As I sat in the hairdresser earlier today, I started feeling guilty about not doing any uni work these last couple of days between being involved with the strike and doing chores. The more I think about it, the more the narratives that potentiate overwork in staff resemble (+)

those that are pushed upon students (both from outside and from within) that you need to work every waking moment if you want to succeed in the system we currently have. Work that weekend. Stay on campus until 8pm. Ignore your own wellbeing. (+)

Do whatever you have to, just get the grades. Especially now that I start getting familiar with the PG way of life, the more guilty I feel about taking time for myself. In which, btw, I've starting including things like cleaning and exercise, etc. How can we expect ECR staff (+)

not to feel like they have to work surplus hours and constantly go "above and beyond" if more and more education is making students feel like that? The students of today are the staff of tomorrow. Get the message in people's heads early and save yourself the managerial trouble.

Make students feel guilty about having a healthy work-life balance today, and staff will think it is the norm tomorrow.

In marketising HE, universities are also saying that learning is no longer enough. Develop yourself. Do this free placement. Do everything you can.

I've seen these ideas destroy many students who think they failed because they didn't do enough. Where, really, it is the system that failed them because they were unwilling to have a finger in every pie. And, increasingly, it is destroying staff too.

Basically what I'm saying is, I got a haircut today and to every student that thinks they can't support the strike, know that we have more in common than that which divides us.

/endrumination