There’s a new buzzword floating through corporate circles: quiet working.
The term originally pointed to employees working during scheduled time off. Not just scanning emails or fielding the odd emergency, but actively contributing from behind the scenes, without telling anyone.
But let’s flip the lens.
What happens when it’s not frontline employees doing this, but senior leaders?
That’s when quiet working moves from a personal habit to a cultural signal — and the impact runs deeper than you think.
The Leadership Effect
In high-performing organizations, employees take their cues from the top. If senior leadership regularly works through vacation, two messages get communicated loud and clear:
- Time off isn’t really time off
- Value is tied to constant availability
Whether you mean to send those messages or not, that’s what lands. So when a VP responds to messages from the lake house, or an exec joins Zoom calls from the beach, it may feel like dedication, but it reads as expectation.
The result? Your team starts doing the same — not because it helps the business, but because they think that’s what’s required.
And that’s where the damage begins.
Time Off is a Strategic Asset
The case for vacation isn’t just about self-care. It’s about performance.
Time off improves focus, boosts decision-making, and increases productivity. Leaders who take real breaks come back sharper. Teams that see their leaders unplug are more likely to do the same.
But when vacation becomes “working remotely with better scenery,” no one wins. Instead of recharge time, you get fragmented attention. Instead of trust in the system, you get anxiety about falling behind.
Over time, this leads to burned-out teams and brittle workflows, all masked under the illusion of commitment.
What “Quiet Working” Leaders Might Be Telling Themselves
It’s easy to justify.
Maybe it’s a tough quarter. Maybe there’s a board presentation coming. Maybe you don’t want your inbox overflowing when you get back.
So you skim and reply. You join “just one” meeting. You forward that one file that only you can access.
And just like that, you’ve taught your team that even you can’t step away. That the system falls apart without constant supervision. That leadership means being always on.
It doesn’t.
What to Do Instead
1. Model the Boundaries You Want Others to Respect
If you want your teams to use their PTO, start by using yours. Fully.
That means setting a true out-of-office message. Delegating responsibilities clearly. Not responding unless it’s truly urgent — and even then, asking whether it can wait.
The farther up the ladder you are, the more weight your absence carries. Which also means, when you get it right, the example is that much stronger.
2. Build Coverage Systems You Trust
If you feel like you have to check in while away, ask yourself why.
Are roles poorly defined? Are key approvals bottlenecked under one person? Are decisions delayed because no one else is empowered to make them?
The fix isn’t to stay looped in forever. The fix is to build a system that functions without you.
Strong leadership builds capacity, not dependency.
3. Create a Culture Where Rest Is Respected
Leadership isn’t just about setting goals. It’s about setting norms.
Normalize recovery. Celebrate people who use their time off well. De-link “responsiveness” from “reliability.” Start praising healthy boundaries the same way you praise project wins.
Because if your team sees that success comes from working through vacation, that’s exactly what they’ll do — until they burn out.
4. Look for the Quiet Signals
Sometimes, the most dangerous problems don’t announce themselves.
If your managers start mirroring your behavior — joining meetings on PTO, replying to emails from the airport lounge, quietly skipping vacation altogether — that’s a sign.
It’s not loyalty. It’s fear. Or habit. Or an internalized belief that rest isn’t compatible with leadership.
That needs correction. Not applause.
Final Thought
Quiet working may look harmless, especially when it comes from senior leaders. But the cost is cultural. It tells your teams that stepping away isn’t safe, that value depends on always being available, and that work is something that never ends.
Real leadership means more than showing up. It means knowing when to step back — and making sure everyone else feels safe doing the same.
When leaders take rest seriously, so does the rest of the organization. And that’s when everyone brings their best back to the table.