And Why Chasing Their Version of Happy is Making You Miserable.
No wonder you’re tired — you’re chasing the wrong dream.
Ever catch yourself out of breath, but you’re not even sure why?
You never signed up for this invisible race. There was no starting whistle. But suddenly, you’re sprinting — chasing after lifestyles, career wins, perfect photos, relationship milestones, like your whole worth depends on keeping up.
From LinkedIn “thought leaders” to Instagram-perfect girlbosses to even your own friends who seem to have it all figured out — everyone’s kind of faking it. And here you are, trying to keep up in a game that doesn’t even feel like yours.
You’re exhausted, but it’s not just your body. It’s deeper than that. This burnout? It’s not from working hard. It’s from working on things that don’t even fit you.
Happiness Isn’t a Template. But why do we keep following other people’s scripts?
Here’s the part nobody really says out loud, because it makes all those years of trying to fit in feel kind of pointless:
Happiness isn’t something you can copy and paste from someone else.
But let’s be honest, we all love a good template.
Wake up at 5 AM.
Journal. Workout. Manifest.
Monetize. Romanticize. Breathe.
Meanwhile, your mind is quietly panicking, because deep down, you know something isn’t right.
You’re trying to fit into a system that was never made for you. It’s like trying to force the wrong puzzle piece into place. It just doesn’t fit.
You keep trying, it keeps not working, and you start to wonder what’s wrong with you — instead of questioning the system.
But we keep scrolling, keep saving someone else’s ‘how I fixed my life’ post, hoping that maybe just seeing it will fix us too. But it never does.
Burnout isn’t always about doing too much.
Most of the time, it’s from doing too little of what actually makes you feel like yourself.
I’ve been there. I tried routines that looked great on Instagram but felt empty in real life. I said yes to a career that made sense on paper, but made zero sense to me. The scary part? I didn’t even notice I was fading out. I just kept telling myself I was falling behind.
Behind what?
Behind whom?
I was building a life out of borrowed footprints, then wondering why nothing ever fit right.
Your Instagram Feed is Not Your Future. Let’s look at how all this scrolling affects you.
These days, we don’t just scroll — we absorb everything. Every “I went to the mountains and wrote a book” post isn’t just content. It’s pressure.
The more options we see, the more we doubt our own. There’s so much comparison, so much noise, and suddenly your real life feels… kind of dull.
But someone else’s joy isn’t a map for you. It’s just data.
Your job isn’t to copy their lives. Your job is to figure out your own.
Do High-Functioning Humans Experience Burnout? This question matters because even those who seem successful aren’t immune.
Corporate high-achievers. People with calendars that look like Pinterest boards — trips, team dinners, awards, those “upwards and onwards” posts on LinkedIn.
But inside? Numb. Like you’re just going through the motions.
People aren’t lazy. People aren’t ungrateful. People are exhausted from pretending that their version of success resembles everyone else’s. When you finally slow down, the silence is always brutal — but it tells you the truth: you never once asked yourself what you actually wanted.
No?
You’ve Got to Unlearn and Ask…
What actually gives you energy, not just makes you feel busy?
What do you really care about — not what looks good online, but what matters to you?
Where can you be fully yourself, without shrinking or pretending?
Copying a culture doesn’t mean you fit in.
Let’s not pretend workplaces are immune. Perks are nice, sure. But if you’re checking Teams chats during your dentist appointment, something’s off.
When leaders give those “inspiring” talks about their 4 AM grind, it’s usually more pressure than pep talk. We don’t need to copy their stories.
Are you even sure that these leaders are really going through the grind they display or are they putting up a pretense for manipulation?
We need to trust that slower, more sustainable paths are valid — even if nobody’s posting about them.
Especially if they are not trending.
Here’s your permission slip to opt out:
Before adopting someone else’s method, ask yourself whether you would still love this if no one ever saw it?
Unsubscribe from other people’s dreams. That’s not betrayal — it’s how you find yourself.
A quick, real-life epilogue.
At some point, I stopped treating my restlessness like a flaw. I realized that chasing joy that looked good online was making me hate my own life offline.
My kind of happy is slow. It’s quiet mornings and birds outside the window. It doesn’t need anyone else’s applause.
It just felt like a pause. And honestly, that was enough.
If you stopped performing for once… If you shut out the noise and just listened…
What would happy actually sound like in your own body?
Not in a reel. Not in a LinkedIn post.
Just… in you.
Start there. That’s not falling behind. That’s finally coming home.
