Hustling During the Pandemic
Unless you have a job that allows you to work however many hours you want without the responsibility of paying bills, making loan payments, and putting a roof over your head, you most likely are working at least one third of your day like most people with a full time job or several part time jobs do. In America it was surveyed that most people are so busy working that they do not use their vacation time as much as those living in other countries where their government encourage citizens to make vacation a necessity. The work culture has dramatically changed over the years where people are now working longer hours and the workload for an employee may be equivalent to the workload of several employees back in the days.
The fast paced and hustling work culture is evidently seen in the bay area where it is a norm to have multiple streams of income, work hours that are typically 40+ hours a week, students working full or part time while attending several classes, and of course entrepreneurs working endlessly at their startup companies. But where is the fine line between being productive and being overworked?
While a lot of people are working from home during this pandemic, the absence of daily commute and need to wake up earlier than usual to get ready may seem ideal to save a few hours a day, but a lot of people are continuously stressed and over-worked during the lock down. Take for instance parents of young children facing the stress of having to help them with distant learning on top of their jobs as school recently resumed. Or people working throughout the week without noticing that they are not having regular time for meals even when the kitchen is steps away.
This may be a critical time to reflect on signs of burn out. As much as anxiety is already impacting people’s mental health in the heavy work culture we live in today, it is important to remember that no matter where you work, the volume of work and your ability to balance work and personal life are factors that should be considered to determine if your plate is overloaded. The blend of work into home life has definitely challenged many to maintain consistency in setting boundaries for how much they should work.
Though it is hard to set a standard of what is enough when most people around you are working long hours, try to set your own limits and identify priorities in your life. The hustle culture shows that companies have established a system where they reward employees who work far and beyond of what is expected. This further reinforces people to work harder, but never meeting the finish line because there is no finish line.
When you are among a team of competitive people who measures success by how hard you work, you start to use the same metric to measure your quality of work and productivity. This can be misleading because success is defined in many different ways, but if the only path to success is to work excessive hours, get extra bonus, working all day, night, and weekends; you may miss out on other areas of your life. Financial security definitely offers more choices and opportunities, but time and your physical and mental health are equally as important. Just because we are still in lock down, it does not mean that we are “supposed” to work more. This is by no means discouraging people to work more by choice whether for financial reasons or exploring a different work of interest on the side, but the idea is that if you start to feel like work is draining your life, it’s time to consider making some changes.
This is also relative to students who are now more than ever needing to work while attending college because of high cost of living, increased tuition, or simply providing financial support to family. There is a traditional goal of graduating in 4 years or taking as many classes as possible in one semester to finish school early. Who is setting this expectation? Does it mean that you are less successful among your peers if you were to delay a semester or to take less classes in one semester? Is it a set back if you attend community college first? It’s good to have goals and ambition, but allow yourself to reduce pressure especially when your body signals that you are at your capacity.
At the end of the day, there is nothing wrong to acknowledge that you are tired and you need a break. Set a structured schedule where you are working only during work hours. Shut off your laptop and don’t check work email unless you are back at work. If you are done with class lectures, assignments, and studying; reach out to a friend or engage in leisure activities. Of course, if you are on a shift for emergency calls, that’s a different story, but hopefully they are not daily shifts. Reflect on things you have accomplished and be kind to yourself. If your co-worker is complimented by your boss for working faster and being a top performer, remind yourself that you are not a failure or a burden to the company.
Everyone hustles at their own pace, so avoid comparing yourself to others. If you feel like you are not as motivated lately, feeling more irritable, experiencing sadness, having sleep disturbance, or constant worries, notice a significant decline in your work or academic performance; stop for a moment and ask yourself where these symptoms come from. Check in with a therapist if needed. Be accepting that it is ok to not feel ok sometimes. That being said, have yourself a lovely break during this Labor Day weekend because you deserve every bit of that time to take care of yourself.
