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At work, productivity is hallowed. Even outside of work, it is treasured, and we seek it, trying to make the most of our time. But Israa Nasir, a Pakistan-born psychotherapist, who spent her teenage years in Toronto and with her parents living there still calls it home while now living in New York City, warns it’s easy to get seduced into toxic productivity.
You may have sensed that happening. You give up reading for pleasure; everything must help you learn and progress. On vacations, you are squeezing in events and attractions, maximizing your limited time in another locale. You turn down social events to tackle more work or self-improvement. You forget to eat meals during the day, work overtime regularly and feel guilty at not getting enough done while still feeling overwhelmed.
“We sometimes choose productivity over our basic human needs,” she writes in her book Toxic Productivity.
“Doing this builds habits like perfectionism, overcommitting, insecurity, self-neglect and isolation. Even our proudest achievements cease to have any meaning for us; they’re simply a row of checkmarks or a never-ending list, a line of stepping stones toward a destination we will never reach.”
She sees it in her psychotherapy clients but also saw it in herself. Busy, accomplished, with clients and a digital health start-up, she was feeling empty rather than proud. It wasn’t that she – and you – need to stop being productive. But she argues we need to radically reimagine what productivity means. We need to put our productivity in service of our emotional and personal growth, not a checklist that is essentially rooted in comparison, shame or perfectionism.
“Healthy productivity is seeing the difference between urgent things and important things; feeling empowered to say no, or at least ‘not so much’ or ‘not this time’; and having balance and flexibility instead of being hyper-focused on one outcome,” she says.
Our culture sends messages glorifying toxic productivity, she points out, with phrases like “hustle culture.” But toxic productivity also has an emotional foundation, rooted in unresolved shame from childhood, as we were told or felt others thought we were not good enough. It’s driven by a desire for belonging and recognition. “Our toxic habits are not really a way of getting things done,” she warns, “but rather a way to cope with unresolved feelings of our own sense of worth.” Healing comes from self-awareness, self-reflection and intentional action to develop better habits.
Your productivity, she argues, has no bearing on your worth. Disconnecting your self-worth from productivity begins with examining the core beliefs telling you that you deserve less than you need or that you’ll only be enough when you do enough.
She suggests practising introducing yourself without talking about your job or the role you play in the family. Write a bio without including anything about your job or the family role. Write a list of things that make you feel worthy that have nothing to do with external achievement. Write a list of things about yourself that you value or are complimented on that have nothing to do with productivity, status or achievement.
She used to think that rest – taking time to recharge – was unwanted, since she was being idle. So overcoming toxic productivity will also involve beating back your inaccurate understanding of rest. And it’s vital because constantly being “on” takes a heavy toll on your nervous system.
Rest comes in two dimensions: Creating space for doing nothing and then using that space to engage in things that actively nourish you. “Doing nothing is only the halfway point to rest. The second half is doing something rejuvenating. That can be anything that keeps you present, intentional and engaged with yourself,” she says. You need to discover what leads to joy, fulfilment and a passion for life.
When we’re exhausted, overwhelmed or fearful we are burning out, we tend to blame the boss or organization employing us. But she is pointing us, as well, inward. What within us seeks toxic productivity? How can that impulse be offset?
Quick hits
- Communications consultant Jezra Kaye in her newsletter recommends before a job interview using the job description and organization website to formulate some probable questions. Whenever you have a free minute, walk around – she believes movement is important – speaking out loud as you answer one of those questions. Then figure out the most important thing you said and use it first in the interview.
- When faced with a big purchase Ami Vora, chief product officer at Faire, a marketplace for local independent retailers, waits 24 hours, and if she still wants it, that’s a good indicator she should consider investing in it. She recommends the same approach when asked to take on extra work. It’s always okay, she says, to take a day to decide.
- Growth always has a component of grief, notes author Mark Manson. It requires loss – of your old values, old behaviours or old identity.
Harvey Schachter is a Kingston-based writer specializing in management issues. He, along with Sheelagh Whittaker, former CEO of both EDS Canada and Cancom, are the authors of When Harvey Didn’t Meet Sheelagh: Emails on Leadership.
