What’s Wrong With The Modern Workplace From A Gen Z Perspective — And How To Fix It.
For older generations, Millennials and Gen Zs seek to have a “soft life,” meaning that their life consists of less discomfort, less effort, more community related activities, and less career centrism–sort of the complete opposite of ambition. One article heavily criticized the idea of “soft life,” because according to the writer, the term means that people stop sacrificing and choose a life solely consisting of pleasantries. But is that not what everyone strives to enjoy after retirement?
The following anecdote illustrates this point: As a man walked in a field, he spotted another sitting under a tree, strumming a guitar, and lazing in the sun.
The man approached the other and inquired, “What are you doing?”
“I’m just sitting under this tree, singing, relaxing, and enjoying the sunshine,” came the reply.
“How can you be so lazy? I have a sixteen-hour job — I work all the time. I’m never home, and I barely have time to spend with my family. It’s a tremendous sacrifice, but it’s worth it — I make a lot of money.”
“And why do you do that?” the man said, looking up, delighting in the sun’s warmth.
“That’s a silly question.” I work hard so I can retire and go on vacation with my family.”
“What will you do on vacation?”
“I’ll be carefree, sit under a tree, relax, sing songs, and bask in the sunshine.”
The seated man smiled. “That’s exactly what I’m doing right now!”
Gen z is being criticized within the workplace as lazy, and difficult to work with.
But many gen zers have expressed that they are not difficult to work with, but instead had enough of the “bullshit” within the workplace: long hours, low wages, and no fulfillment at work” — video
I believe all of my generation, including myself, understand that there is no such thing as a life without sacrifice and enjoyment follows hard work.
But if these do not translate into real payoffs, then it is just logical for us to feel friction against older generations and the modern definition of a workplace.
Now, are we truly looking for a soft life?
It’s not that we don’t want a challenge in life, it’s the challenge, in and of itself, that we want to change.
For all our lives, the challenge meant finding our place in the system, blending in with everyone, joining the pack so our survival was ensured. It meant that we had to absorb life’s predetermined protocol of how our time on Earth would play out, and we had to serve as shills to this protocol. “Soft life” is exactly what we want to achieve after retirement — and we yearn for the beauty of ordinary moments.
Why not choose to prioritize community, connections, relationships, mental health, overall health, during our twenties?
Perhaps this anti-ambition is the cusp of what ambition in life should mean.
Can’t we reverse-engineer our lives so our foundation is stronger and our careers serve as a positive externality of that rock-solid grounding? In other words, can’t we choose mindfully to live a life that puts our well-being first and the rest second?
What would the world look like if our work were a result of how we feel about life, rather than how we feel as a result of our work?
I believe our work–our ambitions–would improve ten-fold. When we no longer rely on our weekends to catch up with our favorite activities, meeting new people, building relationships, engaging in our craft, enjoying the sunshine, and pursuing our creative passions, the aftermath that emerges from that engagement will build a better world for all of us.
This would be a drastic shock to our system. We would be building a society based on sincere, creative pursuits rather than transactional, mechanical routines. from the system and build an entirely new one based on what we love. Plus, when we awaken to the realization that career does not equal life, we put into practice some of our deepest traits as a collective species that have evolved for millions of years. We can — we want to — take care of each other.
When we work at jobs that drain our energy, we inevitably become an atomized society based on animosity and skepticism. No one has the energy to collaborate, communicate or cooperate with one another. We would rather rest and charge up like machines waiting for our next shift.
And when we treat our career as a function of our life and as a function of how we honor our time on Earth, we also awaken to a deeper realization: We are nothing without others.
In one email to himself, Steve Jobs described how he would be nothing without his tribe:
“I did not breed or perfect the seeds. I do not make any of my own clothing. I speak a language I did not invent or refine. I did not discover the mathematics I use. I am protected by freedoms and laws I did not conceive of or legislate and do not enforce or adjudicate. I am moved by music I did not create myself. When I needed medical attention, I was helpless to help myself survive. I did not invent the transistor, the microprocessor, object-oriented programming, or most of the technology I work with. I love and admire my species, living and dead, and am totally dependent on them for my life and well-being.
Sent from my iPad.”
When we are inside the hamster wheel, we constantly forget how amazing and awe-fueling our species is — and how much we need and rely on one another. Right now, I am writing these words on a computer I didn’t make, on a software program I didn’t create, sitting in a building I didn’t build, drinking a coffee I didn’t make, speaking and writing words I didn’t create.
We are literally standing on the shoulders of giants. We depend on each other more than we think. That realization becomes crystal clear when we have time to expand the size and scope of our time on Earth, and can reflect on the things that truly matter, such as giving back to our community.
Repairing the World
There is an ancient Jewish concept called Tikun Olam, which translates into “Repairing the World,” which states that all of us have responsibility to repair and improve the world, which is deeply entrenched in our true nature as a species — given that we are the leaders of nature, we have a sense of agency in life, and these actions lead us to finding long-lasting fulfillment.
