Generative Metaphors

Toxic Productivity Culture would have us think about ourselves and our lives as we expect a corporation might, with an eye to wringing as much perceived value out of our time and efforts as possible. When we look at our lives through the lens of toxic productivity culture, we are resources to be used up.

How grim!

Internalizing exploitative views of self is not the only option. I propose three possible alternative metaphors that are far more humanizing and useful:

1. Gardening: We could think of the territory of our lives as a garden in which things could grow. There is no harvest unless there is also watering, weed pulling, conditioning of soil, and wintering. Gardeners understand the full cycle as productive, not just the picking.
2. Athletics: We could think of ourselves as athletes. Strength training causes microtears in muscle, and the body uses nutrition and rest to rebuild the muscle stronger. Good athletes understand and engage the full process, rest included.
3. Creative Process: Every creative professional knows, there is process, and there is product. Many seemingly unproductive activities can be part of a healthy and highly effective creative practice. A scene from the show Mad Men saw Don and Peggy running into each other at the movies in the middle of a work day, because they were “clearing the cobwebs.” This was understood as a necessary part of “productivity.”

All three metaphors treat the self not as a limited commodity from which the maximum should be extracted, but as a living organism with the capacity to generate and regenerate. This is far more hopeful, sustainable, and humanizing.