Quiet quitting: the signs, and what to do
"Quiet quitting" means doing the job as written and nothing more. People stop volunteering, stop staying late and stop going beyond their role. It is usually a response to something, so the useful question is what.
Updated
What it looks like
- They stop volunteering for new work.
- They do what is asked, on time, and stop there.
- They stop helping teammates outside their own tasks.
- They stop offering ideas in meetings.
What it is not
Working normal hours is not quiet quitting. Someone who stopped working late may simply have set a sensible limit.
A quiet week is not quiet quitting either. Look for a change that lasts several weeks, compared with how that person used to work.
Common reasons
- Their extra work went unnoticed for a long time.
- They were passed over for something they wanted.
- They had too much on, and pulled back to cope.
- They have little contact with you.
How to respond
Start with curiosity, not a warning. The aim is to find the reason.
- Ask: "How are things going for you lately?"
- Ask what they would like more of in their work.
- If their extra work went unnoticed, say so, and thank them for it.
- Agree on one change, and check in again in two weeks.
The signals behind this guide
- When an employee goes quiet: what to look for
Someone is much quieter than usual.
- How to spot good work nobody is talking about
Someone is doing more than usual, or helping others a lot.
- How to tell if someone could take on more work
Someone has had much less of their own work than usual, and could take on more.
More guides
- Why employees leave and the signs before they go
Why employees leave, the changes a manager can see before someone resigns, and how to start the conversation while there is still time.
- One on one questions to ask your team
One on one questions for every part of a 1:1 meeting: workload, the team, growth and you as their manager. Plus what to talk about, and a simple agenda.
- Employee recognition: how to thank good work
Employee recognition that costs nothing: how to notice the work that deserves thanks, how to say it so it lands, and ideas to make sure nobody is missed.
- Signs of burnout at work a manager can see
The signs of burnout at work a manager can see early are about the work: late nights, no breaks, no say. What to look for, what to say, what to change.
- Signs an employee is secretly struggling
The work changes that show someone may be struggling, why they hide it, and how a manager can ask in a way that gets an honest answer.
- How to tell if an employee is disengaged
What disengaged looks like day to day, how it differs from a bad week, and how a manager can find the reason and respond without blame.
- Bus factor: how to find it and raise it
Your bus factor is how many people could leave before work stops. How to find the one person your team relies on, and how to spread what they know.
- How to support an employee returning from leave
What to do before, on and after someone's first day back from leave, so they can catch up without being rushed or left out.
- Overwhelmed at work: how a manager can help
What to do when someone has too much on: how to find out what they are carrying, what to take away, and how to check that it worked.
- Employee onboarding: a 90-day plan
A practical plan for a new hire's first days and first 90 days: what to prepare, who they should meet, and what to check on each week.
- Performance review examples for managers
Performance review examples you can adapt for results, teamwork, growth and problems, a short template, and how to write a fair review from facts.
- Employee retention: how to keep your best people
What employee retention depends on, why good people leave, and the habits that keep them: fair workload, real growth and a manager who notices.
- Team health check: how to run one
How to run a team health check in half an hour: what to ask, how to get honest answers, what to do with the result, and what to watch between checks.
- First time manager: what to do first
A plan for a first time manager: meet each person, learn how the team works, start one on ones, and avoid the mistakes most new managers make.
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