The Cultural Mindset of the Younger Generation
By: Eunice Ahn
Due to technology and the interconnected world through social media, there is often this expectation for students to do well academically and in other aspects of life as well. These societal expectations get enhanced as parents, students, and strangers may judge based on superficial aspects, and these expectations only get harsher as time passes. As a result, it takes a mental and emotional toll on many students and young adults.
What Are Some of the Overarching Expectations?
Some of the pressures can include academic excellence, career aspirations, financial success, and even romantic life comparisons. For academic excellence, many high school students may feel pushed past their limits to do well on standardized tests, take advanced courses, and do multiple extracurriculars in order to get into a top college. As for college students, they also face immense pressure to compete with each other to achieve the best grades, have more extracurricular activities, and build a better resume than others to secure more job opportunities in the future. Oftentimes, academic excellence can lead to comparisons of career paths. Not only may people consider themselves "less than" because they don't work at a major company, but they may also frequently get asked by other people in their lives what they aspire to be. This can cause the expectation to have a well-defined path from a young age and lead to anxiety and overcommitment to a particular career path that one may not enjoy. In relation to career, financial success may often cause young adults to indulge in a career path they don't enjoy or sacrifice their mental health to be financially stable in the future.
These pressures may come to fruit through unrealistic expectations from parents, the competitive job market, and the influence of social media (or the intersectionality of these factors!). For many different reasons, parents may have high expectations for their child(ren). However, having these high expectations may unintentionally establish a fear of failure in young adults and students because they don't want to fall behind or disappoint their peers/family members. As a result, many young adults/teenagers may overextend themselves without care for their mental, emotional, and physical health.
This is also tied to social media in the sense that it locks in the idea that one may be a failure when compared to others who display "success" (peers, celebrities of the same age). Another factor is the competitive job market. Because of the state of our economy and job market, it forces students/young adults to strive above and beyond in terms of skills and experience in order to make sure they secure a job in this extremely competitive environment. As a result, young adults may overcommit themselves to fill their resume to the max and become a stronger candidate than others. Again, this may also tie back to fear of failure because if students or young adults don't have a job like "everyone else does," they may feel incompetent, left behind, and/or hopeless.
Consequences of Overextending Oneself
Decline in mental and physical health: If you overwork yourself, especially for a long period of time, it can result in stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia, burnout (a state of physical or emotional exhaustion), and physical ailments (headaches and digestive issues). You also become more susceptible to illnesses as your immune system is weakened from chronic stress. In fact, overworking yourself with too many activities can actually have the opposite effect. Doing too much at once can actually lead to decrease in performance quality as you may be burnt out and unable to give your best effort in any task.
Lack of work-life balance: Due to a heavy focus on work life, one may become negligent of personal relationships. As a result, it can cause a strain in relationships with family, friends, and colleagues because you are unable to spend time or energy on maintaining these connections. And not only do you not have enough time to spend with friends or loved ones, but you also don't have time to spend on personal/leisure activities to help you destress from your day.
Identity crisis: As mentioned before, when young adults or students focus on financial success or other superficial reasons as their main goal, they may reach a point down the line where they have to reassess values, interests, and passion because they realized they were driven by other people/societal expectations rather than their own desires.
Missed opportunity: By having too many things to focus on, you may not be able to give your best. This could result in making mistakes that you typically do not make, or miss out on small, important details/opportunities. Consequently, this could hinder both personal and professional growth.
How to Break Free from "Grind Culture?"
Grind culture is a term used to describe everything that was mentioned above; in order to seem valuable or successful in life, one has to be productive. In today's society, grind culture is accepted as the norm so many young adults or students may not even understand that they are being negatively impacted by these unrealistic standards. A couple ways to break free from grind culture is to self-reflect, set boundaries, and seek support. How do you do that? First, take time to reflect on your own values, interests, and long-term (realistic!) goals.
Make sure to define success in your own terms; success is subjective and each person's journey is unique. Make sure to also prioritize your personal interests as well by incorporating it into your daily life for recharge and mental/physical well-being. Second, learn how to set healthy boundaries where you are not overly committed to your work/school life. This may include incorporating regular rest breaks throughout your day in order to avoid burnout. Lastly, seek support from mentors, friends, family, or counselors who can help provide emotional support and guidance during challenging times. If you wish to seek support from a professional as a trusted individual to open up to, schedule a free consultation by clicking the link below. Talking to a professional may help you find out more about yourself, set healthy boundaries, and help make sure you are setting realistic goals for yourself. Share this blog with someone who you think can also benefit from these tips. We also encourage you to sign up for free weekly tips, tools, and strategies by clicking the other link below.
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