New employee gets confused by mental health discussions at company. One office meeting reveals the harsh truth of normalising hustle culture

Modern corporate culture often presents a polished image of workplace wellness, mental health awareness, and work-life balance. Companies organize wellness sessions, encourage employees to avoid burnout, and openly discuss toxic work culture in professional spaces. However, behind the carefully crafted messaging, many employees still struggle with overwork, unrealistic expectations, late-night emails, unpaid overtime, and pressure to constantly stay available online. This contradiction has increasingly sparked conversations across social media. Now, career coach Simon Ingari has shared a similar story about the modern workplace and burnout culture in his latest X post, leaving many professionals feeling seen and heard.

When workplace wellness becomes performative

In the post, Simon Ingari shared the story of an employee who joined a new company and immediately noticed ‘something strange about corporate culture.’ He observed that senior managers often shared their thoughts on burnout, toxic work habits, mental health struggles, and the dangers of overworking.



Workplace town halls frequently revolved around work-life balance, while HR teams regularly circulated wellness newsletters encouraging employees to prioritize self-care and emotional well-being. Leadership figures also repeatedly warned staff members about stress, exhaustion, and the long-term mental health impact of an unhealthy work culture. However, despite the company’s repeated messaging around employee wellness and healthy boundaries, the employee slowly began noticing contradictions in everyday corporate behaviour.

Hidden pressure behind corporate success

The very same managers who promoted mental health awareness were often active online late at night, replying to emails at 2 am. Executives who publicly encouraged work-life balance privately praised employees who stayed available during weekends and constantly worked beyond office hours. The organization even rewarded employees who never truly logged off, indirectly normalizing hustle culture and overwork despite publicly discouraging burnout.

Confused by this contradiction, the employee eventually questioned one of the senior directors, asking him how company leaders seemed to know so much about the harmful effects of overworking if they genuinely believed such habits were unhealthy. The director, however, laughed awkwardly and avoided answering the question directly. A few weeks later, the employee received an invitation to an ‘exclusive leadership strategy session’ that cleared his doubts.

Why employees feel exhausted despite ‘work-life balance’ talks

The gathering, which was held at a luxury hotel bar, was attended by senior leaders who spoke casually and openly about the very work habits they publicly criticized in office discussions. One executive proudly spoke about surviving on only 4 hours of sleep, while another joked about responding to work emails during his honeymoon. Someone else admitted they had not taken a proper vacation in 6 years.

It was during this candid interaction that the employee finally understood the deeper reality of corporate culture. It showed how workplaces often publicly condemn burnout and toxic work habits while privately glorifying and rewarding them behind closed doors.