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In today’s highly competitive world, hustle culture has become the norm. On paper, hustle culture seems good, but in reality, it can be quite dangerous.
Hustle culture is all about constant work. Those who believe in hustle culture try to devote as many hours as possible to working or hustling. According to this culture, work is meant to be done everywhere, not just in the office. That's because we have the tools to work anywhere we want. It's a lifestyle that's celebrated by a lot of people, including major companies.
The reason people believe in hustle culture and grind is because it usually results in climbing the corporate ladder quicker or getting the results you want faster in business. Studies have shown that more working hours have a positive correlation with higher corporate positions. That sounds good, but the study also showed that mental health and sleep quality get worse with more working hours.
Why Hustle Culture is Toxic to Mental Health
The first step towards undoing the effects of hustle culture is to identify the issues associated with it. Here're six reasons:
1) Greater is Not Always Better
Hustle culture is not as productive as it seems. In theory, working for lots of hours might seem like it will get you a lot of results, but in reality, things are different.
Hustle culture focuses on quantity over quality and promotes getting as much done as possible instead of focusing on the quality of work. The law of diminishing returns shows why working more isn’t always the right idea.
The law saus that at some point the benefits gained are less than the amount of energy invested. At some point, working more won’t help you get the results you want. Also, as mentioned before, studies have shown that working too much adversely impacts mental health.
So if you keep working with poor mental health, the quality of work you deliver is going to suffer.
2) Increases Stress Response
Hustle culture induces a sense of fight or flight in employees by requiring them to adopt a 'go hard or go home' mentality.
Cortisol is released more frequently and in larger amounts as a result of stress. The body must enter a state of rest to bring these increased cortisol levels back to normal. However, what if the culture of hustle doesn't allow for downtime? Burnout becomes unavoidable.
Your emotional and physical health can get impacted by stress. Chronic levels of cortisol have been linked to many negative outcomes, including anxiety, depression, heart disease, memory problems, and others.
3) Unhealthy Sense of Competition
Imagine having two employees with the same designation and working for the same company. Even after hours, the first employee continues to work and answers emails. The second employee prioritizes work-life balance and turns off gadgets when they aren't in use.
The first employee receives a higher appraisal and a promotion in the appraisal cycle. When the second employee notices that, he/she is forced to work harder to get a bigger raise.
Over time, working too much becomes the standard across the company because doing more work equates to being more credible and earning more money. That leads to an endless loop of unhealthy competition.
4) Impacts the Present
We lose the ability to be conscious of the present moment, which is associated with improved psychological well-being. However, hustle culture leads to the opposite result: Being constantly worked up raises our stress level and lowers our productivity.
The hustle culture damages relationships as well. We feel lonely when we are preoccupied with work and neglect our connections, which can also mean that no one is constantly checking on our wellbeing.
The body, mind, and spirit are all negatively impacted when we don't take the time to slow down, rest, reset, and enjoy life. Although we might not notice or feel the impact. things add up and impact our present.
5) Hurts Overall Health
A healthy mind requires a healthy body as well, and an affinity for hustle culture can harm your physical health as well. When you spend all that time working, you won’t have that much time to exercise.
A lack of physical activity can lead to many major health conditions that can make you unable to continue working. In the worst case scenario, working too much can lead to death. Work is good, and you need to put in constant effort, but it's important not to overdo it, and take care of yourself.
6) No Time for Self-care
You may find it difficult to enjoy hobbies or other leisure activities, as hustle culture lays a strong focus on being productive all the time.
It might be detrimental to your mental health to deny yourself the chance to unwind at the end of the day.
According to research, those who participate in hobbies are less likely to experience stress, depression, and low mood. Hobbies are a terrific way to meet new people and socialize.
Takeaway
Even if you have fallen prey to the lure of hustle culture, it’s possible to feel better. You can live a full, engaged life while maintaining your mental health.
By starting with small behavior changes, which are more likely to become habits, you can try to reduce the stress of hustle culture and maintain your mental health.
Janvi Kapur is a counselor with a Master's degree in applied psychology with a specialization in clinical psychology.
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