SINGAPORE: How far would you go to achieve financial freedom? For one man, the answer appears to be working nearly 20 hours a day across two full-time jobs, with just one day of rest a week!
In a Reddit post, the man shared that he has been juggling a night shift from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m., followed immediately by a morning job from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. He has maintained this routine for the past three months in a bid to clear his debts, build an emergency fund, and begin investing.
According to him, this decision was not made lightly. He explained, “I didn’t see any chance of getting a job that pays S$4 to S$5k, let alone hitting the S$10k mark with just one job, so I’m working two jobs to beat that ceiling.”
The man said that while he does feel very proud every time he receives his pay cheque (or rather, pay cheques), his body feels battered and “running on low battery.”
“When I look in the mirror, I honestly look like I have cancer, pale, exhausted, just like a zombie,” he wrote. “I feel drained all the time. My heart is starting to show signs of palpitations and stress. I barely have a social life anymore.”
At the end of his post, the man asked other members of the Reddit community:
“Is this sacrifice really worth it? Has Singapore really become like this? Two Jobs, No Life! Is this what success feels like, or am I crazy? For those who’ve been through something similar, how do you cope?” he continued. “Am I making the right choice?”
“Success amounts to nothing when your health suffers.”
Under the man’s post, many expressed that they were quite alarmed by his gruelling schedule and suggested that he scale back on his hustle and just focus on one job.
Many told the man that his physical and mental health should always, always take precedence over everything else, even financial stability.
One individual commented, “Wait, what—where’s the sleep? Bro, I get the financial stress, but that’s not success at all. That’s just waiting for your body to fail – and fail big.
“Stretch your body like that, and whatever ‘success’ you earnt will be wiped out instantly through bills and a poor quality of life. It’s just not worth it. Drop one job, focus on resting up, and then think about how you can earn more with one job.”
Another wrote, “I think it’s time to build some skills so that you can live off just 1 job and maybe have a side hustle if you want. Tearing down your body with no rest is a surefire way to screw up your health, which you cost you in medical bills and earning potential if it turns into something chronic.”
A third added, “I think success amounts to nothing when your health suffers and you can’t enjoy what you worked hard towards. Since you have no debt, I think focus on upskilling and increase the salary for one of the jobs. Get rest and sleep.”
Is the hustle culture a bad thing?
The hustle culture isn’t inherently harmful, but scientists have warned that pushing ourselves too hard for too long can have negative effects on our physical health.
An article published in the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health revealed that working more than 11 hours a day is linked to a threefold increase in the risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack) and nearly a fourfold increase in the risk of developing non-insulin-dependent diabetes (type 2 diabetes), compared to a standard workday.
Additionally, working 60 hours or more per week is associated with almost a threefold higher risk of disability retirement.
Furthermore, short sleep durations are linked to a greater risk of coronary heart disease, increased sympathetic nervous system activity, and elevated blood pressure and heart rate.
Perhaps most alarming is the combination of long working hours and inadequate sleep. The article mentioned that individuals who work 61 hours or more per week and sleep for five hours or less per night are at least twice as likely to suffer an acute myocardial infarction, or heart attack.
Read also: ‘Am I asking for too much?’: Woman feels unloved as BF insists on going 50/50 for everything
Featured image by freepik (for illustration purposes only)
