Lindsay Crouse and Kirby Ferguson have put together a video opinion piece at The NY Times that notes:
It’s a five-minute presentation that offers a different perspective on the idea that only losers quit — sometimes quitting is the way to win bigger, or just stop losing. Assuming I did it correctly, the link above should get people past the Times pay wall.
Here’s the preface:
It’s been a brutal few years. But we’ve gritted through. We’ve spent time languishing. We’ve had one giant national burnout. And now, finally, we’re quitting.
We are quitting our jobs. Our cities. Our marriages. Even our Twitter feeds.
And as we argue in the video above, we’re not quitting because we’re weak. We’re quitting because we’re smart.
It echoes what the 18-year-old singer Olivia Rodrigo expresses so profoundly when she laments, “I’m so tired that I might quit my job, start a new life, and they’d all be so disappointed, ’cause who am I if not exploited?” Perhaps it’s fitting that younger Americans like Ms. Rodrigo and the extraordinary Simone Biles are barely old enough to rent a car but they are already teaching us about boundaries. They’ve seen enough hollowed-out millennials to know what the rest of us are learning: Don’t be a martyr to grit.
Lindsay Crouse (@lindsaycrouse) is a writer and producer in Opinion. Kirby Ferguson (@remixeverything) is a documentary filmmaker.
emphasis added
The video acknowledges that quitting is not an option for some things — but argues that it is an option that needs more honest consideration. Sometimes quitting is the first step on the path to doing better. Sometimes quitting is the best response to situations that are not working out.
There is a lot of concern that too many people are quitting and jobs are going unfilled. (This exploration of why jobs are being left empty reveals how hollow that narrative is — and how wide the gulf between the expectations of employers and what workers want has become.)
Have you quit something? Are you thinking of quitting? Did quitting work out for you in the past? Do you wish you had quit something? Share in comments.
Wednesday, Oct 20, 2021 · 4:50:00 PM +00:00 · xaxnar
UPDATE: This comment from nchristine illustrates just how bad business ‘management’ is at understanding what they are asking employees to do, and how they are setting themselves up for failure.
If you are an employer who doesn’t respect your workers, if you treat them as interchangeable and disposable, don’t be surprised if your business goes under. Of course if that’s what you are doing, you will likely blame them for your blunders.
If you are someone working for a company like that, quitting could save your sanity — and possibly your life. Plus it’s better to get out before the collapse than after.