Quiet quitting is the topic of workplace discussion, especially on TikTok.
Quiet quitting, which isn’t actually about quitting a job, is when salaried employees only perform work duties during their set work hours. According to Metro, this can mean turning down projects based on interest or refusing to answer work messages outside of working hours.
TikTok Mania
It is a social media craze brought to the workplace by TikTok, being led by disenfranchised and burnt-out 9-to-5 workers, typically between the ages of 16 and 35.
The movement got popularized after user Zaid Khan, a 24-year-old New York engineer, posted a video sharing her belief that her place of employment does not define her life.
“You are still performing your duties, but you are no longer subscribing to the hustle culture mentally that work has to be our life. The reality is, it’s not, and your worth as a person is not defined by your labor,” Khan said.
Quiet quitting is a product of The Great Resignation, another economic movement where employees voluntarily resigned from jobs in demand of better workplace standards.
Is Quiet Quitting Setting Workplace Boundaries or a Bad Decision?
Despite being still gainfully employed, quiet quitting is objectively a bad career decision.
Canadian businessman, entrepreneur, and “Shark Tank” television personality Kevin O’Leary, also known as “Mr. Wonderful,” doesn’t believe in quiet quitting. He points out, employees who solve team problems, especially for their bosses, are the ones succeeding–even if it means putting in unpaid hours.
Actively working against your employment’s objective is counterintuitive, says O’Leary.
“The whole point is you’re there to make the business work. You have to go beyond not because you’re forced to, not because you have to, you have to go beyond because you want to,” O’Leary told CNBC.
“People who shut down their computers at 5 p.m., want that balance in their life, want to go to the soccer game, 9-to-5 only, they don’t work for me.”
Quiet Quitting Probably Not Going Away
According to The FinTech Times, in 2025, a study from Deloitte finds that Gen Z will reportedly represent more than 25 percent of the world’s workforce, with 32 percent of this generation vying for more workplace and social life balance. This contradicts the traditional worker ethos, as only 29 percent of Gen Z care about learning and development opportunities, and 25 percent of Gen Z workers care about earning a salary.
Quiet quitting can also affect what employers are looking for in an employee, as Michael Timmes, a senior specialist at Insperity, a human resources consulting firm told CNBC.
Although quiet quitting could usher in better workplace accommodations and lead people to pursue passion projects, the drawbacks of the trend, such as having low motivation, unpolished skills, and no flexibility and teamwork skills, dampen the overall point of balance.
“The only problem: the trend isn’t reflecting this mentality at the moment,” Timmes said.”From an office perspective, quiet quitting can cause conflicts between employees, as some employees will feel others aren’t carrying their weight,” he added.
