Can New Work and self-optimization lead to “toxic productivity”?

December 18, 2023

Tim Cook gets up at 3.45. Michelle Obama’s alarm goes off at 4.30, while Jack Dorsey, in comparison, starts his day relatively late – at 5.30 a.m. Many people get up early to get more things done, to be more productive: to fit in some sport, skin care, meditation, journal writing or simply to start working earlier. All of this can be viewed as “self-improvement”.

What is self-improvement about?

Self-improvement is a deliberate process of personal, continuing development accompanied by consistent self-reflection. It’s about expanding your own potential and improving your own abilities, in a physical, intellectual or even spiritual sense. It’s also about observing yourself and others, since the first step in self-improvement is self-awareness and possessing the will to change your daily routines. This involves taking responsibility for your own life, to be mindful and continually grow. While each person’s take on self-improvement may differ, there are many commonly shared, centralized aspects, such as: increasing productivity and optimizing time management, improving focus and concentration, living a healthier lifestyle by adopting healthier routines. Diverse methods are applied to aid in self-improvement – including setting strategic goals, practicing mindfulness and gratitude exercises or positive affirmations. Yet ultimately, self-improvement (and how to achieve it) is just as individual as the person pursuing it.

New Work, start-ups & self-improvement

Self-improvement is a familiar term, especially in the startup scene and the world of New Work. This can perhaps be attributed to the high degree of self-responsibility and the striving towards comprehensive, holistic development which plays a key role for both self-improvement and New Work. Moreover, managing and enriching different aspects of professional and private life harmoniously is another link between self-improvement and New Work. To some extent, flexible New Work environments provide spaces which enable a better integration of the self-improvement routines of those who work within them. However, New Work and start-up working environments are also known for their fast-paced and agile working methods – where stereotypically effective working, with an emphasis on hustle culture and productivity – are at the forefront.

Within these scenes, self-improvement is a buzzword that stands first and foremost for one thing: more productivity. Mindful observation and sustainable development take a backseat to focusing on how to use your time effectively. How can I get more done in a shorter time? How can I optimize my planning, so that I get everything done? Such a mindset is then labeled “toxic productivity”. The psychologist Julie Smith describes it as an “obsession with radical self-improvement above all else”. Toxic productivity isn’t only evident at the workplace. It may actually be created by pursuing the work-life balance – a pursuit promoted by both New Work and self-improvement – which results in a toxic productivity that bleeds into other areas of life. Those affected are often engaged in creating a radically optimized daily routine in order to achieve a “perfect life”: to be a high achiever in their job, to maintain fulfilling relationships with others, to have creative hobbies and do sports regularly, to have an enriching and balanced inner life and to be thankful for all of these things. The methods often employed for obtaining such a work-life balance are frequently restrictive and radical optimization processes, which leave little room for flexibility and demand a great deal of discipline.

To self improve, or not to self improve?

In our daily lives, many of us don’t manage or only rarely stop to reflect on what truly makes us happy and what we can do to secure this happiness for ourselves. This is where self-improvement methods can be a good starting point in examining our own lives more closely, with the intent of moving towards a life that’s “better” for us. However, it can become quickly dangerous if self-improvement turns into a radically practiced toxic productivity within our lives. In an atmosphere where self-improvement has taken on the character of a competition, there’s constant pressure to do more and be “better”. Those who, like Cook, Obama and Dorsey, are up well before sunrise, performing their “self-care” routines, getting in their exercise and starting their workday extra early so that they have time in the evening to devote to their social lives, are at a high risk of becoming exhausted on an ongoing basis. Constantly competing with yourself and others increases the likelihood that you’ll develop unrealistic expectations about yourself while being constantly exposed to high levels of stress and therefore, won’t be happier – if anything, perhaps unhappier. Because even if everything looks perfectly planned on paper (or in the digital calendar), it certainly doesn’t feel that way. That’s why we’d like to see self-improvement, but only in combination with self-love – just doing what really does you good, and what’s also good for you in the long run.