How do entrepreneurs quiet quit?
I moved into employee engagement consulting about a year ago, before “quiet quitting” hit the mainstream, but after “The Great Resignation” commenced. After 15 years in public service, I saw a lack of employee engagement and a rise in burnout driving historic quit rates (and now lowering U.S. productivity, as a former Treasury Secretary opined yesterday). I saw a particular way to address it – one that wasn’t being represented by some of the larger consultants in the game. Even though I worked as an HR Specialist, I wasn’t able to do the specific type of work I knew could solve the largest labor crisis in history. I couldn’t do it because it didn’t exist.
So I created it. I saw a problem and found a solution. I took a risk, hoping others would see the value in my approach and pay me for it. They did, eventually paying enough that I could leave the public service realm and focus exclusively on my business. My solopreneurship isn’t the next Facebook, but it’s still an entrepreneur’s dream. I’m as proud of WhyWork as I am of Travis, the 12-pound rescue dog featured heavily in my marketing materials. Well, almost as proud (I am a Millennial dog mom after all).
The process I use to increase employee engagement and decrease burnout isn’t rocket science. I ask employees specific questions about their hopes, dreams, and daily stressors. I write down what they say (translating some of the Gen Z words) and capture it as an individual engagement plan. I give the plan to their boss and ask them to talk about it. Then (if their leadership is human), they try to incorporate more of what the individual loves to do in their daily activities. Not every minute of every day, but enough for employees to spend at least 20 percent of their day doing things they love – the minimum to avoid burnout according to the Mayo Clinic.
What about the entrepreneurs and small business owners though – who is helping us find balance between work and life? Who helps us avoid the tasks that drain our energy, especially when someone didn’t show up to their shift the night before? Who takes things off our plate when burnout comes calling? Our business is our baby. We’re passionate about it. At some point, if that business grows large enough, the people we hire are passionate about it too. At least most of them were passionate about it at first, but somewhere along the way they burned out. They got separated from what they loved (or thought they loved) about the job. They “quiet quit” and now we’re struggling to pick up the pieces, wondering when we can quiet quit too.
The hard truth is most entrepreneurs can’t erect strong work-life boundaries. We’re the risk-takers, the round pegs in the square holes, and the ones crazy enough to think our idea could change the world. We eat, sleep, and breathe our business. Passion only fuels you for so long though. At some point you snap out of it and find you fell asleep on the stack of brochures you were so excited to open the day before (and those ink stains are hard to get out).
If you work for an entrepreneur (nearly half of all American jobs are in small businesses, so chances are you do) - please be kind to us. Though my partner and dog beg to differ, we’re not trying to create a toxic work environment. Just like you, many of us are exhausted and stressed. We’re fighting every day to keep the ember of our business alive without burning out ourselves. If you’re unhappy, come talk to us. We’ll try to really listen. We want you to succeed - our business relies on it. We’ll tell you what’s happening behind the scenes and improve the situation if at all possible. We’ll communicate if you give us the nudge and the words to understand what’s happening.
How do I know we’ll react this way? In my line of work, I see it every day.