Toxic Productivity Syndrome

I’ve been trying to figure out what led to my extreme burnout and I think that this might be part of it. I’m someone who takes on too much stress and holds onto it as a sort of badge of honor. So, here is my take on it using logic math:

The basics…

If you are continually rewarded for work mainly when you exceed your pain or stress threshold:

PAIN = GOOD WORK

This follows that over time, the equation becomes transitive:

GOOD WORK = PAIN

It follows that if the equation is negated, the truth will hold:

NO PAIN = NOT GOOD WORK (BAD WORK)

Now, if you are continually rewarded outside of work with the same requirements of stress and pain:

PAIN = REWARDS

If you are not rewarded when there is not evidence of stress or pain, e.g., it’s easy for you, so there’s no reason to make a fuss:

NOT PAIN = PUNISHMENT

If you have a hypersensitive and overreactive reward/punishment system (which might be the root of perfectionism) then you will seek out pain for both internal and external validation:

IF I FEEL NO PAIN, THEN EXTERNAL VALIDATION IS INVALID

IF I FEEL NO PAIN, THEN I DON’T DESERVE TO GIVE MYSELF INTERNAL VALIDATION

You may even go as far as trying to convince other people that your view of invalidation is accurate and undermine the work you have done:

IF I FEEL NO PAIN, THEN I NEED YOU TO PUNISH ME

Now let’s bring morality in…

If you are taught that:

GOOD WORK = MORAL UPRIGHTNESS

GOOD WORK = PAIN

Then:

MORAL UPRIGHTNESS = GOOD WORK = PAIN

MORAL UPRIGHTNESS = PAIN

NOT PAIN = MORAL DECAY

Therefore… if I am not working myself to the point of pain, I am not a good person.

Let’s get to the control bit…

If you are taught that if you are a “good person” then you can control outcomes, and if you are taught that good work can also control outcomes, then you are doubly primed to fall into the productivity trap.

GOOD = CONTROL

GOOD WORK = PAIN

PAIN = CONTROL

MORE PAIN = MORE CONTROL

If things are fine and you are well within your stress parameters, then:

NOT PAIN = BAD WORK = NOT CONTROL = PUNISHMENT

To remedy this, you may manufacture pain or discontent as a means to be able to increase the feeling of control over the situation or to exert control over unrelated situations. Therefore, to reduce punishment, you must induce pain:

PAIN = CONTROL