The 4 myths that perpetuate toxic productivity, according to a psychotherapist

In Israa Nasir’s new book, the psychotherapist explores how we perpetuate toxic productivity in our personal and professional lives.

Throughout childhood, our parents and teachers encourage us to mine our potential for all we can achieve. In college, our scope expands—we want to maximize our contribution to the world, leave our mark, and make a difference for the better. But as some of us reach adulthood, these lofty goals tend to boil down to a single, urgent imperative: in order to have value, we have to produce more value. Without our noticing, our sense of self shifts away from our internal potential toward what that potential can produce: education, salary, material possessions, relationships, reputation. Our personal value is measured not by what we’ve produced already, but by how today’s production can help us produce tomorrow. Add this together with our competitive results-driven world filled with messages to “rise and grind” or “go the extra mile” and it’s no surprise that we are never satisfied.