11 Reasons Gen-Z Isn’t Buying Into Hustle Culture Like Millennials Did
Animgraph Lab | Unsplash Recently, my social media feeds have exploded with mindfulness, meditation, and yoga ads, so I assume my fellow generation of Millennials has started having anxiety attacks again. It’s either that, or someone in Google HQ decided to calibrate the algorithm based on what they think millennials need.
So, I think it’s about time we have a chat about privilege, why we're so tired all the time, and why Gen-Z isn't buying into hustle culture in the same way Millennials did.
Here are 11 reasons Gen-Z isn’t buying into hustle culture as millennials did:
1. Millennials were called lazy and naive
Nevermind the fact that Gen-X made it rain on frivolities, millennials were the ones who were spoiled and lazy. Naturally, that made us want to be “the big exception” and defy all the stereotypes.
The result? We worked long hours, volunteered for “experience”, and when that wasn't enough to cover the rent, we started looking for additional employment.
2. Millennials were called desperate
We went too far trying to score a meeting, simply because we wanted to be like the cool kids. Then, when one of us royally messed up, we were all called desperate and entitled.
A Pew Research survey of technology experts predicted that this hyperconnected generation would develop "a thirst for instant gratification and quick fixes" and a loss of patience. The kicker is that those same experts admitted the systems fueling that impatience were built by the generations now doing the criticizing.
None of us thought we would be pushing 30 and still living with our parents. Yet, this was a choice that many of us had to make. Some of the reasons included unstable, low-paid work, lack of growth opportunities, rising house prices, and living costs, as well as the frustration and hassle of finding people you wanted to share your living space with. Who wouldn’t have burned out, living like that?
3. Hustle culture isn’t all that productive, actually
Two jobs, three blogs, a postgraduate degree, and a partridge in a pear tree didn't add up to a lot of stuff getting accomplished. It just meant a never-ending to-do list and a diminishing window in which to get some sleep and destress.
Why did we think the quality of what we were producing was somehow superior just because we were multitasking? The APA found that task-switching can eat up to 40% of your productive time, and it takes a full 25 minutes to refocus after a single interruption, which meant those packed schedules were basically sabotaging themselves.
4. Hustle culture is probably bad for the environment, too
We destroyed our health and our emotional well-being to create stuff. But how much of it actually got used regularly? How much of it ended up in someone’s landfill? The push for a 4-day work week wasn't just so that people could have more leisure time; it was actually to reduce the amount of waste that businesses generated.
5. Living your dream is overrated
I see this a lot from former friends who had hopped onto the MLM bandwagon: “OMG, I am so #blessed to be #livingmydream while also being a mom!” This may sound harsh, but if your dream was to peddle things and make money by exploiting your friends, then that wasn't a dream.
Researchers found that people who sacrificed sleep and stability for volatile work schedules had significantly higher rates of depression and poor health by age 50. The lead researcher didn't sugarcoat it either, saying flat-out that "our work now is making us sick and poor."
6. Hustle culture is the antithesis of any healthy lifestyle or relationship
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If all of us were entrepreneurs and we were honor-bound to support our friends, then every relationship we had was transactional. There was no more “hanging out” for the sake of hanging out. No more friendships because you mattered to the people. There was only selling and working and more selling.
7. Hustle culture never lets us slow down enough to actually master a skill
When you had to be productive all the time, you naturally gravitated toward tasks that were less complicated and easier to complete. There was less incentive to try your hand at something challenging or something you weren't sure about, because it would take longer to achieve.
And time is money, you know? A 2024 study called it the "multitasking paradox" and found that on days when employees' time was highly fragmented across tasks, they experienced less flow and worse job performance, even though they felt like they were getting more done.
8. Hustle culture hates delayed gratification
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When was the last time you put off a purchase or a treat because you wanted to savor it? When was the last time you worked on a relationship? Hustle culture sucked away the desire to put in the work, because even a one-second delay meant “falling behind” everyone else we knew.
9. Hustle culture rarely benefits the hustler
If you looked at the journalistic studies of MLMs, you found the vast majority of people recruited into these companies made little or no money. People who were busting their butts working for “experience” were not skyrocketing their careers.
But the money that the people at the top of the ladder made convinced us that it was true. “If they can make it, so can I!” we thought, so we sacrificed our money and time, and relationships at the altar of hustle culture, without gaining much in return while losing everything important.
10. Hustle culture benefits people who never had to hustle in their lives
Hey, Gen-X, it was neat that you got a free university education and lots of start-up loans to build your business. I wouldn't have called it hustling, though, because you were also benefiting from the unpaid labor of your wives and people of color.
Once labor protection laws were in place, you rebranded it “volunteering” to convince the rest of us that we weren't good enough for salaries and benefits and pension savings. And all I had to say was that it was messed up.
11. The only way to win at hustle culture is to opt out
I dropped it. I left everything but the work and the hobbies that fulfilled me. Hustle culture was draining me, and the only way I could reclaim my peace of mind was to adopt a new set of values.
Gen-Z was right about not buying into hustle culture: I stopped assuming that being busy all the time was a good thing. It felt weird, but eventually, I did feel better. At least that's what I kept telling myself. It was a hard habit to break, but I broke that cycle of madness. G
Katja Bartholmess is a writer who co-founded the Bushwick Entrepreneurs Club; in Berlin, she hosted a Kitchen Table Provocations Salon, and in Los Angeles, she's launched an Open Writing Studio at Heavy Manners Library.
