Here’s why ‘quiet quitting’ could sabotage your entire career

I’m a career and negotiation expert who’s helped hundreds of women quit their jobs strategically to earn more and I’ve got one thing to say about the so-called “quiet quitting” movement.

It’s trash.

Don’t let anyone convince you that “quiet quitting” – when workers do the bare minimum to meet their job requirement – is a winning career strategy. Here are a few reasons why.

Your professional brand is the key to scoring high-paying jobs

If you're looking to form long and fruitful relationships with your colleagues, it's not just about leaving a good impression on your direct supervisor. Think about the other people who interact with you and what kind of impression you’ll leave on them if you start phoning it in.

When I was an intern early in my career, I made sure that when I handed out thank-you notes, my boss's assistant received one as well. Less than three years later, it was that thank-you note that helped me score an interview at the major media company she went on to work for.

As a low-paid intern, you might think I had every right to do the bare minimum, collect my meager paycheck, and tick off the internship requirement for my college degree. But I have seen countless times throughout my career and the careers of hundreds of professionals who I work with when former colleagues helped propel them into lucrative and rewarding opportunities they never could have imagined at the time. That single thank-you note eventually helped me secure a $12,000 pay increase.

You’re giving yourself less negotiating power down the line

The most common question I get as a career and negotiation coach is how to negotiate the best possible compensation package. The reality is the workers who get the juiciest compensation offers are the ones who are so good at demonstrating their impact and value on their current team that prospective employers are willing to go above and beyond to poach them. So even if you dislike your current manager or your pay grade, put in solid work so that you can impress the next company that will hire you.

It gives companies a cheap excuse not to look deeper at their leadership issues

The “quiet quitting” movement makes it easy for leadership to point to a viral TikTok trend for poor worker morale instead of examining how they contributed to it as well. A recent survey from Gallup found half of U.S. workers were “not engaged” at work. When employees are so disengaged that they don’t feel like doing anything more than the bare minimum then, really, there is an issue at the management and senior leadership level.

Speaking up could make you a better leader down the line

“Quiet quitting” could be a cop-out used to avoid conflict, which winds up hurting both sides eventually. If you’re someone who wants to move up into more senior roles down the line, I would highly encourage you to start getting comfortable expressing your criticism and feedback to leadership now so that you can become a stronger leader down the line.

There could be a simple solution to help you feel more engaged

If you’re someone who is quiet quitting because you’re feeling unmotivated by your current leader and team and unhappy with your work, rather than disengage and take the passive aggressive approach, why not proactively look for other teams that you may join at the company and have a conversation with your human resource partner? There may be a way for you to have a fresh start right where you are. That doesn’t mean you have to stop searching for new opportunities outside the company but who knows how long that job search could take and going months essentially without growing your skills and developing professionally could hinder you.

Mandi Woodruff is an inclusive wealth-building and career expert, cohost of the Brown Ambition Podcast and founder of the MandiMoney Makers community.

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