Nicholas Christakis, a brilliant sociologist and professor of Social and Natural Science at Yale University, studies how our species is wired for goodness.
Professor Christakis is the author of several books, including one of my favorites of all time, Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society. Christakis argues that our social nature, which includes our capacity for empathy and cooperation, is encoded in our evolutionary history. He argues that, without our capacity for cooperation, we would not have been able to thrive as a species.
In his book, he points to evidence that suggests when cultures are built upon the values of working together to accomplish complex tasks, sharing resources with one another, and taking responsibility for the young and elderly, they tend to thrive more than cultures based on violence, animosity, and aggression. Of course, Christakis acknowledges that we are also capable of violence, but everything points to the fact that our nature is one of cooperation and kindness.
There are several moral values that most societies share between them, and this universality is further evidence of a shared human nature that values cooperation, fairness, and empathy. One example is the “golden rule” which states that we should treat others as we would like to be treated, a value that Confucianism coins as ren which derives from Confucius’ statement, “What you don’t want done to yourself, do not do to others.” In Hinduism, the concept of ahimsa or non-violence is a core principle — the idea of treating others with compassion and never engaging with others through violent actions. In Judaism, the Hebrew Bible contains a verse that says, “Love your neighbor as yourself” and in Islam, it is reported to have said, “None of you believes until he lives for his brother what he loves for himself.” For Christakis, this universality proves that our nature is embedded with love and cooperation.
In the field of neuroscience, strong evidence exists that our brain is designed to incentivize cooperation with each other: When we help others, our brains release certain chemicals such as Dopamine and Oxytocin, which are linked with prosocial behaviors and positive emotions.
Known as the “helper’s high,” many people commit their lives to altruism due to the positive feelings they receive from acts of kindness. Further, Christakis argues that this positive response happens when we help others beyond our own social group. Studies have shown that people feel pleasure when they see strangers helping strangers, further strengthening his argument that our capacity for empathy and altruism is not limited to our tribe, but to all members of our species. However, when we are caught up in an empty chase, we don’t have the luxury to reflect on how we can be a force for good and the responsibility we have to heal the world.
So, when people start living an “anti-ambitious” life that prioritizes their well-being and values their life over their careers — the individualistic chase for greatness ceases to exist, and the void becomes filled with a deeper sense of community.
Dar LaBeach, a once-successful marketing professional who made up to $150,000 a year, decided to make a drastic change in his life when he was laid off during the pandemic.
While working, he reported feeling stressed, anxious, disenchanted, and ‘tired of living for others’ rather than himself. He suddenly realized that life could be more than feeling drained as a result of his job, regardless of the money left over on the table. His decision allowed him to travel more and have a career simultaneously without allowing his career to dominate his life.
LaBeach traveled to Mexico, and slowly began to realize that he had a keen sense of community and helping others. He began to become involved in social activism, helping to raise awareness of women’s rights — regardless of how small the community was, he wanted to make sure he was actively involved.
When we start taking care of ourselves by listening to what we truly need — not what we believe we need, but truly need — and once we feel cared for — goodness automatically kicks in, even if our actions initially seem self-centered. When we allow space between us and our preconceived notions of what life should look like, we allow our truest feelings and intuitions to emerge. When we act in such “a selfish manner,” we are paradoxically acting in the most selfless way we can. Sometimes, when we allow time to reveal the answers to us and give ourselves enough cushion to find what moves us, we can then move forward and start healing the world because our gas tank is filled with positivity.
Sometimes, all we really need to heal is space to prioritize our well-being — and remember that by “well-being” I mean deciding to live an authentic life. The mindful quest enables us to discover the door to which we are the key.
No, I don’t believe I am arguing in favor of living a life without unpleasant situations and challenges. On the contrary, I believe that hard work pays off and that good fortune comes to those willing to sacrifice. I’m advocating for authenticity — choosing what we want to sacrifice — on our terms. I am offering a new set of tools to evaluate the hidden costs of our choices to give us a much-needed perspective on our decisions and their consequences.
Remember: society always sells the benefit but fails to disclose the cost. We are slowly waking up to the idea that we are not willing to pay the costs of living an inauthentic life just for the sake of a paycheck, for praise, or for a promotion. We are unwilling to sacrifice our youth just to keep an economic machine going. This trade is more than unfair — it is a crime against our time on Earth.
We are waking up, but we still need an extra push. We still live on autopilot, cruising through two-thirds of our lives just because we were sold the stability card. For creators, that formula will never fulfill us.
Many have told us that part of living a rewarding life is sacrificing, often including our own thoughts and emotions. Some are even willing to sacrifice their own sense of self. I believe that we can change the course. There is no sense in buying the goods without asking for the costs, and I am not referring to financial costs. Being wealthy is very costly, being conventionally successful — against your true self — is very costly.
Being anti-ambitious for the right type of ambitions — your ambitions — is perhaps the most ambitious goal we could, we must, aim for.
