How Modern Work Culture Breeds Burnout: Why Our Obsession with Productivity is Eroding Well-Being —…

Modern work culture fosters burnout by making individuals their own harshest critics, prioritizing productivity over well-being.

Today, everyone is an auto-exploiting laborer in their own enterprise. The term “burnout” has become a mainstream topic of discourse over the last few years, as mental health issues continue to rise exponentially. With a growing number of people becoming disillusioned and hopeless with the machinations of the modern world, it is worth asking why this is happening.

Is work slowly killing us? Is there something about our attitude toward labor and productivity that is gradually sucking the joy out of our lives and contributing to the rise of mental health issues?

Well, according to Korean philosopher Byung-Chul Han, the answer is a definitive yes. In his book The Burnout Society, Han provides a philosophical analysis of why work is such a source of misery for many people and how our inner psychologies have evolved to heighten the emotional pressure to be productive to the breaking point. Get ready to learn how you’ve become your own worst manager, why individualism is a double-edged sword, and how we have gradually come to view ourselves merely as means to an end.

Han begins his analysis by distinguishing between two types of societies, each with its own strengths and drawbacks. This forms the foundation for the rest of his essay, making it a crucial starting point. In Discipline and Punish, French philosopher Michel Foucault outlines how the state and other institutions exert control over individuals through various forms of discipline, such as prisons, military institutions, and torture facilities. These methods are explicit forms of power, involving a clear relationship between the disciplinarian and the disciplined.

However, Han argues that overt discipline alone does not fully account for the nuances of modern burnout. Unlike the explicit discipline described by Foucault, modern burnout involves more subtle forms of self-discipline. This shift changes the dynamic from an external disciplinarian to an internalized, self-imposed pressure. Historically, various philosophers have endured extreme torments, from imprisonment to torture, and their writings often reflect a similar understanding of these dynamics.

They can do what they wish with my body, but they will never get at my mind.

They view their mental state as their last refuge, even when physically dominated. Their minds remain their own territory, with endless forests to explore and fields to play in. However, if Han is correct, this is no longer the case for us. The culture of achievement now dominates not just our bodies but our minds as well.

The ever-present specter of obligation or work looms large, even during our least pressured moments, depriving us of true relaxation. Han’s crowning achievement in this essay is to demonstrate that burnout is not just unpleasant or cruel but an existential threat to our relationship with ourselves.

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