Jolted: Why We Quit, When to Stay, and Why It Matters

The new science of why we quit, whether we should, and how to make the right choices for our work and lives, by the organizational psychologist who predicted the Great Resignation

Most of us are just one event away from leaving our job. Conventional wisdom and lists of the “top reasons people quit their jobs” would have us believe that people quit when the toxic elements of their jobs grow too big or when they spot a better professional opportunity. But that’s only half the story. In reality, quitting is often triggered by a single event, inside or outside our jobs, that stops us in our tracks and causes us to rethink our relationship with work.

These events are what organizational psychologist Anthony Klotz calls “jolts,” and they are the most underacknowledged realities in our work lives today. Jolts represent pivotal moments in our careers, and yet all too often, we respond to them in ways that harm our well-being and success. In Jolted, Klotz breaks down the different types of jolts we encounter and provides a road map to help us navigate them in ways that improve, rather than derail, our pursuit of the good life through our work.