Setting boundaries for quiet quitting
Doing the bare minimum or just having healthy boundaries?
Co-founder of the Lowdown, Karmjit, talks through top tips for having boundaries at work, and why quiet quitting doesn’t mean you’ve checked out from your job …
There’s been a lot of talk about “quiet quitting” lately. Defining it has focused on doing ‘the bare minimum’ or ‘checking out’ at work - just turning up for the salary. But when we looked into what the traits are for those who are apparently “quiet quitting”, it seems to us that the behaviour of these ‘quitters” was more about having healthy boundaries.
Not going above and beyond your job description, outside of work hours to protect your physical and mental health, as well as your social life, should be considered normal - not the signs of someone quietly giving up on their job.
If you want to focus on setting healthy boundaries at work, here are our top 5 tips:
Identify your boundaries
Everyone’s work boundaries are different so first figure out what’s important to you. Some examples of where you might want to set boundaries are -
Not working outside work hours
Delegating
Not sharing your personal life at work
Feeling pressured to socialise in ways you don’t want to (e.g. drinking alcohol)
Taking on extra work (see our Insights into office housework)
Going to work events outside work hours
Having uninterrupted time to get important work done
Once you know what your boundaries are, you can work on how to communicate and protect them …
2. Be clear - don’t apologise or over-explain
It’s not always easy to push back on boundary crossing in busy and competitive work environments. You might feel you’re going against what the work norm is. But you don’t need to apologise and give a list of reasons why you are saying no to something. Be clear and concise, give plenty of notice where you can and be sure to manage people’s expectations of you. The more you do it, the easier it’ll get. Here are some examples of saying no or pushing back on something that crosses one of your boundaries:
Meeting times outside of work hours
I’m not available at the time you’ve suggested which is outside of my working hours. How about X time instead?
Taking on extra work that’s outside your job description or doesn’t benefit you
I’ve looked at my priorities and workload that I can manage without going outside my working hours and I won’t be able to take on this task - can we talk about whether this can be de-prioritised or delegated?
Colleagues asking about your personal life
I prefer to keep my personal life private so I’m not going to talk about that. OR I don’t feel comfortable sharing those kinds of details in the workplace.
3. Create a structure and communicate it
There are some tactics and structures you can put in place that can protect your time:
Take advantage of the ‘do not disturb’ and ‘unavailable’ functions on platforms like Teams and Slack if you need some downtime to get something done. You’ll feel less pressure to respond immediately and your colleagues will be less likely to expect instant responses from you.
You can also block out times in your calendar that say you’re unavailable or working on a priority and won’t be available or be responding in that time window.
You can also agree with your team or colleagues, or use your calendar to block out days or times of the day that you want to keep free of meetings so you’re not back to back on calls. Have a regular “lunch” slot in your diary too, so people will think twice about putting meetings in over lunch. If you’re a manager or work in a team, create regular catch-ups with key colleagues which can be more efficient than writing lots of emails, and use team meetings to delegate what you can.
And remember to actually take your annual leave - and don’t check emails while you’re off.
4. You can compromise - but make sure it works for you
There’ll be times you might need to compromise and give up some protected time or go to that extra meeting. Figure out where you are most willing to compromise on boundaries, or how to do it in a way that benefits you as well as others. Are there some events that are worth going to or an extra project to pick up just for a week that is good for your own personal and professional development?
5. Be prepared to respond if boundaries are crossed
Whether it’s your manager or another colleague crossing your boundaries, prepare yourself to raise it with them or talk about it so it doesn’t become a pattern. Give yourself some time rather than doing it immediately after a line is crossed so that you have time to think about what you want to say. Set aside time to talk to them privately and explain how you feel. In some circumstances if it becomes a serious issue, you can think about raising it with HR or talk to someone you trust about it - this is also where a mentor can come in and give some advice on how to respond.
While we hope these tips are helpful for setting boundaries, we’re not ignorant to the argument that quiet quitting can be harder if you’re a woman and / or person of colour. Yes. Read this article to find out more.
