Silent Renunciation: Psychobiological Manifestations Of Our Time
Change is a fact, whether we register it or not. Being aware of this change is a challenge that we must face. Keeping our present under observation is a step to health. Not losing sight and recording the manifestations and modifications of our behaviors is the possibility of making a favorable transformation.
We are going through a change in the traditional idea of ​​work and occupations The new generations and the pandemic brought new skills to which we had to adapt or be left behind.
The digitalization of work processes with the need to streamline them, the different ways of making collections and payments, the digital signature, the almost total use of the computer even to attend to health issues and the stop making contacts in person are already reality and present. Today the question is: online or in person? Something that a few years ago was unthinkable. This is how changes happen, with speed and surprise, in such a way that we must streamline our mind and recreate skills. Everything is different and more comes.
It is so that new behaviors emerge, as well as new pathologies. We are talking about eco-anxiety, physical symptoms related to the use of computers, postural problems, vision problems, pathologies typical of stress and the workplace, which is not left out of these effects, this is how quiet quitting or silent resignation is presented. A behavior that is associated with new generations, but it is not so; It is seen more clearly in millennials, but this way of behaving is also followed by people of all ages.
Silent resignation is neither more nor less than the product of the combination between sustained stress and burnout. The latter is referred to the symptoms of job burnout which entails manifestations such as anxiety, fatigue, lack of concentration or mental exhaustion.
Initially it was associated with health workers, it referred to the physical and psychological effects that were found in primary care or intensive care personnel, for example doctors, nurses, and in mental health workers it was associated with the overload in queries and demands.
Today it is no longer limited to a single defined group, which, although broad, has already expanded to the office and companies that are outside those sectors. Quiet quitting was extended to all people who hold job positions.
The valorization of the moments of life based on how volatile it was during the pandemic, caused a response that in itself is the reaction to the fear of the finitude and ephemerality of life.
The intention to resignify fear and find a way to control how time escapes , led to a form of half-solution, I would say it is a compromise solution between what I feel and how to solve it. In other words, this transactional solution is nothing more than a new social symptom and as such calls to be listened to and treated.
New ways of understanding work unrest
Nowadays stress is a public health issue. We live in such a way that we feel on alert almost all the time.
The war, the unforeseen, going through the mistakes of the past again and again with the sadness of not having learned. Economic crises, social insecurity, inconsistency of governments, carelessness about how we treat natural resources and poor attention to the health of the population in general, lead us to live waiting for an attack and this is how our delicate anatomy receives it. Autoimmune diseases, heart diseases, allergies, etc. are growing. All of this is a product of keeping our body and mind at continued exposure to stress
Thus we look for ways out, those that are more at hand such as alcohol, drugs, uncontrolled parties and others that are no less dangerous such as silent renunciation. But because it is silent it is not less harmful, and I equate it because in the different exits, what we talk about is evasion and not a solution. By upholding rights, we do not dedicate ourselves to finding the reasons and solving them in an adult manner, being aware that what is needed are changes in the way of seeing and resolving.
We look for solutions at hand, but not basic solutions when what is clear is that more changes are coming and that we must be mentally prepared to carry them out in a healthy way.
Quiet quitting is neither more nor less than what at some point was the so-called regulation work , that is, responding by working for what I am paid, and this is not bad, in any way, what happens are the inconveniences that arise, because in general and until now, the tasks for which we are paid do not are clearly defined. In some professions, especially those that are related to the risk of people’s lives, we would not know how to limit them, so the issue deserves a slightly more precise review of both jobs and salaries.
From the psychology of organizations, we know that the employees who do their jobs best are those who perceive that their work, the task for which they were called, is in a fair relationship with the remuneration they receive, both monetary and otherwise. This self-perception is broader when an employee receives career plans, progress in their work, work flexibility, remuneration or extra bonuses… You will evaluate your work and your decisions differently when reviewing your destiny in the company or your departure , on others that are outside of those stimuli. These are nothing more than recognitions of their work. Recognition of the task, connection and empathy from your bosses, whatever the level, is a key condition when evaluating what I can give and whether I want to do it.
The realization that more is being given than received brings resentment and feelings of oppression.
The deficiency in public, business and government policies does not allow the development of the sensible and adult expression of these feelings, and brings responses of the order of silent resignation, in addition to generating among the same colleagues feelings of injustice and incomprehension from those in charge. superiors.
What can be done?
A change in business dynamics is necessary to improve the mental health of employees, reduce diseases caused by stress such as hypertension, obesity and insomnia, among others. All pathologies that increase exponentially in young people and that decisively reduce human capital and generate, among other things, discomfort when remaining in the workplace, generating an increase in sick leave and harming everyone involved. That is to say, it is time to take the problem in such a way that its approach is general and with a comprehensive view to solve it.
Silent resignation is nothing more than the effect of emotions and sensations that people do not have the opportunity to express and heal with words, which is why they manifest themselves in actions, and which result in a group of people who are unhappy in their work or in the way they conduct themselves. It is true that the responsibility is not only on the management side, it is also on each person.
The topic deserves a conscious review of why and why we work, what we work on and what is the relationship we establish with this important part of our life, which when it works well makes us strengthen our value, be happy, and perform better at home. and at work and then by the mere development of things it exalts us as a society.
It is an issue of great social implication as a whole because change is continuous and inexorable and we do not want to apply the Darwinian rule that the fittest survives.
I think at this point we must cultivate brotherhood and empathy , offer the means so that we can all start from the same opportunities, then we will see what each person does with that, but that is another topic that will come later. Involvement in what happens to us, not looking the other way, participating, is the duty of all of us, each one with what he can, that is the key to change.
Finding logical and studied measures to achieve better production, more loyalty to the company, a better work environment and connection with ourselves regarding the meaning of work in our lives is a pending task.
It is obvious that there are special cases that need appropriate treatment, here in these few words we can only state and show that the real possibility of well-being is feasible if we dedicate ourselves to seeing people as suffering, emotional beings and sometimes without tools to resolve problems. challenges that life imposes on them.
We must try to get involved in what happens to us, record our feelings and emotions our particular conditions, ask for help if necessary and from there find real and mature solutions, understanding that we are all part of the problem, but also part of the solution.
Joint work among all professionals who can provide ideas and responses to the new scourges that arise as a result of the social situations of this fast-paced and not always fair life, is part of the solution and will prevent evasive responses to the feelings that arise from the inevitable process of change that we have to live through.
