The REAL Work Trends To Look Out For In 2024

Today published a survey by Indeed.com forecasts workplace trends that will continue to dominate in 2024.

These include rage applying, quiet quitting and moonlighting.

I can’t help but feel that most of us would already know these things.

A more helpful version would be to develop new trends to capture the essence of each new workplace behaviour or situation.

I powered up my Google Doc and started going at it.

The short version went on LinkedIn, and I got a lot of LOL.

So here is the longer version.

💣 Zoomboombombing: A surprise mass layoff conducted entirely via a single, awkward Zoom call.

🫰 The Thanos Snap: When a company randomly lays off half its workforce to “balance the budget.”

🕺 LayoffTok: The latest TikTok trend where employees document their getting-fired experiences, complete with teary montages and angry rants.

🤳 Severance Selfie: The obligatory post-layoff picture, holding your severance package check with a forced thumbs-up. Usually done to boost LinkedIn likes.

📦 The Unboxing Video, but it’s Your Box of Belongings: A parody of unboxing videos, where employees record themselves packing up their desks after being let go.

😡 Rage Reapplying: Quitting your job in a fiery blaze of glory, then immediately reapplying for the same position just to mess with your ex-boss.

🔒 The Locked-Out Lament: The sudden realization you’re unemployed when your badge doesn’t work and your emails vanish, like a digital ghosting in the corporate underworld.

🥇 The Peak Performer Purge: Being laid off despite exceeding expectations or recently receiving a promotion, leaving you questioning the meaning of “merit” in the corporate dictionary.

💰 The Revenue River Rampage: Witnessing layoffs despite the company drowning in profits, leading to existential questions about shareholder greed and the true value of a human employee.

🫤 The Work-Life Blend Blender: When the line between work and personal life becomes so blurred, it’s impossible to tell which is which.

🎭 The Exit Interview Improv: When you have to make up positive feedback about your former employer on the spot, while secretly hoping they’ll beg you to stay.

👋 The Bye-Bye Bonus: When you get a generous severance package that makes you wonder if you should have been fired sooner.

👑 The King of the Hill: When you’re the last one standing after a series of layoffs, and you have to do the work of ten people.

👏 The Slow Clap of Disapproval: When you sarcastically applaud your boss for their poor leadership or decision-making, hoping they’ll get the hint.

🍾 The Post-Toxic Champagne Celebration: When you throw a party with your fellow laid-off coworkers, celebrating your freedom from a toxic work environment.

👑 The ChatGPT King: When you use ChatGPT to generate content for your work, such as reports, articles, or presentations, and pass it off as your own, without giving any credit or citation to the AI tool. You may get praised for your creativity and eloquence, but you also risk getting exposed or accused of plagiarism.

Are there more you can think of? Let me know in the comments below.