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Business Daily

Is it okay to be mediocre at work?

Business Daily

BBC

Business

4.4816 Ratings

🗓️ 29 February 2024

⏱️ 18 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The idea of settling for ‘good enough’ and being mediocre at work is not new… but the case for prioritising other things apart from work has grown rapidly since the pandemic – and hashtags like #lazygirljob have been getting millions of views on TikTok.

We find out what mediocrity means for staff and employers, and speak to workers who are embracing this new attitude.

We hear from Jaime Ducharme, Time Magazine journalist who wrote an article about mediocrity in the workplace, Gabrielle Judge who started #lazygirljob on TikTok, and Dr Thomas Curran from the London School of Economics.

Produced and presented by Clare Williamson

(Image: A woman looking bored at work. Credit: Getty Images)

Transcript

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0:00.0

The Global Story, with smart takes and fresh perspectives on one big news story, every Monday to Friday from the BBC World Service.

0:11.5

Search for The Global Story, wherever you get your BBC podcasts, to find out more.

0:19.4

Hello and welcome to Business Daily on the BBC World Service.

0:23.4

I'm Claire Williamson.

0:24.9

How are you feeling about your job?

0:26.9

Reved up and ready for anything or burnt out and ready to quit?

0:31.1

Since the pandemic, it seems that the work-life priorities of lots of people,

0:35.4

especially younger people, have been shifting.

0:38.0

You've probably seen and heard the buzzwords across social media.

0:41.5

I recently learned about this term called quiet quitting, where you're not outright quitting

0:45.9

your job, but you're quitting the idea of going above and beyond.

0:49.2

Good morning. This is your daily reminder that being mediocre is not always a bad thing.

0:54.5

Here's how you can get a lazy girl job today.

0:56.8

And it's all on the job interview.

0:58.7

That last voice was a TikTok star known as the anti-work girl boss.

1:03.1

We'll hear more from her, as well as a young, high-achieving journalist who is no longer trying too hard.

1:08.6

And that's when I really started to think about the role that I wanted work to play in my life

1:12.7

and what mediocrity meant and how it could actually potentially be a good thing.

1:18.2

And a psychologist gives us his take on what's driving these trends and why employers should

1:23.7

take note.

1:24.5

So you just have to think of a little bit smarter, first and foremost, about how we organise our working environment

1:29.8

so as to provide the right amount of challenge,

...

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