WINTER 2023

54 THE DISTRIBUTOR’S

54 THE DISTRIBUTOR’S LINK Jim Truesdell James Truesdell is President of Brauer Supply Company, a distributor of specialty fasteners, insulation, air filtration, and air conditioning with headquarters in St. Louis. Mr. Truesdell is adjunct professor at Saint Louis University and Webster University. An attorney and frequently published writer, he is the author of “Total Quality Management: Reports From the Front Lines”. ’QUIET QUITTING’ MAY NOT BE NEW BUT ITS SEEMING APPROVAL IS! Following the two year experience of the Pandemic we all witnessed what journalists called “The Great Resignation.” It was the result of people who had worked remotely, with little supervision, and who had a taste of freedom from tight regulation of their lives. Due to government hand-outs some were doing just fine without a job at all, thank you. The isolated existence caused a lot of introspective thinking and gave people the luxury of controlling their own time and how they wished to spend it. When vaccinations became widespread and the lockdown eased up, and companies called their workers back into the office, there were those who resisted the idea of going back to things as they were. They chose to quit their jobs and, at least temporarily, a shortage of workers almost everywhere allowed some to have their pick of jobs on their own terms or to use their accumulated government payouts to launch independent gigs where they were responsible only to themselves. In our industrial distribution industry, we experienced this to a lesser extent. The need to put delivered material on the shelves or to still populate a production line kept many of us at our physical job locations as “essential” workers. But office people sometimes became part of the remote workforce. Some of those choosing to leave their jobs experienced life without the security of a paycheck regularly coming in and, without the blanket of company benefits, some of “The Great Resigners” began to reconsider. They asked to come back or sought similar established company employment. This was especially so as a tightening economy started to ease the workerfriendly employment market. About this time, partially due to a viral Tik Tok video and other social media CONTRIBUTOR ARTICLE posts, it became a fashionable strategy to “Quit” one’s job. Just don’t tell your employer you have “quit”and then still draw pay and benefits while doing the bare minimum required of the job and flying under the radar of supervision. Doing this is much easier for those working remotely. This may be why so many of those asked to return to the office are balking. There are costs to an individual who decides, even if he or she feels wronged or alienated, to do just the minimum while remaining on the payroll as long as possible. These include: [1] Career growth can be self-sabotaged when you ultimately leave a bad impression (or fail to make a positive imprint) on not only supervisors, but on co-workers and team members. We never know who we will come into contact with in future jobs or industries. A memory of someone who was untrustworthy or failed to pull his or her weight can come up at the most inopportune times years down the road. Each job we hold gives us the chance to develop contacts and references who will be building blocks for future success. [2] Doing the bare minimum or giving less than our best becomes a habit. When we work at a snail’s pace or avoid difficult projects we may not be able to “turn it on” in our next job or when emergency circumstances require a maximum effort. We get caught in a rut of unproductive behavior. [3] Being exposed and fired for your lack of effort can be a career killer. The next employer very often will want to examine your performance at your last gig which often involves checking references or verifying accomplishments. CONTINUED ON PAGE 118

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