why we worship productivity and call it worth

on mistaking checklists for purpose and forgetting how to simply be

When did being busy become a status symbol? When did resting quietly start to mean you’re lazy, or not doing enough?

Most of our days feel like a race with others - not because we want to run, but because everyone else is running. We see people acting like they love being busy, but in truth, most of them hate it. Still, they do it anyway, and we do too.

Rest carries guilt. Stillness feels like failure.

“Productivity is not the same as purpose.” – Unknown

And it doesn’t stop at daily life - it follows us online. Every “perfect” morning routine has to be filled with efficiency: workouts, journaling, green smoothies, inbox zero.

But a morning could simply be just that… a morning.

Our worth is constantly measured by output: grades, work hours, to-do lists. We feel like we have to prove ourselves by doing everything at our best, while pretending it took no effort at all.

“Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” – Socrates

The irony is that real work, the kind that drains you, costs everything - your time, your energy, your attention. But we’ve been taught that our value comes from how much we can push, not from who we are.