Mind the Gap: How Gen Z really feels about hustle culture (2024)

FAQs

How Gen Z really feels about Hustle culture? ›

Gen Z is redefining what we know today about the workplace as this generation has been rejecting hustle culture. Modern workplace dynamics have changed globally since the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Bankrate's Side Hustles Survey, 48 percent of Gen Zers and 44 percent of millennials have a side hustle.

A recent study found that approximately 97% of Gen Z states that work is part of their identity, and 83% are self-proclaimed job hoppers pursuing diversified skill sets, fresh challenges, and business environments that align with their values.

Gen Z's balancing act between ambition and well-being. Starting a business, taking on side gigs, launching a podcast, growing your online following, hustle culture has become mainstream—until Gen Z came along and started redefining it.

Traditional workplace structures, characterized by rigid hierarchies and a lack of flexibility, often fail to appeal to Gen Z individuals. Gen Z has been raised in a digital age with access to information and diverse perspectives; they value transparency, inclusivity, and purpose-driven work.

Hustle culture equates busyness with productivity, exhaustion with accomplishment, and, most dangerously, self-worth with professional success. In a world that glorifies being 'on the grind', the relentless pursuit of success can often become a badge of honour.

1. Freelancing. Freelancing is a tried-and-true way to earn extra money and deserves a top spot on any list of easy side hustle ideas. Freelancers deliver work on a per-project basis for one or more clients and you can schedule it in your spare time.

Driving the news: Young people today are more likely to job-hop, but they are also looking for stability by pursuing careers as CEOs, doctors and engineers, according to a new Axios/Generation Lab study. By the numbers: Gen Z-ers surveyed said their top career goals were businessperson, doctor and engineer."

For example, a new study by the Investment Company Institute (ICI) finds that “Gen Z households have nearly three times more assets in the [retirement] plan accounts (adjusted for inflation) that Gen X households did at the same age.” More Gen Z-ers have retirement plans set up and they've saved more in those accounts.

Gen Z Struggles With Mental Health

According to McKinsey, over half (55%) of Gen Zers report having either been diagnosed or receiving treatment for a mental health condition, compared to 31% of people aged 55 to 64, who have had decades longer to seek and get treatment.

What is Gen Z most passionate about? ›

Gen Zers generally have strong values related to racial justice and sustainability. Mobilizations like the Global Climate March, led by Gen Z activist Greta Thunberg, thrive on the activism of young people. Climate change is one of the issues Gen Zers care about most.

Following the era of working remotely and high burnout rates, many reconsidered their priorities regarding the role of work in their lives. A January 2024 global study by consulting firm Randstad found that 57% of Gen Z said they would leave their job if it interfered with their personal lives and emotional well-being.

But even in less severe cases, the CDC has linked these nonstandard schedules to increased work-related fatigue, leading to employee burnout. Constant Availability Is an Expectation: Beyond working hours, a toxic hustle culture encroaches on workers' personal time by demanding their availability at all hours.

Hustle culture creates an unhealthy balance between work and personal life. It emphasizes career success prioritized over everything else, including relationships with family, friends, and partners.

In this LinkedIn article, I explain a few things I learned about why Gen Z and Millennials are shifting away from the traditional 9 to 5 work model. From a desire for flexibility and freedom to focus on pursuing passion-driven careers, I'll discuss the motivations behind this generational trend.

Instead, hustling not only elevates stress and anxiety, but also paves the way for a host of wellbeing issues–impacting mental, emotional, and physical health. The culture fosters an environment where workers are expected to sacrifice their personal lives to work toward unrealistic expectations and professional goals.

Most Gen Z respondents shared that they feel equipped to handle financial basics, such as managing their day-to-day expenses (70%), sticking to a budget (70%) and building/managing credit (66%).

Hustle culture is when a workplace environment places an intense focus on productivity, ambition, and success, with little regard for rest, self care, or any sense of work-life balance.

The phenomenon of hustle culture, while disregarding healthy work–life balance, may exacerbate workaholism.