LinkedIn hustle culture is toxic and here are the reasons why

Social media can majorly impact your mental health. From Instagram to Facebook, all online platforms have the potential to be a hotbed of negativity.

In a recent article published by BBC, it was reported that over 40 per cent of the population use social media. In the case of LinkedIn, reports have shown that over 756 million people have joined the service since its launch in 2003.

However, despite its popularity, the employment-oriented online service may just be the worst platform yet. Here are five reasons why LinkedIn hustle culture is toxic af.

A vicious cycle that most of us are addicted to

The need for constant hustle is unhealthy

Never once have I started my week, paused, and uttered: “Thank God it’s Monday.” And yet, for some reason, this generation is OBSESSED with relentlessly striving for perfection whilst attempting to maintain a positive attitude. This is most obvious on LinkedIn, where profiles are overflowing with past achievements and recommendations.

Obviously, LinkedIn provides the perfect opportunity to show employers what you are capable of with your honest experiences. But even so, the truth is that LinkedIn is nothing more than any other social media platform – a warped reality of fake hustles.

As psychological reports have indicated, the lack of transparency on LinkedIn can actually have a negative effect on work ethic. In other words, engaging with hustle culture is, more often than not, entirely counterproductive.

Everything is a fabrication

One report published on the implications of hustle culture says that consumer promotions are responsible for over a quarter of the marketing budget for product companies. In relation to LinkedIn, this means that employers are constantly bombarded with exaggerated work experiences from candidates wanting to show their suitability for a role.

However, companies are now becoming increasingly creative with their strategies, designing the best type of promotions for consumers.

Known as “promotion by design” in the field of Economics, LinkedIn follows the same strategy: people design or fabricate components of their profile, altering their achievements to ensure they are the best candidate for potential employers a.k.a the consumers.

As you can imagine, this causes a lot of anxiety, especially for the recent graduates who have not accumulated the type of work experience that could give the likes of Elon Musk a run for his money.

So, it is important to remind people that, just like any social media, LinkedIn is a chapter of someone’s working life – not the entire book.

There are too many filters 

LinkedIn is just like any other social media platform. I’d even go as far as to say that there is a really striking resemblance between LinkedIn and Instagram since they both rely on filters.

The only difference is that Instagram uses filters through images, whilst LinkedIn uses filters through words. Both platforms also enable people to get jobs, help connect with others and distort reality.

While we all know that Instagram can enable toxic behaviours, doesn’t the same go for LinkedIn? Considering the state of our global economy and the mental health epidemic, we really shouldn’t be fuelling further feelings of inadequacy amongst young people who have already been dealt a bad hand this year.

The fake reality actually makes us less productive

As a consequence of the lockdown, people have been stuck indoors and LinkedIn has probably just become another way to pass the time.

The constant reminder that others are “doing better” than you during this tough period is not something that many people can digest easily. As such, the motivation to find a job can fall drastically and potential productivity levels become almost nonexistent.

LinkedIn is not a platform that shows all as it is, though, so maybe we should just stop taking it so seriously. After all, even Elle Woods took breaks.

And it leaves us addicted to perfection

In this day and age, it is well known that spending more time on social media leads to negative behaviours such as social comparison, avoidance, and addiction.

What is less known, is why people, especially teenagers, become addicted to the idea of perfectionism when we all have different attributes to offer.

I think it’s because individuals use social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, to present their unique skill set, but then subconsciously or consciously engage in social comparison. This leaves most of us stuck in a hopeless Catch-22 type of situation.

And so, for all these reasons, LinkedIn may in fact be the most toxic social media platform for young people of all.

LinkedIn has been contacted for comment.

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