Until two years ago, she spent all her time at work, neglected her friends and hobbies, and never took a vacation. Today, twenty-seven-year-old Nicol doesn’t put more effort into her job than she has to. She experienced burnout in theaters and cafes, so she preferred to “clean up in the corporate world”. “I realized that my job performance doesn’t define what kind of person I am,” he says on the podcast What Will You Be?! about the problems of the young generation.
Nicol heard from an early age that anyone who wants to achieve something in life must study hard and get A’s. That’s why she was always a conscientious student and followed the credo of her performance-oriented parents even at university. However, she enrolled in theater science, where academic knowledge is not enough for graduates to get a job and they also need practice. In addition to her studies, she already got a job in the first semesters – she began to devote herself to the marketing of theater events.
She found herself in an environment where workaholism is a lifestyle and experienced a period when she participated in five projects at the same time. “Theater production workers are used to working all the time. Although they constantly complain that they don’t have a personal life, they also take it as a necessity. Anyone who doesn’t work from when I don’t see it to when I don’t see it can’t be a good production worker. And I wanted to be good. But I worked on projects , in which there wasn’t much money. That’s why I had to find another job that would support me, and I ended up behind the bar in a theater cafe,” says Nicol.
Due to her financial situation and exhaustion, she decided to leave the theater industry and moved to an operational position in a cafe. However, she did not have more free time – on the contrary, she continued to work from morning to night. She admitted that she was at the edge of her physical and mental strength two years ago when she decided to go to therapy. She had experienced signs of depression and anxiety before, but she tried to downplay them. Only when the health problems escalated to an unbearable level did she admit that the only solution was to resign.
“I got to the point where I couldn’t get out of bed in the morning and didn’t even want to see my friends. I was suffering from rashes and indigestion. Everything made me so sick that I preferred not to eat. My body was telling me that I had gone too far my limits. I got over it for a long time, but eventually all the difficulties gradually disappeared,” admits Nicol. In the podcast What will become of you?! she describes how she stopped deriving her self-worth from professional achievements and found a job where she only does what she’s contracted to do. Interview with Nicol can be found on all podcast apps: Soundcloud, Spreaker, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts
Photo author: Tomáš Vocelka
What will become of you?!
A podcast about the internal problems of young people in a rapidly changing world. It deals, among other things, with gender identity, the relationship to one’s own body and professional crisis. Individual episodes are moderated by Tomáš Maca and Clara Zanga. Episode 1 of the podcast introduces Yuki and his convoluted journey to non-binary. The 2nd part is dedicated to Matěj, who rejects the boyish idea of manhood with a humorous perspective. She washes, irons, doesn’t drive a car and takes care of her daughter. The 3rd part in Anna’s story reveals what problems a beautiful and intelligent woman faces in a man’s world. (March 19) Episode 4 shows that you can be a handsome young man and still hate your body. Jirka is an artist and a model, but he can’t look at himself in the mirror. (March 26) The 5th episode offers the perspective of Míša, a Czecho-Vietnamese woman who copes with stereotypes in the country where she was born, as well as in her parents’ homeland. (April 2) The 6th episode is about Adéla, who gained weight during the pandemic and the people around her show it inappropriately at meetings. (April 9) The 7th episode is about Nicol, who is almost enslaved by the operation of the theater cafe. After complete burnout, she found surprising relief in corporate. (April 16) Episode 8 of the podcast, on the other hand, shows the other side of the corporation. Sabina gained 25 kilos in a toxic company and developed anxiety, for which she is still being treated today. (April 23)
