HYDERABAD: We are all so occupied with our busy schedules that we do not have the time to unwind. While most of us are working from home, the burden has only increased.
This is what is called hustle culture, wherein people are forced to work nonstop without a break-even if things at home are not in good shape.
We speak to people from different walks of life to know how they are coping with this. Experts also suggest ways to solve this issue in a calm and easy manner.
John Marcus, who is employed by an MNC, has been working from home ever since Telangana went into a lockdown. As he spends most of his day in front of his laptop, John has been finding it difficult to maintain a work-life balance. “Ever since this pandemic started, we are all going through a rough phase. WFH definitely has its own pros and cons. Many of us have lost our loved ones and are going through emotional breakdowns, but we are bound to work for our survival. Social life has come to a halt and dependency increased leading to more working hours,” he says.
Similarly, Vinaya, who works for a corporate firm, has been unable to spend time with her family as she is expected to put in extra hours of work. “This has been eating into my personal time. When I used to work from the office, I used to put in exactly 8 hours a day. But now I am bombarded with early deliveries, for which I end up stretching my work hours and sometimes even lose my weekend. Now, spending quality time with my family seems like a long-lost dream.”
N David Raju, an assistant professor at a private college, highlights that an imbalanced work life can cause immense stress. “One of the main things that we often tend to neglect when we work is to check if there is a proper balance between work and personal life. Most of us today have been dealing with extra work because the organisations we work for have been expecting more from us. Burdened by this heavy workload, we have been experiencing high levels of stress.”
Pavani Mekala, a rehabilitation psychologist who works as a counsellor at a corporate firm, explains how one can break out of this hustle culture. “I have been talking to a lot of employees, who are going through the same issue. There is not much productivity during these times and it is certain that one’s mental health is affected.
Being aware about your stress, be it official or personal, and focusing on what is causing it is most important. The second thing is to confront the stress and deal with it. Third is to take enough breaks; we are expected to work eight-nine hours and many complain about the screen life and feeling sick. Fourth is to talk to a wellness coach.”
In these times of uncertainty, every other household has a sick family member. But with our workload from our offices, most of us are not in a position to even help out. “In such cases, wherein people turn caretakers, there is a lot of stress.” Pavani says.