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Osnaživanje, stil i inspiracija spajaju se u svakom izdanju našeg magazina.
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December 30, 2025
We wish you a New Year in which you become a BETTER version of yourself.
How many times have you received a greeting with this or a similar message over the past ten days? Exactly — countless times. The insistence on constant self-improvement and the pressure to pursue personal growth are demands imposed by self-optimization culture, the defining trend of the decade. At first glance, it sounds like a positive direction. But how does the message that we should become even more organized, more efficient, better actually affect us?
Self-optimization culture is a popular mindset that views life as a project that must constantly be refined, upgraded and improved. All efforts are directed toward becoming faster, more efficient, more productive, healthier, better. This does not apply only to careers or professional life, but implies the continuous reworking and fixing of one’s personality. Working on yourself, as such, is not the issue. What makes this movement and lifestyle questionable is the message embedded in every action: you are not good enough — at least not as you are today.
The foundations of self-optimization culture were laid in the 1980s, with the emergence of neoliberal work logic. Value systems shifted toward the individual, and the concept of personal success became increasingly prominent. Self-improvement was framed as an obligation rather than a choice. Technological development only amplified this trend. Silicon Valley popularized the idea that constant growth is the only acceptable form of success, while rest and pauses are signs of weakness. Social media followed, bringing with it an entire self-development industry packaged into books, morning routines and efficiency principles. Finally, we were given tools to measure our discipline — devices that count our steps, track sleep quality, calories and productivity.
For women, self-improvement is nothing new. It is simply an upgraded version of expectations imposed on them in different forms across different eras. Women have long been conditioned to work toward being “enough” or “good enough.” Self-optimization culture takes this one step further by normalizing constant pressure and disguising it as self-care. Within this framework, women bear full responsibility for every outcome in their lives. If you are exhausted, you failed to organize yourself properly. If you are not successful, you didn’t plan well enough. If you are not polished, you are neglecting self-care. If you are not slim, you lack discipline. If you are dissatisfied, you simply haven’t worked on yourself enough.
This becomes particularly dangerous because optimization rarely applies to just one area of life. Women are expected to be productive at work, emotionally available in relationships, attentive to their bodies, responsible for managing the household, socially engaged and continuously invested in personal growth — all at the same time. Preferably with a smile. Self-optimization culture does not question the volume of these demands. Instead, it insists that the solution lies in a better routine, a better planner or yet another self-improvement technique.
Another major issue is that fatigue in this culture is not interpreted as a signal, but as personal failure. Rather than being recognized as a sign of an unsustainable pace, exhaustion is framed as evidence of insufficient discipline. Women learn to ignore bodily signals, normalize chronic fatigue and believe that constant tension is simply the price of ambition. Over time, this leads to burnout, anxiety and a loss of connection with one’s own needs. Ultimately, this culture deprives women of the right to incompleteness, slowness and changes in rhythm. It leaves no room for phases, crises or reassessment, insisting instead on linear progress. Rather than empowering women, it exhausts them — turning life into an endless improvement project in which a woman is always both the subject and the problem to be fixed.
Self-improvement culture becomes harmful to mental health the moment it stops being a choice and becomes a norm. The biggest problem? The constant message that we are not good enough. No one criticizes us openly, yet we are continuously directed to refine ourselves. We are subtly led to believe that we will be okay only once we fix, upgrade or master something else. The very phrase “a better version of yourself” implies that the current version is insufficient. Self-confidence erodes — and self-worth follows.
Self-optimization culture also fuels chronic comparison. Social media feeds us stories of success, discipline and self-mastery, creating the illusion that everyone else is progressing faster, more easily and more steadily. This intensifies feelings of inadequacy. Dissatisfaction becomes the fuel that pushes us to change — to work harder, longer, more efficiently. The outcome is predictable: anxiety, exhaustion and, ultimately, burnout.
Working on yourself and pursuing growth does not have to come at the expense of mental health. What matters is remembering a few essential truths.
Growth is never linear. You will not always be better, more successful or more efficient. There will be pauses, setbacks and failures — and that is normal.
Do not compare yourself to others. The stories of success that reach you are never complete; they leave out the background noise of struggle, obstacles and doubt.
Do not equate your worth with your achievements. If you believe you are valuable only when you produce measurable success, every slowdown will feel like personal failure and undermine your self-esteem.
Pay attention to what your body is telling you. Fatigue and apathy are serious signals that call for attention — not discipline, not optimization, and not correction.
Foto: Pexels.com
