A career content creator advises employees to give eighty percent effort at work instead of maximum capacity to prevent burnout. She argues that consistently overperforming turns exceptional output into the expected baseline, leading to unrealistic demands like working late hours.
A career content creator’s advice to stop giving 100% at work every day has struck a chord with office workers, sparking a fresh debate about productivity, workplace boundaries and burnout. Instagram creator Avreen, who describes herself as a “corporate big sister”, says employees should aim for around 80% instead of constantly operating at their maximum capacity.
In her viral video, Avreen makes it clear that her advice is not about being lazy. Instead, she argues that consistently overperforming can cause an employee’s exceptional output to become the standard expected from them.
Check the viral video here
‘Your Best Becomes Your Baseline’
Avreen gives a simple example: if an employee finishes a task that normally takes six hours in just three hours, that efficiency may initially look impressive. However, she argues that the same task could then be expected to be completed in three hours every time.
She makes a similar point about after-hours communication. If an employee responds to messages on Microsoft Teams at 10 pm and receives praise for doing so, Avreen says management could eventually start assuming that the person is available at 10 pm regularly.
“There is an unsaid rule in corporate: ‘Your best becomes your baseline,’” she says.
Avreen also introduces a fictional colleague named Ramesh, who understands this workplace dynamic. Rather than constantly trying to outperform expectations, Ramesh finishes his workday, closes his laptop at 6 pm and goes home.
Her suggestion is to give 80% at work and retain the remaining 20% for days when energy is low, personal issues arise or a genuine workplace emergency requires additional effort.
Internet Divided Over The Advice
The video resonated with several professionals who said they had experienced burnout after repeatedly pushing themselves beyond normal working hours.
“Cannot agree more,” one user commented.
Another wrote, “Exactly. My manager said everything I was doing was just BAU, even after 10-plus-hour workdays. Since then, I've started logging off once my working hours are over.”
A third user took a humorous approach, asking, “What about those who can never meet a deadline?”
The discussion highlights a familiar workplace dilemma: whether consistently going above and beyond creates recognition or simply raises expectations. Avreen’s “80% rule” has consequently become a talking point among professionals discussing sustainable productivity and the importance of setting boundaries at work.
