Working black: the dangers of a culture of hustle
In recent years, social networks have become more and more frequent with content in which endless employment is interpreted as an effective way to achieve success. To support this hypothesis, bloggers show expensive cars, branded things and other luxury attributes, and also cite the experience of millionaires who work around the clock to realize their ideas. This phenomenon has been dubbed the culture of vanity. According to psychologists, such pictures of successful life mislead people, because most often such examples turn out to be "survivor's error". And under the influence of an ambiguous trend most often fall people with a certain psychological makeup of personality. Izvestia tells us how dangerous the culture of vanity is and who can fall under its influence.
Addiction trend: what is vanity culture?
The concept of hustle culture (from the English hustle culture) refers to a social phenomenon based on the concept that success in life can only be achieved through constant employment. According to sociologist Kirill Khmarsky, the phenomenon is a common technique for arousing the interest of society. In the 1980s, with the rise of neoliberalism and capitalist ideology, the emphasis on career achievement intensified.
With the spread of the internet and social media in the 2000s, vanity culture gained a new lease of life. Technology made it possible to work around the clock from anywhere in the world, and media personalities began to promote the idea in the spirit of "nothing is impossible."
Today's hustle culture shapes people's perception that employment itself is a measure of a person's worth. In this concept, success is measured by material goods, status and the appearance of high productivity. The desire to rest is interpreted as laziness and wasting precious time.
The concept of overproductivity is actively promoted by:
- Motivational speakers and Influencers. For example, entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk (Gary Vee) through his speeches and posts in social networks broadcasts the idea that to achieve success you need to work harder than others and then you can achieve any goal;
- Corporate sector. Many companies encourage employees to overwork by creating a culture where hard work is an integral part of their professional life;
Ilon Musk
-Media figures and entrepreneurs. Billionaire Ilon Musk has repeatedly stated that working 100 hours a week is his norm and that success requires sacrifice.
According to Alexander Revsky, Executive Director of Aymars Communications Group, the phenomenon of vanity culture is also a consequence of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) - the fear of missing something important in life, which provokes the desire to "have time to do everything", which is often unsystematized and useless. This is why the social phenomenon has been labeled "hustle".
The culture of vanity is supported by the mechanism of social control, which is built almost automatically, explained sociologist, head of the center "Regional Studies" Dmitry Loboyko. According to the expert, when a person is constantly busy chasing a phantom "better version of himself," he physically does not have the mental resources to think critically about what is going on.
Empirical studies show that the more a society is obsessed with productivity, the less productive it becomes. The social system creates mechanisms of self-reproducing stress, which is then successfully monetized through the "solutions" industry.
- In this context, the growing popularity of burnout courses, often run by the same people who promote a culture of endless productivity, is particularly ironic. This is similar to the sale of fire extinguishers by those who organize arson fires," the expert noted.
Why the example of a successful person does not work for everyone
Seeing the beautiful life of bloggers broadcasting impressive results of hard work on social media, people fall into a cognitive trap - the survivor's fallacy.
- Every success story is just the tip of the iceberg. The underwater part hides millions of failed attempts. However, this invisible part remains behind the scenes, giving us a distorted view of reality. We begin to believe that only endless hustle will lead us to success, - explained business psychologist Elena Golubovich.
And ostentatious employment today is valued only in those companies that are not interested in development. Many have long ago abandoned the principle of sitting through working hours for the sake of maintaining visible productivity alone.
- If a company has a well-prepared top management, it will value efficiency rather than external flair and fuss. Today, Russian companies pay a lot of attention to a comfortable working environment, which directly affects labor productivity. Many are ready to make concessions in terms of schedule or work format," said Elena Koretskaya, a leading expert in personnel outsourcing at Your HR Resource.
Who can fall victim to the culture of vanity
According to psychologist Ekaterina Kartasheva of the Mental Health Center clinic, the culture of vanity can capture anyone, but in the group of increased risk are people with a biological predisposition to high inhibitory control - the ability to suppress impulses, emotions and maintain purposeful behavior. These include perfectionists, hypercontrollers, people with obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCDPD), and others.
Women with children are often susceptible to this phenomenon. They are broadcasted the need to simultaneously bring up a child, starting almost from birth to develop its skills, build a successful career, do sports and keep the house perfectly clean, the expert added.
Psychologist Marina Greenwald has identified the signs by which you can determine whether you are a victim of the culture of vanity. Among them:
- A sense of guilt about wanting to rest or distract yourself from work;
-an inner pride in the dysfunctional manifestations of stress and overwork. For example, feelings of joy at losing weight due to stress, sleep deprivation, the appearance of tics and other neuralgic disorders indicative of "high productivity."
-Disregard for social boundaries. For example, a call from a boss or coworkers after hours triggers a rush of urgent need for an immediate response.
According to Alexei Onosov, an entrepreneur and founder of Unisoft, people with certain character traits - workaholics, those prone to high anxiety -are also at risk. It is more difficult for them to resist social pressure and expectations of ostentatious productivity, says the speaker.
What is the danger of vanity culture
Hustleculture is the embodiment of the hedonistic treadmill theory, notes psychotherapist Lisa Mayer-Marachowska, founder of Mind Practice, a center for business psychology and business interactions. It's a person's tendency to stay at a relatively stable level of happiness despite changes in fortune or the achievement of major goals.
According to the expert, this pursuit of success stimulates a person to do something, creating the illusion that he or she is spending his or her time in a meaningful way, even if this is not the case. Thesearch for success or happiness turns into a pathological addiction. After a while, a person can get the opposite effect - anhedonia. This is a mental disorder manifested by the loss of feelings of joy, contentment and happiness.
Consulting psychologist Olga Minchina warns that an endless race for high results can turn into serious health problems. Victims of clutter often experience chronic fatigue, apathy and anxiety. In addition, the desire to meet far-fetched expectations at all costs leads to burnout. Personal life often suffers, which in this race is dumped as ballast that takes away time. By sacrificing communication with loved ones, suetologists doom themselves to loneliness, which can lead to the development of deep depression, the expert emphasized.
According to clinical psychologist, hypnotherapist Timur Sultanov, each cycle of vanity triggers certain bodily reactions in the body. Among them is a constant increased tone. The body is in a state of chronic stress, which leads to muscle clamps, insomnia and the feeling that "the body does not rest even at night."
The need to be busy all the time prevents the person from noticing their own experiences. These emotions do not disappear, but are fixed in the body. People with this lifestyle often have breathing problems (a feeling of a "lump in the throat" or shallow breathing), as well as painful sensations in the neck and shoulders. After the transition to the burnout stage, a person experiences pressure spikes, decreased libido, loss of appetite or vice versa - "glut" problems.
How to protect yourself from the influence of the culture of vanity
According to family psychologist Elena Shemenko, there are several principles, compliance with which will build a healthy productive life.
First, it is important to review your priorities and start being conscious about how you spend your time. Work should be a tool for achieving your goals and desires. When making plans, you need to soberly assess your starting resources rather than relying on someone else's experience. It is important to remember that success is not always measured by the amount of work done or social activity.
Next, you need to recognize the importance of rest and recovery. Periodic breaks will help to energize and avoid burnout. This also applies to maintaining contact with friends and family. Share your experiences with them, it will help to maintain emotional balance.
If the pressure of a hectic culture becomes overwhelming and begins to affect your mental health, seriously consider seeing a specialist, the expert concluded.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
