Quiet Quitting Work For Your Mental Health

Let’s face it: There are too many things that we need to do and not enough time to do them.

Working life is becoming increasingly stressful and busy, thanks to the constant pressure from our bosses, the 24/7 nature of our work, the constant need for ‘new’ and ‘improved’ products or services, and an overwhelming number of things we must do to keep our jobs.

Working life has become a race towards over-performance as employees feel pressured into working longer hours and taking fewer days off.

The result is stress and burnout as people no longer have time for family or friends outside of work. Fed-up workers are quitting work by doing less but keeping their jobs.

Quiet Quitting Work

Did you know quiet quitting is the latest workplace trend? It is on TikTok reports CNN. However, there is a misconception about what the catchphrase ‘quiet quitting’ means.

Some workers believe quitting work is cherry-picking the best tasks and quitting the repetitive, mundane work. When it’s an action taken by workers who no longer want to do tasks, they are not compensated for or are not part of their role. For example, working long hours and not being paid for the extra time or doing tasks either usually assigned to another worker or just due to scope creep.

Realizing You’re Overworked

Are you overworked? You’re probably overworked if you don’t feel like you’ve achieved anything after a day at the office. Other symptoms of being overworked include:

• Constantly feel overwhelmed
• Always stressed out even after exercise, sleep, and healthy eating
• If you feel like you have too much on your plate
• You’re not able to meet the expectations and deadlines that your boss has given you

Being aware that you’re overworked is the starting point to getting your work life back within control.

The next step is to change things up, and this will include quiet quitting work until you can communicate your requirements to your employer in the way you want.

If you attempt to sit it out and not take any action to reduce your workload, your health will be negatively affected, and you’ll likely end up burning out.

Remember, your health comes first. Another side effect of not taking action to change your work volume is the risk of losing your job.

Mindfulness

One of the best ways to reduce stress and quiet the mind is to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness has been proven to have many health benefits, including:

• Reducing and preventing stress
• Stopping anxiety
• Improving your overall mental well-being

Practising Mindfulness At Work

You can practice mindfulness at work using headphones and meditative music or sitting in a quiet place. Closing your eyes, and focus on your breath. Slow down your breathing and focus on each breath as it comes in and goes out. You can also try meditating or taking part in yoga.

Once you’ve learned to quiet the mind, you can focus on your work better. You’ll also be able to better manage your stress and anxiety. With less stress and anxiety, your work will get done faster. You’ll also be able to focus better, leading to better quality work.

Businesses that appreciate their role in employees’ mental health have happier and more productive staff.

Work-Life Balance

The modern workplace is designed to be a creative and vibrant place where employees can thrive, grow, and produce their best work. However, that’s not always the case. Working long hours isn’t conducive to a happy and healthy work environment nor allows employees to have a life outside of work.

The work-life balance is probably one of the most important aspects of a job today. If you’re constantly working long hours, you’ll miss important milestones in your life and won’t be happy. Consider job opportunities that provide:

• work-life balance
• remote working
• mental health days

Suppose your job is causing you to miss quality time with family and friends. In that case, you need to communicate your concerns with your manager, and if that doesn’t help, you might want to try quiet-quitting work and then, if that’s not sustainable, look for another role with another employer.

You May Need To Walk Away From Your Job

If you’re encountering significant problems at work, such as your workload being unmanageable and you can’t find a way around it, it’s time to approach your boss. You can also approach your boss if your workplace has a toxic company culture. You can’t fix every problem in your workplace. Sometimes, it’s better to walk away from the situation.

If you try to fix every problem but fail, your coworkers and bosses will start to notice. They will misinterpret what you’re doing and believe you’re unable to do your job.

You can save face if you walk away from a toxic workplace or problem you can’t solve and manage. You won’t be seen as someone who can’t do their job. You’ll be seen as someone who knows when to walk away from a situation.

Many people who want to quit their jobs fear the consequences, especially if their jobs are niche and not many employers need their skills.

Offshore remote work

However, you can search beyond your local area. Consider roles that are open to offshore remote working.

We know remote working is now part of the work environment fabric. Technology has enabled video conferencing, hybrid workplace tools, and employee apps.

Businesses that would ordinarily struggle to get elite employees can use offshore freelancers with their own hybrid work environment, including a room at home. Does this appeal to you? Here’s another business blog article on the future of work.

Conclusion

Working life is stressful and only worsens as technology advances and companies rely on automation.

As robots and artificial intelligence take away our jobs, we must learn to do less and reduce our stress levels. There are several ways to do this without giving up your job.

Quiet quitting work will definitely give you your leisure time back. Work on your mindfulness to destress; if you believe you’re not winning the battle of overwork, you can quit your job and take control of your next career move.

We all probably spend too much time online. Start measuring your time on social media and proactively put your smartphone down more often. Also, take breaks during your workday and learn to say “no” to unnecessary tasks.