There’s a new kind of disengagement spreading quietly through workplaces, one that’s even harder to detect than the soft quitting we once understood.
In Episode 2 of Rewired, we explored how employees mentally check out long before they resign.
But today, it’s more complex. Faster. Finer.
And far easier for leaders to miss.
Soft Quitting 2.0 isn’t a dramatic behavioural shift.
It’s a series of micro-withdrawals, tiny behavioural cues that happen long before performance changes.
The New Face of Withdrawal
We used to recognise disengagement through silence, minimal effort, or reluctance to contribute. But now, the signs are subtler:
- The star performer who suddenly gives shorter updates.
- The once-curious colleague who stops asking clarifying questions.
- The team member who still shows up to every meeting but with nothing new to contribute.
This isn’t a motivation issue.
It’s a neurological response to systems that create overload, ambiguity, or repeated signals that effort isn’t tied to meaningful progress.
Appellon Principle:
“Withdrawal begins as a shift in capacity, long before it becomes a shift in commitment.”
When people can’t see progress, their brain conserves energy and disengagement accelerates.
Why Leaders Miss It
Soft quitting 2.0 blends in.
Especially in hybrid workplaces, where muted mics and silent participation look normal.
The irony?
People “overcompensate with compliance.”
They turn up. They appear steady. They stay polite.
But mentally, they’ve detached.
Compliance looks like stability.
But stability is not contribution.
Appellon Principle:
“If behaviour is predictable but progress is flat, you’re not seeing engagement, you’re seeing withdrawal.”
What leaders interpret as calm is often quiet disengagement.
Re-engagement Starts With the System
You can’t re-ignite someone’s commitment with motivational speeches because soft quitting isn’t emotional.
It’s behavioural.
And behaviour responds to system cues.
Three micro-interventions shift things quickly:
1️⃣ Visibility of progress - People re-engage when they can see their effort matters.
2️⃣ Clear finish lines - Ambiguity drains energy; clarity restores capacity.
3️⃣ Weekly recalibration - Asking:
- What’s working?
- What’s blocking?
- What’s next? shrinks uncertainty and restores momentum.
Appellon Principle:
“Re-engagement begins when the system reduces ambiguity and increases momentum.”
The Quiet Reality
Soft quitting 2.0 is efficient, silent, and systemic.
Most leaders realise too late that a high performer has already stepped back.
In the next episode, we move from behaviour to structure and explore why outdated management models are slowing culture without anyone noticing.
Until then, reflect:
Where is contribution lowering not because people don’t care, but because they can’t see a path forward?
Withdrawal is never a disappearance.
It’s a signal.