Between Busy and Peaceful: The “Fake Busy” Lifestyle We All Secretly Live

ZIKHA AMARILLA NUR HAZANAH (30802300011)

In today’s world, being busy feels like a social currency. Full schedules, open laptops, coffee in hand. the ultimate proof that your life has meaning and momentum. But here’s the twist: many people aren’t actually busy. They just look busy. Welcome to the era of fake busy, where appearing productive matters more than actually being productive.

This isn’t just a silly social media trend. It’s a symptom of a culture that measures self-worth by how active we seem, not how balanced we feel.

Social media only makes it worse. Posting a story that says “back-to-back meetings” or a photo of your laptop at a café somehow makes you look successful, even if you’re just checking emails for ten minutes.

Psychologists call this performative busyness, when people perform productivity instead of practicing it. In many modern workplaces, the person who looks “constantly busy” is often labeled the most dedicated.

Think about it: someone who posts a perfectly lit photo of their desk setup might not be doing much, but they’re already seen as hardworking and ambitious.

As sociologist Erving Goffman once said, “We’re all actors on the stage of social life.” Today, that stage is Instagram. Behind all the fake busyness lies a quiet fear, the fear of falling behind.

The hustle culture mindset tells us that rest equals laziness, and slowing down means losing. We’ve been wired to feel guilty whenever we’re not being “productive.”

But ironically, stillness is where creativity grows.

That’s why a new counter-movement is forming: slow living, digital detox, and soft productivity. These ideas encourage people to find purpose without pressure — to realize that calm doesn’t mean careless.

Still, it’s not easy. Many of us panic when we’re not “doing something,” even when our minds are begging for a break. Peace has become the new luxury, not because it’s expensive, but because it’s rare.

The “fake busy” lifestyle reflects our generation’s biggest paradox: we’re desperate to appear in control, even when we’re burned out inside. Maybe it’s time to swap those hectic vibes for human vibes.

Work when you must, rest when you can, and don’t mistake movement for meaning. As writer Pico Iyer beautifully said, “In an age of movement, nothing is more urgent than sitting still.”