The internet is home to a variety of trends, ranging from tame to completely bizarre and unexplainable. However, one of the more recent concepts taking the world by storm is surprisingly simple: locking in. Focus. That is literally all there is to it. However, this idea has completely taken off, becoming massively popularized by internet culture. Countless forms of content have been created promoting the academic grind, from mood boards to “study with me” vlogs to ads promoting the best stationery or software. Almost overnight, locking in has become incredibly sensationalized, so much so that an entirely new lifestyle has been birthed from its popularity: the grindset, a comprehensive mindset wholly dedicated to productivity and intense focus.
As confusing as its popularity might seem, it actually makes perfect sense why this concept has taken off, especially among young people whose lives are built around their studies or work. It feels great to accomplish goals and to check another task off the endless list of responsibilities. This rush of satisfaction is only bolstered when we can see that the immensely successful and influential people on our screens are doing the very same thing as us. It pushes us to work harder, challenge ourselves, and be better — to be just like them. If they can do it, why can’t we?
An entire mindset with a focus on being ambitious and hardworking becoming mainstream seems like the perfect way to motivate countless others to aspire for the same. However, there is one question that many fail to consider until it’s too late: when does this become too much?
There’s no doubt that there are benefits to our culture prioritizing and recognizing hard work and progress towards goals, especially within a population made up of students. These are values to strive for, commend and even celebrate. And seeing the people we look up to put in focus and work can be the perfect boost to push through an assignment or get a headstart on studying. The piece that is critical to recognize, though, is that it’s crucial to find the right balance between productivity and preserving our spark. Unfortunately, this necessary balance is often the first thing to disappear when locking in morphs from a helpful habit to an all-consuming lifestyle.
It is all too easy to let every other aspect of life slip away if we choose just one task to put all our energy into. The main issue with this pursuit of extreme focus is how quickly health and wellbeing fall to the wayside. It starts small: one little all-nighter to cram for that test, a simple “I’ll eat once I finish this,” and suddenly you’ve slept for five hours total in the past three days and missed out on three meals in the process. That is the vicious cycle that comes with the grindset. It’s one thing for this to happen occasionally. Believe me, I’ve been there. But many people, myself included, often fail to recognize the harm of this behavior as a pattern when we’re living it.
When laid out in this way, it should seem obvious why this is unhealthy behavior. However, the reason it so frequently goes unnoticed is because everybody seems to be doing the same. Much of the content related to the grindset is influencers starting their days at 4 a.m., remaining constantly in motion and shaming those who dare to take a moment of rest. In such a fast-paced world, you must be busy. You must be productive. You must work until there is nothing left of yourself. These are the mantras that are being pushed onto us as viewers, but we must realize that these influencers are often not even living the life they promote because it is simply impossible to live this way.
This life of limitless precision and productivity is not even the gold standard anymore; it’s been painted as the bare minimum. But this standard isn’t humanly possible. In fact, it is barely human. It is critical to recognize that this mindset is more mechanical than man — and we are far more than machines.
There should be great pride in diligently pursuing one’s goals and dreams. However, we need to understand the delicate balance between personal drive and self-care that accompanies this. When we allow ourselves to be consumed by the grindset and chase the impossibly high standards glorified by the people on our screens, we risk losing ourselves in the process. So, as you push through that upcoming quiz or group project, remember that you alone oversee your productivity. No matter how the internet depicts what hard work “should” look like, you know what it feels like.