A culture of hustle and bustle won't give way to healthy habits

Hustle culture is a phenomenon that has spread to the internet from real-world expectations of constant progress and success (a byproduct of the American or Canadian dream). Worse, the form.

In a competitive school like Queens and a tough world like ours, we are steeped in a culture that values ​​success above all else. Success is essential to our grades, job prospects, and survival in a difficult economy. Programs like Commerce and Engineering in particular embody this need for success, and in many ways have developed a reputation for being difficult and competitive.

In addition to the degree requirements, Queens has many clubs and employment opportunities. Each represents a new line in your resume and a new stepping stone to success. Internships, retail jobs, and 8am classes all add up in the end.

Success requires effort, and effort requires sacrificing sleep, rest, and relaxation. Of course we do that. For Queens students, grades matter most and in a highly competitive school like ours, you can’t afford to take a step back just to get a C or relax. There is significant pressure to

Of course, working constantly and not resting is very bad, both mentally and physically. Work comes with sacrifices and maintaining a good lifestyle requires a good work-life balance. Sitting at your desk all the time and not seeing your friends isn’t good, but the mindset of a noisy culture doesn’t strike a healthy balance.

Instead, insist on constant work and overload your schedule with new activities that can be profitable in some way. It eliminates the few hobbies you have left by turning them into small businesses.

Of course, I don’t want to deny the need to make money, and I don’t want to look down on hardworking college students by teaching them what they already know. I’m here.

But what if your deadlines are inflexible and your bills need to be paid?

With inflation making everything more expensive and gas prices hovering high, the pressure to succeed is, of course, weighing on us more than ever. So I want to keep my critical eye away from my students and instead look at Queen and the departments within it.

Queen’s profits come from hardworking students and employees working around the clock to maintain its pristine reputation. With the importance of personal health and safety recently becoming a hot topic over the past few years and COVID-19 revealing many flaws in the way the university operates, Queen’s will provide more support to students. I’m here.

This does not change the fact that most departments have not adjusted accordingly to curb the academic aspects of hustle culture.

When we talk about mental health and self-care, it is often the responsibility of the individual to take the time to reflect, step back and take care of themselves.

Students should come together to share the burden of work and relieve each other’s burdens. But we also need to look at the structures that guide our daily lives and start thinking about how Queens can change so that we can be educated and look after ourselves.

Hustle culture should not mean sacrificing physical and mental health for education.