According to Annie McKee, author of How to Be Happy at Work, there’s nothing worse than feeling unseen and unheard in the workplace.

We all have a human need to be appreciated for our efforts, and when our contributions go unnoticed, it makes us feel as though we don’t belong.

Which is exactly what happened to Reddit user DepartmentKiller. After the worker spent a considerable amount of time at a company, management declined to give them a raise (even though they awarded themselves with fat bonuses), and what’s even worse, they openly ridiculed anyone who thought about leaving, saying the departees wouldn’t find anything better.

But the Redditor and his colleagues proved the toxic bosses wrong, leaving the pathetic jerks with $100M in deals and nobody to take care of them.

Continue scrolling to read their story and don’t miss out on the conversation we had with Jackie Mitchell, a certified career and life coach at her own consulting firm—it will definitely help to contextualize the text.

These toxic managers exploited their workers in order to pay themselves huge bonuses

Image credits: Yan Krukov (not the actual photo)

But it was only a matter of time before people started quitting on them

Image credits: Gustavo Fring (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Sora Shimazaki (not the actual photo)

Image credits: DepartmentK

Jackie Mitchell, who also runs the Benchtalk Podcast, a show about living bold and taking strategic action, said that the number one factor that diminishes our work satisfaction is less than ideal management. “A company is a container,” she told Bored Panda. “The managers and leadership will make or break its ability to perform at peak.”

“A company’s peak performance relies heavily on its human resources, its people. When a manager is not good to work with, then … employees will begin the phenomenon of quiet quitting and ultimately quit [for real].”

And she has a point. Gallup estimates that managers account for at least 70% of variance in employee engagement scores across business units. So if the higher-ups at the company our Redditor worked at don’t change the way they treat their employees, they can probably expect more quits.

Gallup studied performance at hundreds of organizations and measured the engagement of 27 million employees and more than 2.5 million work units over two decades, and no matter the industry, size, or location, they found executives struggling to unlock the mystery of why performance varies from one workgroup to the next. Performance metrics fluctuate widely and unnecessarily in most companies, in no small part from the lack of consistency in how people are treated.

But before you make a move like the hero of this story, ask yourself whether you’re being realistic about the amount of appreciation you expect from your boss, colleagues, peers, and clients.

The feedback might not be as much as you want but it might be reasonable within the context of your organization. After all, you are dealing with human beings, and even with good intentions, they might overlook what you do and take you for granted.

When you’re feeling unappreciated, try analyzing your recent accomplishments. For example, ask yourself, “Was my work extraordinary?” “Was it over and above what my peers typically do?” And “If I had to ask for credit for it, would I sound like a jerk?”

If your efforts are going unsung, you can try engaging your manager in a conversation. But of course, you should be subtle in the way you go about it. Instead of saying, “I want more appreciation,” a phrase like “I’d like to talk about the past few months and get a sense of where my strengths lie and where I could improve” would be way better.

However, this will be easier with some bosses and harder with others, and if yours doesn’t pay attention to human needs, keep in mind that you’re not going to change that person. You can only signal that you’d like more dialogue on your performance.

“Leadership must take an active role in employee retention,” Mitchell said. “It’s more than offering great benefits, popcorn on Fridays, virtual coffee chats, etc. I point to leadership to shift the culture of any organization.”

“As employees, we must be diligent in selecting companies and managers (not bosses) that align with the values and vision we have for our careers. We can never change a situation. We can change the way we think about the situation. We reframe.”

“We are responsible for where we stay and what circumstances we live with. If it’s not good or pleasing to you, then it’s time to take your talents elsewhere. There’s always an ‘elsewhere,'” the career and life coach explained.

According to her, we always know when we should look for another employment opportunity. “We sometimes don’t want to face the fact that it’s time. Fear tends to rule our actions or inaction. Once you’re feeling stressed and anxious about your daily routine and interactions, it’s time to go. Sometimes you can’t change the circumstance you’re in but you can change the circumstance you’re in.”

Mitchell stressed that we always have options. “Sometimes stepping back and looking at the full situation, you’ll see the ones that are available to you. You’re never stuck. You may have to hold out temporarily until something better is presented but you have to actively seek something better. It’s out there,” she added.

Maybe the multi-quit action will act as a wake-up call in this particular case?

Everyone was happy to hear the company got what it deserved

Some even shared similar stories of their own

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