Gen Y Speaks: Hustling too hard led me to burn out at 26. Now I know there's no prize for being 'the busy one'

Gen Y Speaks: Hustling too hard led me to burn out at 26. Now I know there's no prize for being 'the busy one'

As much as we wished that our parents were more lenient, we’re grateful. Without them, we wouldn’t be who we are today.I started working part-time at 14, doing sales administration for an apparel retailer. While pursuing my business degree at Nanyang Technological University, I waitressed in a campus cafe and spent my weekends giving maths and science tuition to secondary school students.

But that’s how it was in 2013. There was no such thing as “work-life balance” or “mental health awareness”. Working late meant you were pulling your weight; clocking out right on time told others you were lazy. I would carry my laptop with me all the time, even to family and friends’ gatherings and birthday celebrations — “just in case”.

Experiencing cultures so different from Singapore’s also taught me that slowing down doesn’t mean stagnation. In fact, slowing down gives me a better, clearer perspective of my life and how I spend my time.If you have spent any time in the advertising, marketing and public relations world, you’ll know that the phrase “agency life” is often uttered with a certain tone of knowing resignation: There’s no “life”, just “agency”.

These have made me reflect a lot on how the last 12 years that I spent hustling have often led to me neglecting myself and my loved ones.

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