. Sometimes it's the job, the work environment, or whatever it is going on with us. We go through the motions to look like we're there, but in spirit we are not.
Quite a few years ago--the beginning of 1990 to be more precise--I was trying to settle down in the Knoxville TN area after over a decade on the road. It was a challenge for me to adapt to a stationary way of life.
After a few attempts at working some odd jobs to pay bills, a friend told me about an investment firm where he had been working. He thought I might have some luck at it even though he hadn't been very successful. I went to apply at a fancy office on the tenth floor of a nice bank building with a grand view of the Smokey Mountains. I definitely could deal with the view. They hired me on the spot and I began working immediately.
From the start I felt that something shady was going on. I was part of a small cold-calling staff to set up investment deals for the brokers. The leads were old and tired and there was a lot of negative reactions with the people I was calling. I started hearing rumors about the management and sales brokers. Something not quite right was going on.
After a couple weeks, paychecks were bouncing. From my first check I would always run downstairs to the bank to cash mine, but not everyone else was so lucky. Most of the people there quit, but a few like me stayed on despite the fact that the principles of the company and the head broker stopped coming. There was nothing for us to do, but the office was open.
For a couple of days four of us were in the office waiting. We'd heard that the FBI was investigating and that they might come, but they never did while we were there. We waited, looked at the beautiful view, and talked. We had already quit, but we were hoping for that last paycheck which I knew the others needed as much as I did.
Finally, when Friday morning came, the secretary gave us checks. I rushed down to cash it and to my relief it cleared. I went home. I had quit quietly as had the other three who were left.
Sometimes, quiet quitting isn't the right thing to do, but sometimes it's the only thing you can do.
Have you ever quiet quit a job? Do you sometimes feel like just quiet quitting life? What do you need in life to keep enthused about what you are doing?
