Why the Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting Might be Best for Your Mental Health

WRITTEN BY HIRA KHAN

Quiet quitting is a new term that not everyone might have heard.

This is a central part of the Great Resignation, which began in early 2021 in the wake of the pandemic.

Quiet Quitting and the Great Resignation are indicators of a significant change in how people around the world view the importance of their careers in their daily lives.

Photograph by Peter Conlan

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a major shift in how people viewed their work/life balance. When life is as uncertain as it was during the pandemic's peak, it causes people to reconsider how they live their lives.

The profound changes to how people worked, socialized, and attended school have continued well past the pandemic's peak, creating a major shift in the lifestyles and priorities of everyone around the globe.

Mental Health and Quiet Quitting

Many studies done during the height of the pandemic indicated a sharp uptick in depression, anxiety, and other mental health problems.

One study identified increased levels of depression in 35% of their study participants.

The same study showed that 73% of participants struggled with poor sleep quality.

Much to the dismay of employers around the world, this increase in depression and anxiety has combined with a shift in perspective that has undermined the capitalistic values of working beyond your daily stated work hours and struggling for achievement and promotion no matter the cost.

These values have been touted for generations as a mark of social standing and career success.

Quiet Quitting began as a tiny movement discussed in a few internet forums and social media. As the pandemic dragged on, the movement gathered speed.

Quiet Quitting involves withdrawing from the grind of corporate life.

Quiet Quitting does not mean that you quit your job.

It means that you quit taking on extra tasks, responsibilities, and pressures that you are not paid to complete on a daily basis.

Corporate jobs' understaffed and harried nature is terrible for many people’s mental well-being.

Still, Quiet Quitting offers a chance to regain your work/life balance while dispensing with all the stress of forced achievement and overwork.

What is Ikigai?

Quiet Quitting has brought a new interest in the concept of Ikigai.

Ikigai is a Japanese concept that means the worth of life.

In Ikigai teachings, you focus on the activities and tasks that bring joy and inspiration to your life.

This can be any activity, big or small.

If you love reading, you can make sure that you focus part of your day on reading.

Ikigai also includes a focus on ten rules that help you to create priorities that are fulfilling to you.

If you have been struggling with your mental well-being and have felt that you cannot find the time for the things that make you happy, Quiet Quitting and a focus on Ikigai can help you achieve the well-being you have been looking for.

While for some people, corporate life is rewarding and exciting, for others, time with family and time for themselves is much more fulfilling.

The acknowledgment that social pressures can make us take on roles we don’t enjoy, and tasks that take away from what makes us happy is an important first step.

One of the key aspects of Ikigai is meditation to help cleanse your mind and allow your body the chance to be at rest.

Many people find that meditation helps them clarify their thoughts and attend to things that are causing stress in their life.

Even ten minutes of meditation daily can reduce your stress and help you handle daily challenges.

Quiet Quitting Can be an Effective Tool For Your Mental Health

If you have been struggling with your overall mental well-being, the first step is to identify what is making you feel depressed, anxious, or sad.

You might feel sad due to your job, or you could feel pressured in other areas of your personal and work life.

No matter what the reason behind your depressed or anxious feelings is, it might be worth trying Ikigai and Quiet Quitting can help you to get back your work/life balance if these practices are not already a part of your work life.  

Your mental well-being is very important, and prioritizing care for your mental health is critical.

Suppose Quiet Quitting and the pursuit of the concepts of Ikigai sound appealing.

In that case, you can use these mental well-being solutions to help make your life more fulfilling, happier, and less stressful.

Using meditation and a change to your work/life balance as tools, you can improve your mental health on a daily basics.◼︎