New Delhi: In the post-pandemic world, healthy work boundaries are all the rage. The excessive number of hours people have put in to keep themselves or their businesses afloat may have been fruitful during the lockdown period, but staying busy all the time has its own set of drawbacks. Hustle culture, burnout culture, grind culture - whatever you want to call it, it generally means going above and beyond one's call of duty (read: job description) to get (more) work done. Among other things, better pay, a new job title, and validation contribute to one's motivation to "hustle." The cycle continues indefinitely.


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Shantanu Deshpande, Founder-CEO of Bombay Shaving Company, believes in young people hustling, but Twitter believes it's time to call it quits.


“When you are 22 and new in your job, throw yourself into it. Eat well and stay fit, but put in the 18 hour days for at least 4-5 years," Deshpande’s now-viral LinkedIn post reads.


The CEO goes on to say that young people are influenced by online content and strive for a work-life balance, which he believes should not be a priority at such a young age.


"I see a LOT of kids who watch random content and convince themselves that 'work-life balance, spending time with family, rejuvenation, bla bla' is important. It is, but not at this hour."


 



"Don't do random rona-dhona," Deshpande concluded in his post. Take it on the chin and keep going. You'll be much better for it."


"18-hour rush - Done. 6-hour sleep - Done. How do you stay fit and eat well? I didn't understand. Even 18 hours is a 'proxy' way to give everything and then some. Prepare to deal with high blood pressure, anxiety, and other health issues in your twenties. A lesson for me and everyone else: not everything the leaders say is true."


 



“Hey if anyone reading this is a fresh grad entering the job market, this is terrible, terrible advice for your mental, physical, etc, health. Have passion + dedication for what you do but remember we are all cogs in the capitalist machine and your loved ones can’t replace you the way a company can," wrote another user.


"Before posting in such a responsible position, one should think carefully." "Generalization of one's approach can be detrimental to society," added another.


 



Deshpande responded to criticism with: Yikes. So much contempt for 18-hour days. It stands in for 'giving your all and then some.'


His post was picked up by Twitter and treated similarly.


LinkedIn's official Twitter account recently used a popular meme to share that shaming "quiet quitters," or people who do their job and log out on time, had to stop.


While many associate quiet quitting with doing the "bare minimum," others argue that what is referred to as doing the "bare minimum" is simply refusing to overwork and setting personal boundaries.


Meanwhile, another CEO was chastised on social media for crying "crocodile tears" after laying off employees.