Winter Arc and Hustle Culture

Social media is flooded with influencers pushing the 'rise-and-grind' mentality, from Winter Arc to The Great Lock In. But behind the glossy images lies a recipe for burnout and ruined careers. And no, artificial intelligence isn't going to save us from the hamster wheel. It will only make it spin faster.

This is Kludder of the week!

Winter Arc, The Great Lock In, and Hustle Culture. Or overachieving, signed off sick, and a ruined career?

With social media come the glossy lives of the people who seem to have it all figured out. Their gruelling workouts, focus on self-improvement and effortless side incomes. I decided to take a deep dive into the popular "rise-and-grind" mentality that social media pushes onto our screens.

My Instagram algorithm was quickly flooded by hyperachieving influencers doing push-ups on snow and ice, without gloves. The ones who get up before five to "give themselves a head start". Exactly what this is called changes almost yearly. But the desire and never-ending chase to perform at your absolute best is still thriving.

Social media has trained us to think that the life we live isn't enough. If we would just have a bit more structure, a bit more discipline, and plan our meals just a little more meticulously , we would become super rich and super fit.

But what does it do to young people when influencers like the Norwegian Elias Omberg say you can't go on a date unless you can pay for an entire dinner? When he says you have to get educated to become A, to work with B, to be able to earn C and give your girlfriend everything she could wish for.

I know that fourteen-year-old me, exposed to Omberg's dating advice, would never have dared ask a girl out. It's scary enough as it is, without a secondary school student's wallet determining whether he gets to experience his first love or not.

I feel like locking in is a way of romanticising getting into your deep work and making that decision of like, 'okay, it's time to get stuff done'. – Student Dani to BBC.

But that's what the digital world has warped into. A place where the number of followers determines whether you're a voice worth listening to or not. Saying that sharing an ice cream at the beach is a good enough date doesn't get reach. Thinking that way doesn't create engagement. It results in neither shares nor comments. That's why the extreme always wins.

And so the hamster wheel keeps spinning, as we get sucked into a world of not good enough, not earning enough, and not dedicated enough – aided by the world's richest men. Elon Musk expects an "extremely hardcore" work effort from his employees. Another word for that is exploitation.

Selling the dream

The term Winter Arc first appeared in 2022 and was popularised around 2024. October to December was supposed to be the period when you swapped relaxation and fun for a brutal self-punishment regime. It was about seeing yourself as a character in a story, the story of yourself. The winter months depicted as the time when the protagonist faces adversity and comes out stronger on the other side.

Variants of these ultimate self-improvement projects pop up all the time. You're supposed to push yourself through what you must, and not put off until tomorrow what you can do today. But what they all have in common is that the goals are all about you. Whether it's getting a promotion, working out more, or somehow reaching a new level. One of the most popular goals is financial freedom. And that's when you get people who make a living selling the dream.

"Hustle bros" are everywhere on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook. On LinkedIn, posts trend that tempt you with the secret of how to build a side business. On the Reddit forum Overemployed, people seek advice on how to hold three or four jobs simultaneously. One of the most popular social media tips is to start a newsletter and make money from advertising revenue. Then you can make money selling courses on how to make money from newsletters.

This is exactly what made it feel a bit embarrassing telling people I had started a newsletter when Kludder first saw the light of day. Did people think I was going to become a hustle bro advertising for pyramid schemes, talking about financial freedom, or recommending trading various cryptocurrencies?

70 per cent of Generation Z believe influencers give better financial advice than traditional financial advisers. – Alex Barkley, Partner at Lancero Capital Bank to the Financial Times.

I think the expectation to be eternally productive and always deliver is about feeling important. At the same time, this mindset particularly hits younger people. Those who are itching to get on with their own lives, those who want an extraordinary career or to afford a flat in the inner city of London or New York. Young, recent graduates are struggling to find jobs and searching frantically for ways to stand out. When their screens are bombarded with encouragement to run your body and mind into the ground, there's danger ahead.

Winter Arc, extremely hardcore, and The Great Lock In are terms meant to awaken a winner's mentality. To make you think you're part of the top half per cent in the world who climb to the top - if only you get up early enough. But all of this is just dressed-up synonyms for overwork.

And it turns out this mindset can do more harm than good to future careers, sending young people off the rails early on.

9-9-6 and headfirst into a wall

We humans need to unwind and take a break. Without these, we burn out and end up on sick leave. The danger lies in the fact that nobody likes to believe they themselves are at risk of having to throw in the towel. We have a unique ability to believe that only we can push ourselves just a little bit further than everyone around us.

It's a dangerous over confidence when it comes to stamina. Meanwhile, the world around us talks about optimisation, efficiency, and increasing production. Influencers go on about the importance of having multiple income streams, and that having a hobby without making money from it is a missed opportunity. In startups around the world, the 9-9-6 mindset became popular. The expectation is that you work from nine in the morning to nine in the evening, six days a week.

Studies show that this type of exhaustion, where the body is under chronic stress, can lead to depression, anxiety, and other mental health challenges. The Great Lock In ends up locking you out, resulting in a bedridden state of lower productivity, less innovation, and limited capacity.

The end of burnout?

I've read several articles that believe we're approaching the end of this hustle mentality. Many of them point to artificial intelligence as an important reason.

But I see a different pattern. A pattern where ChatGPT and AI agents are supposed to make you even more productive. Influencers talking about how you're "falling behind" if you haven't already started making money through generative artificial intelligence.

Perhaps terms like Winter Arc and Hustle Culture are on their way out. But the content isn't going anywhere. We humans are far too fond of the dream of the perfect version of ourselves.

When everyone else is working eight-hour days thanks to AI agents, you'll have to work fourteen-hour days with your own AI agents. You don't want to be left behind, do you?