“I Quit!” video goes viral and pushes woman to internet fame

Published October 10, 2013 at 9:37 am

“I quit!”

Many disgruntled employees dream about saying those words to their boss in the most dramatic way possible. But, how many actually do? Here’s a better question: How many find a way to do that and then land a job with Queen Latifah?

So far, the answer is just one.

Marina Shifrin worked for a Taiwanese company that creates viral videos. While working an overnight shift, Shifrin made a video of herself dancing to Kanye West’s “Gone.” Captions flowed across the bottom of the screen, describing the sacrifices Shifrin made over the years. It ended with the words “I quit” and “I QUIT” scrolling over her dance moves.

The video was posted to YouTube on September 28 and has garnered over 15 million views. Shifrin’s former company created a response video, in which it spoofed her dancing and said that it was hiring.

“I just kind of of realized that the job wasn’t really for me, and I hadn’t been sleeping because they were doing construction on my apartment,” Shifrin told Mashable, adding that she would like to be a stand-up comedian. “So, when I made that video, I hadn’t slept in a week. You’re watching me lose my marbles at work basically.”

However, Shifrin didn’t entirely tarnish her professional image. Actress Queen Latifah called and invited Shifrin to appear on her talk show. Latifah asked Shifrin if she had any regrets, to which the aspiring comedienne responded, “No, sometimes I think you need to forcefully close one door in order for the other one to open a little easier.”

Then, Latifah did something unexpected – she offered Shifrin a job.

Mashable reported that Shifrin has until October 14 to decide if she’ll accept the offer, but one thing is for sure: image might be everything, but everyone will respond to it a little differently. Success is determined by how how you decide to deal with audience reactions.