Rise and Grind,” “Hustle Harder,” “Got Dreams Worth More than My Sleep.” We belong to a generation where the “hustle doesn’t stop,” and we won’t shut up about it. Are you suddenly motivated while the guilt of getting a good night’s sleep, for once, seeps in? These quotes often translate to numerous cups of coffee, dark circles, meals on the run, exhaustion, significant anxiety, and eventual burnout if you think about it. Don’t get us wrong, it’s great to live by these slogans, given that you’re not losing sight of what the goal really is. Now, is the goal to blindly hustle, or actually achieve targets you set for yourself?

Hustle culture refers to the trend of making sure your entire life revolves around work, at the cost of your wellness. It is the constant pursuit of professional success carved by working around the clock. This culture exists widely amongst millennials who are motivated to reap maximum benefits out of their professional endeavors. It stems from having access to more prominent platforms for people, only to seek public validation. Considering many youngsters do have a say in their career choices today, loving the job tends to be a common and welcome side-effect.

However, this drive may be misdirected. More often than not, hustling can lead to chronic stress, which bears mental health issues, cardiovascular diseases, food disorders, etc. It’s basically eating more than you can chew, then talking about how great the food is when you regret the bite itself. Wait for your smile to slowly fade, and you eventually throw up. Not pretty, is it?

With numerous social-media heavy jobs in the market today, hustle culture is at its virtual peak. Various content creators on Instagram and YouTube show people an “ideal” life from driving yourself to work at an unrealistic rate. This eventually ends up becoming toxic as one slowly puts their personal needs on the back burner. A 21 one-year-old shared her account of following a content creator on Social media. She said, “I remember watching a globally acclaimed YouTuber’s vlog channel, it gave me so much anxiety because they kept setting unreasonable targets for the day to remain productive. The flip side is– they would breakdown every couple of days because of the pressure. What’s the point of working yourself that much if it’s going to worsen your mental health?”

Much like social media, corporate culture enables this ‘workaholic’ behavior by assigning heavier workloads to their younger employees to milk their enthusiasm. Although some employees really shine during this phase, many would prefer to have a life outside of work. Though the conversation around setting reasonable work goals started gaining traction, many still seem to romanticize unreasonable work-demands.  A friend recently asked a question– “But is hustle culture (and this is a question, cause I genuinely don’t know)- “I love my work, and I’m going to work as hard as possible to stay committed until this comes to fruition” or is it “Look at how much I’m working, I’m running on 3 cups of coffee and 3 hours of sleep I’m so proud of myself.”

Dedication and hard work are the roots of leading a successful life– but can we not show our commitment without compromising our personal well-being and interpersonal relationships? We need to take a step back and learn to prioritize ourselves. This can be done in small moderations. For example, create deadlines for work hours outside the office; you can take an hour or two before bed to unwind that way. Next morning, make sure you’re neither eating on the go nor skipping meals. Setting goals away from the professional sphere is critical. The trick is to be mindful of what you do in a day. It takes a bit of getting used to, but it’s better than burnout, right?

All in all, being driven and focused is not the real evil; doing so at the cost of your mental and physical health definitely is. You can use the concept of hustling as long as it motivates and energizes you, but knowing when to take a step back is essential. Ensure you introspect if your constant hustle is leading to you burning out altogether. Hustle, but only to be the most well-rounded version of yourself.