Photo and Art by ALISON XIONG
Text by EVELYN ZHANG
Hustle harder, harder!
You got three hours of sleep? Congrats!
downsides of working that so hours, or acknowledgment of any ways he already had a leg up. Comments like his lead students to believe that anyone can succeed as long as they work long hours. Students eat up the ttention, try-hards. Yes, you, juggling three extra- delusions and soon, the lines between school curriculars, nine classes, and a and life blur until there’s no line left. The effects of hustle culture are much sport in an effort to impress colleges. Don’t worry, we’re in the same boat graver than just lost time to binge “Schitt’s — these long hours and sleepless nights will Creek.” Hustle culture stunts productivity and causes long-term health issues. be worth the sacrifice, right? Why is a culture that is motivating you At first glance, this mindset might just seem like a determined mindset. But behind to be productive actually making you do this facade, there’s something darker: hustle less? Let’s put Elon Musk’s advice about an 80-hour workweek into context: According culture. to a Stanford-led Hustle culture is study by economics a lifestyle that teach- “But when we compare professor John Penes people that overcavel, productivity working is the only our genuine, flawed self per hour declines way to earn respect. to a two-dimensional sharply when a perIt creates a social son works more than pressure to prioritize persona, we start chasing 50 hours a week. Adwork over everyditionally, those who thing else. It idolizes unattainable perfection.” work up to 70 hours workaholism while stigmatizing breaks, and therefore results in a week are only getting the same amount of work done as those who put in 55. unhealthy work habits. A 15-hour difference in time spent, but In a community where there is a huge emphasis on academic excellence, we Palo zero difference in work done. These counterproductive long hours Alto High School students are very familiar can be spotted at Paly. Students attend with this social condition. Social media perpetuates hustle culture schools for seven hours a day and spend by making misleading information so acces- around two to three hours on homework each night; that already equates to about 50 sible. When our life isn’t as polished as some hours of work, not to mention the extracursnippet we see on social media we start riculars we participate in. Hustle culture also has implications comparing ourselves negatively and want to measure up. A social-comparison theo- for our mental and physical health. A study ry popularized by social psychologist Leon published in the American Journal of InFestinger confirms this: He found that we dustrial Medicine revealed that working 61 humans have an intrinsic desire to assess to 70 hours a week increased the risk of our progress by comparing ourselves to coronary heart disease by 42%. Another 2017 research study others. But when we compare our genuine, flawed self to a two-dimensional persona, we start chasing unattainable perfection. People may share the long hours they put in but do they talk about the constant anxiety they endured? The countless nights they didn’t sleep? For example, Elon Musk once said, “Work like hell... you just have to put in 80 to 100 hour weeks every week.” However, his social media shows nothing of the
A
published in Occupational Medicine reported that longer working hours elevate the risk of poor mental health, such as depressive symptoms, worsened emotional well-being, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. Ninety-minute periods in school aren’t practical or productive. According to a study conducted by the Draugiem Group, the human brain naturally works in bursts of high activity that last about an hour, and then it switches to low activity for a while. The most consistently productive research participants were the ones who were 100% focused on the task at hand during that burst of high activity and took a break when they reached that low point. If the district creates a schedule that takes advantage of natural human productivity by having hour-long classes, it would provide a better workplace for students. This is a more effective solution than mandating teachers to give their students breaks because it [holds the teachers accountable]. Students can also use this strategy at home through the 50-10 Pomodoro timer method. By working for 50 minutes, then taking a 10-minute break after, students are able to maximize their productivity. Nothing is wrong with working hard, especially those who do so out of necessity, but it becomes toxic when we base our identities and life’s purpose around our source of income because of the rhetoric we’re constantly fed. We shouldn’t be shamed when we don’t live up to the overworking myths that still pervade our society merely because they justify the success of the few elite.
anthromagazine.org 25
