The Myth of Making it

The origin story of how we came to glorify work-- one that offers a transformative vision for the workplace, in which fair pay, equal access, collective responsibility, and real fulfillment are all within reach-- from the former executive editor of Teen Vogue Samhita Mukhopadhyay would have never called herself a girlboss. But time and time again, she found herself sacrificing time with family and friends, paying too much for lattes, and limping home after working for twelve hours a day. Success didn't come without costs. Or so she thought. And Samhita wasn't alone: far too many of us are taught that to live a good life we need to work ourselves to the bone. That to enact change, we just need to climb up the corporate ladder, to "Lean in," to "hustle." But as Mukhopadhyay shows, these definitions of success are myths-and they are seductive ones. Mukhopadhyay traces the origins of these myth, taking us from the 60s into the present-day, by drawing upon her own professional experience, analyzing analysis from activisits and experts, and talking to workers from all walks of life-ranging from interns, entry- level and mid- level employees, to supervisors. As more and more individuals continue to question whether dedicating their lives to their vocation can even lead to happiness and fulfillment in the first place, Mukhopadhyay asks: what would it mean to have a liberated workplace? Looking to movements like mutual aid and learning from interviews with people who have successfully found liberation at work, Mukhopadhyay offers a vision for a workplace culture that pays fairly, recognizes their values, and gives people access to the resources they need. The Myth of Making It masterfully unravels work as we know it. It is a much needed reckoning of retrograde work culture, a call to action, a field guide, a manifesto for all of us who are tired, searching for justice, and longing to be liberated from the oppressive grip of hustle culture.