The Productivity Idol

*A 2 Minute Read*

A few weeks ago I noticed some red flags in my behavior.

1. Constant stress.

2. Inability to stop working in the evening.

3. Never feeling good about what I accomplished that day, no matter how much I did.

At first I told myself this was just what working for yourself is supposed to be like. That any hard-working, entrepreneurial spirit would have these traits. That the life of a creative is mostly a hustle and grind routine, so I just needed to get with the program and make peace with the fact that this is what it takes to be successful.

After all, I live in Los Angeles. This city runs on hustle. Its fed by long hours and few boundaries. Work life balance is a luxury most people don’t prioritize, mainly because if you aren’t willing to do the work, there’s a long line of people behind you ready to take your place.

But as I worked and worked and worked, feeling all the while unfulfilled by all I was accomplishing, it finally hit me.

I had made an idol of productivity.

Hard work is good, don’t get me wrong. Scripture encourages us to work as if the very work we were doing were for the Lord Himself. Christians should do the highest quality work around by that standard.

But what does working unto the Lord mean? 

Was it glorifying to God to not enjoy conversation over dinner with my spouse, because I had to check my phone every 15 minutes? Was it glorifying to God to constantly feel like I was never enough, even when I had done my best? Was it glorifying to God to give the result of my efforts permission to either validate or destroy my self worth?

And I realized with a pang that it really boils down to this:

If my focus is on visible output, I will lose the battle every time.

If my focus is on my Creator, what I create is suddenly a by-product I can enjoy without fumbling in either success or failure.

Yes, productivity is a sneaky one. Most real idols are hard to spot. They like to lay quiet and slowly, one degree at a time, derail a life.

The way to thrive in the hustle? Don’t lose the right focus. Focus on who God is. Who you are. Why you are hustling in the first place. Work your butt off to be faithful to what HE has asked you to do. Leave the results up to Him.

The God who breathed the universe also breathed into you and because of that, you have a value that no person or circumstance can diminish.  We are not our greatest success, friend. And we are also not our greatest failure. We are already so much more.