I'll be honest: I used to think that if I wasn't working, I was failing.
I'm Lily, a postgraduate student studying Contemporary Literature, Culture and Theory at King's, and like many of you, I've found myself caught in the relentless cycle of productivity culture. Scrolling through StudyTok at midnight, I'd watch students film their 5am morning routines and colour-coded study planners. On LinkedIn, my peers seemed to be securing internships, publishing papers, and somehow still finding time for elaborate self-care routines.
The guilt was constant. Taking an evening off felt like falling behind. Watching a film without making dissertation notes felt wasteful. Rest became something I had to earn, and I never quite felt like I'd done enough to deserve it.
This is what I've come to call the phantom productivity trap: the illusion that every moment must be optimised, that downtime is dead time, that self-improvement should be a full-time job.
When optimisation becomes self-punishment
The turning point came when I realised I would never be happy if I kept comparing myself to others. Everyone I was measuring myself against was on a completely different journey, with different circumstances and struggles they weren't showing online.
But more than that, I had to ask myself: whose standards was I even trying to meet? Was I genuinely pursuing my own version of success, or was I chasing some imagined ideal pieced together from social media, family expectations, and the overachievers in my seminar group? The exhaustion came from working towards someone else's definition of achievement.
Sarah Dhupar, King's Faculty Wellbeing Advisor, sees this pattern regularly amongst students: “Negative comparison is one of the most common pressures I see among students. There’s a strong belief that they should be achieving, coping, or feeling a certain way by now. That ‘should’ can be incredibly heavy, and it often distracts from recognising their own progress, strengths, and achievements – of which there are many! Try to reflect on that, and avoid making negative comparisons of yourself with others, as it is a waste of time and energy. Try to keep the focus on you and your experience instead.”
What actually works
After burning out more times than I'd like to admit, I've learnt some things that have genuinely helped:
- Accept that everyone is on their own journey. What will be, will be. I know it is much easier said than done, but you cannot control anyone else's timeline, and comparing yourself to theirs only steals your peace.
- Break everything into bite-sized to-do lists. Instead of one overwhelming master list and timetabling, I create small, achievable daily lists. At the end of the day, I can see what I've accomplished rather than fixating on what's left undone.
- Abandon the 09:00-17:00 myth. I don't have to work traditional hours. Some days I work 08:00-16:00. Other days it's 10:00-18:00, or broken up with a long break in the middle. Productivity is about working in ways that suit your brain and body.
The value of "wasted" time
Here's something productivity culture doesn't want you to know: boredom is good for you. Your brain needs space to process, to wander, to rest. Some of my best dissertation ideas have come not from colour-coded notes, but from letting my mind drift whilst walking to campus or from doom scrolling on TikTok.
As Sarah puts it, “Thinking time can be as important as reading and writing time. Your brain needs time and rest to process new information. Likewise, your body needs exercise and sleep to keep it in a proper state of alertness so that you can focus on studying effectively.”
Rest is productive. Sleep is productive. Your output doesn't determine your worth, and your value as a student isn't measured in how many hours you can study before collapsing.
Permission to be good enough
It's okay to be "good enough" at things that aren't your priority. You don't have to excel at everything simultaneously. You don't have to maintain a perfect flat, cook elaborate meals, exercise daily, read for pleasure, stay on top of emails, and produce brilliant academic work all at once.
Choose what matters most to you right now, and let yourself be merely adequate at the rest. This isn't giving up, it's being strategic about where you invest your limited energy.
Getting support
If you're reading this and recognising yourself in these patterns, you're not alone. If you're struggling with perfectionism, burnout, or the feeling that you're never doing enough, please reach out. King's Faculty Wellbeing Advisors are here to help before you reach a crisis point. You don't need to wait until things are unbearable. You can also drop into the Time Out hubs for a supportive space to decompress.
Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is ask for help.
Remember: you are more than your productivity. You are allowed to rest. You are allowed to be imperfect. You are allowed to be human.