There's a difference between being productive and being toxic in the workplace. While we all want to be more productive, it can often come at the price of our health or relationships. Toxic productivity is when you're working so hard, you start to negatively impact your health or your work environment. In this post, we'll explore what exactly toxic productivity is, how it affects you long-term and what causes it in the first place.

What is toxic productivity?

What exactly is toxic productivity, and how can you tell if it's a problem?

Working too hard. Working long hours, taking work home with you on the weekends and generally feeling that no task is ever done—toxic productivity comes from being obsessed with work.
Not taking time off. Giving into the temptation of working all weekend because there's something left to do can lead to a lack of balance in your life and stress overload as well as burnout over time.
Not getting enough sleep. It may seem obvious that getting enough rest will help us be more productive at work, but many people fail to realize that proper sleep habits are just as important for health as eating well or exercising regularly (and maybe even more so). Lack of sleep can lead to feelings of malaise during the day and will make it harder for your brain to focus on complex tasks like analyzing data or writing code or designing an app prototype. In fact, studies have shown that people who get seven hours of sleep each night perform better than those who don't get any shut-eye at all!

Is toxic productivity only about working too hard?

You might have heard of toxic productivity, but you're probably not sure what it is. It's the idea that you can work hard, but if your working style isn't sustainable or healthy, then it's not really productive at all.

Let's start with the basics: toxic productivity is about working too hard in a way that doesn't help you achieve your goals. But let's go a little deeper and look at some examples of how this happens and why it matters.

What are the signs of being overly productive?

You work long hours, even on weekends.
You’re working through your lunch break.
Your relationships with colleagues, friends and family are strained and you have no time for collaboration, relaxation or team meetings.
Your personal life is a mess, and you don’t know how to fix it because you are always working on something at work.
Your work life is also a mess, because you've never had time for organization or planning ahead of time (or even later in the day).
Related: 10 Ways to become more organized and efficient

You find that it's hard to get anything done without feeling like there isn't enough time in the day to do it all—and this makes you feel guilty and stressed out constantly!

How does toxic productivity affect you long-term?

If you're experiencing signs of toxic productivity, it's time to take action. It can lead to burnout and other negative health effects, including:

Poor sleep quality. If you're working long hours but not taking time for yourself, you may be skipping out on quality sleep. Instead of sleeping for eight hours at night, your body will become exhausted and start shutting down in the middle of the day when it realizes there's no way that it can get enough rest if it goes straight into another workday. This leads to a vicious cycle where fatigue causes poor health habits throughout the day that then lead to more fatigue the next day—and so on.
Low energy levels and bad nutrition habits. When we don't get enough sleep or eat well during the day due to our busy schedule, we feel tired and lethargic during work hours because our bodies are too sluggish from stressors like lack of sleep/nutrition balance (which is why so many people turn towards caffeine). But once we’ve had our fill of caffeine through coffee or energy drinks throughout the shift—and maybe even some sugary snacks later on—we'll crash later that afternoon instead of being able to enjoy a healthy dinner with family members after work! In fact, some workers skip meals altogether but that can lead to hunger cravings, especially for sugars and carbs.

Toxic productivity can lead to burnout and other negative health effects.

According to WebMD “Burnout is a form of exhaustion caused by constantly feeling swamped. It's a result of excessive and prolonged emotional, physical, and mental stress. In many cases, burnout is related to one's job. Burnout happens when you're overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to keep up with life's incessant demands”.

It can also cause stress because you're constantly running around trying to get things done in order to meet deadlines before they occur or complete tasks so they'll be done faster than if you took your time doing them. This leads us back into our first point about accomplishing things simply for the sake of accomplishing them - that's not always necessary!

It's important to be productive, but it's also important to take care of yourself. If you feel like you're taking on too much or getting burned out, look for ways to reduce your workload and take breaks throughout the day. Remember that there is no way to be super productive without being healthy—and vice versa!

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