Hustle culture is a term coined on the internet streets by your favorite (or not) financial gurus. The ones that tell you the only way to be successful is to wake up at 4 a.m. and work until the wee hours of the evening. The folks who constantly talk about the grind and how their viewers aren’t doing enough to reach their full potential. In this realm of hustling hard, there is a dangerous line that some have been straddling lately — I am talking about burnout. Burnout isn’t a new concept, especially in the technology industry, yet folks had high hopes for the Web3 space as a turning point for all the things traditional tech got wrong. Unfortunately, the lack of care for mental health wasn’t improved upon. Before getting into that, let’s discuss what burnout is exactly and the warning signs to look out for.
The medical definition of burnout by the World Health Organization is “a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” It is characterized by three dimensions, including “feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and reduced professional efficacy,” the outlet adds. The important detail to note is that this mental health issue is caused specifically by workplace stress; that’s what makes it unique from other illnesses like depression. Knowing the direct cause is important because we already know what area we need to retune to fix the problem.
It’s not enough just to know what burnout is; it’s also important to understand the warning signs before it gets out of hand. Boston University’s research center puts those signs into three categories. The first is energy depletion and exhaustion. This type of fatigue isn’t the normal kind that you push through to make it to 5 p.m. It’s the kind that doesn’t go away after a vacation — the type that’s in constant rotation throughout your life. Next is depersonalization and cynicism, which causes a person to become detached from their workplace or even grow to despise it. What used to motivate and inspire you about your work is no longer there. And finally, reduced efficacy, which can show up in two different ways — your work performance takes a major hit or you stay at your performing level, but it takes you more time and more energy to complete a task. Now, some may be reading this article thinking that this is the normal pressure that comes with work, and that’s the negative outcome of hustle culture. It has programmed us to think that working to the point of exhaustion and hate is normal when in reality, it can have some dangerous effects.
According to the National Library of Medicine, one of the biggest consequences of burnout is that it increases health issues such as “hypercholesterolemia, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, hospitalization due to cardiovascular disorder, musculoskeletal pain, changes in pain experiences, prolonged fatigue, headaches, gastrointestinal issues, respiratory problems, severe injuries and mortality below the age of 45 years.” That’s in addition to physiological effects such as “insomnia, depressive symptoms, use of psychotropic and antidepressant medications, hospitalization for mental disorders and psychological ill-health symptoms,” the medical library adds. Not to mention people relying on substances to deal with burnout. A study done by the Society For The Study of Addiction showed that people experiencing burnout over 12 months saw a huge increase in alcohol consumption — an 80 percent increase in women and a 50 percent increase in men. And we all know the overconsumption of alcohol can lead to even more health issues.
Now what does all of this have to do with Web3? Well, recently, many thought leaders and figureheads have stepped down due to burnout, and this specific issue has been a leading topic within the space.
I went to the streets of Twitter to hear from some of the Web3 community regarding burnout and here is what they had to say. Gayboredape.eth wrote a thread on the topic and stated, “I AM EXHAUSTED OF BEING HERE. I can’t believe I resisted 3 1/2 years with no real break, with 10 failed fertility treatments in between, two miscarriages, bulls, bears, and all the strength I put to BE PRESENT. It’s time for me to slow down for a bit, to process what happened in my life in the past few years, from the incredible life-changing events to the painful, emotional, and physical distress of the fertility roller coaster.”
Maxwellbruno.eth wrote, “Real talk! If there is a Guinness World Book of Records for highly stressed, frustrated, close-to-burnout Web3 artists… please add me to it.”
Melofvibes said, “Tweeting a few times a day, replying 100-plus times or even more. Every. Single. Day. And the burnout is real. Some of the most active people have left Web3 and Twitter because of it. Not because of the charts, not because it’s getting boring here. Because they didn’t have the energy to do it all once again. I was in the same boat but realized the power of relaxing and focusing on myself before a major burnout.”
These conversations don’t just happen on Twitter Spaces. While attending conferences this year, I have heard from many people that they are experiencing the same mental health issues and reeling back in. The 24/7 Twitter Spaces, thousands of Discords, constant drops, scammer dramas, and weekly conferences can be a lot to keep up with along with doing your work. The constant feeling of needing to be seen or you’re not building in the space is hurting our community. This is resulting in the OGs leaving and the new folks debating about whether to stay at all. The excitement of this new technology is what got people interested, but the consequences from being present 24/7 aren’t worth the mental health issues. So, what are some solutions that we can provide to fix this?
One of the first ways to fix burnout is by allowing people to know that it’s OK to take a break just for the sake of needing a minute. Reassuring folks that you don’t have to attend every conference or be on every Twitter Space to be deemed successful. Another solution is creating resources that are more accessible to people. A lot of folks think if they don’t attend every conference, they will miss out on an opportunity or information. We need to curate up-to-date digital resources that people can access from around the world. This next solution is more peer-to-peer, but doing check-ins and asking people if they are OK is a must. This may sound small, but it does go a long way for those who are going through stressful times. Will burnout ever be fully removed from Web3? I don’t know if it can be fully eradicated from any industry. But making people more aware of the warning signs can allow them to intervene quickly and find a new environment that doesn’t diminish their mental health.