What is the meaning of life? Philosophers have debated the answer to this question for centuries, dedicating their whole lives to mulling it over and over. We may never truly know the meaning of life, but I am certain it has nothing to do with working 40 hours a week.
Productivity culture, or so-called “grind culture,” has become the axis from which modern American culture operates. Get up, go to work, maybe sleep and repeat. If you’re not producing, you’re not contributing, and your life is therefore of no meaning or value. It is a sad reality that we have made for ourselves, and one that I no longer want to accept.
So many college students are expected to go to school full-time and complete their assignments in a timely fashion, all the while working a job that pays them just enough to get by. They later may find a career that they hopefully won’t hate to give countless hours of their lives to until they inevitably die.
It is no mystery that the condition of our existence is stressful and miserable, yet many could not ever imagine it being any other way. If we must rationalize our existence, we must rationalize it under new terms.
The meaning of life should be to enjoy instead of endure. To wonder instead of mindlessly work, and to learn for the sake of enrichment, expression and helping others rather than for the sake of producing.
Working does not have to be a thing we dread. It can be a wondrous process, a process where honest effort brings forth beautiful and innovative outcomes. Yet, the wonders of productivity can not be achieved without proper time and proper rest — two things our current productivity culture scarcely allow for.
The architecture of older buildings have always been leagues ahead in terms of design and complexity compared to the unceasing influx of new condos and apartment buildings. AI may be able to produce thousands of songs, art works and books at the click of a button, but they all look pathetically abysmal when placed next to the works of artists who devote themselves towards their craft.
Products and outcomes may be produced quickly and efficiently, but lack of time, thought and effort makes for a poor product.
We sleep for a reason. If your assignments have you up for hours every night, it’s not a problem with your ability or performance; the problem lies within work culture itself, a culture that prioritizes the product rather than the person and their well-being. By neglecting our rest we neglect the future quality of the work we put out, effectively making productivity unproductive.
To all the readers out there who are workaholics — who may give an eye roll to the sentiment of slowing down and enjoying life — I would like to make something clear: This is not about promoting or excusing laziness. If you have yet to work, to learn or create in your lifetime, you simply haven’t lived. But let it be known that life requires moments of idleness in order to foster and cultivate true productivity.
