Unlearning Hustle Culture

Even though I was already aware of this issue, traveling for an extended period has made me realize just how deeply ingrained hustle culture and productivity are in modern society—particularly in the West. I quit my university job over three years ago, and I’m still learning how to unravel this conditioning. It has gotten easier over time, but I still catch myself multiple times a day thinking about what I “should” be doing or feeling pressure to be productive, because somewhere along the way, we equated productivity with worth. But that belief is a lie. It’s rooted in patriarchy and industrialization—systems that were never designed to benefit individuals—only to keep them producing.

The truth is, we are all worthy just as we are. We don’t need to earn it through achievements or accomplishments—or by burning ourselves out for jobs that leave us feeling empty and employers who don't truly see us.

This realization was one of the reasons I chose to leave the career counseling field. It took me a while to put words to it, but I eventually understood that I had been following a script for my life that I hadn’t written. The classic “American Dream” narrative—go to college, get a good job with benefits, buy a house, get married, have kids, retire—wasn’t actually my dream. It was one I inherited. I wasn’t consciously choosing my path; I was on autopilot.

Freedom and autonomy are two of my deepest values, and when I finally saw how little of either I truly had, everything started to shift. Once you see the truth, you can’t unsee it. Once you wake up, you can’t go back to sleep.

As much as I loved the counseling side of career counseling—the self-exploration, the deeper conversations about purpose—I began to feel conflicted about helping people succeed within systems I no longer believed in. Many of my supervisors valued metrics and job placement over meaning and growth, which made it harder to do the kind of work I cared about. I realized that I didn’t want to spend my energy helping others climb a ladder I no longer wanted to be on.

I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with working for someone else; it’s just not the path I want for myself. I want to create a life that’s aligned with my values, not dictated by societal expectations.

Traveling has given me space to continue unlearning these old patterns—to slow down, listen, and redefine what success looks like on my own terms. Some days I still feel the pull of “shoulds” and productivity guilt, but more and more, I’m learning to measure my days not by how much I produce, but by how deeply I live them. Worth isn’t something we earn—it’s something we remember. Every time I catch myself slipping back into that old mindset of “not doing enough,” I remind myself: presence is enough. Rest is enough. I am enough.