By: Yulissa Chavez Tena
“Grind culture has made us all human machines, willing and ready to donate our lives to a capitalist system that thrives by placing profits over people. The Rest is Resistance movement is a connection and a path back to our true nature. We are stripped down to who we really were before the terror of capitalism and white supremacy. We are enough. We are divine.” (Hersey, 2022, 7)
It is no secret that student affairs professionals adhere to grind culture, asked to do more with less pay, flexibility, and funding. It has left the field tired and burnt out, a large sum seeking employment elsewhere (Alonso, 2022). As a new professional, I see hope in the works of Tricia Hersey’s Rest is Resistance to seek a new mindset. Hersey discusses rest as a form of resistance because it slows down the mind, connects us with our body, and creates space to dream of liberation. The following resting components are a starting point for student affairs professionals:
Reflection
Reflection creates a foundation for rest because it asks you to enter your mind and body and feel the exhaustion that has existed for generations. Student affairs practitioners can bring reflection to the workspace through book clubs! This is how I first came to read Rest is Resistance. In monthly meetings, we made personal connections with our ancestors who taught us to rest and gained clarity in our purpose as humans to simply exist. Our work became more intentional because we named the burnout colleagues experienced and shifted from the producers that caused it.
Womanism
Throughout Rest is Resistance, Hersey references Feminist and Black scholars/activists. She defines the concept of Womanism by Alice Walker “Wanting to know more and in greater depth than is considered good for one. Committed to survival and wholeness of entire people” (Hersey, 2022, 56). Womanism should feel relevant to many university’s missions and purposes to serve students widely and deeply. Reflecting on your personal experiences must be done through concepts like womanism that supply you with language and validation for your rest.
Daydreaming
Heresy dedicates an entire section of Rest is Resistance to dreaming and imagining new futures and possibilities. Daydreaming is presented as a vital act of resistance against grind culture. By creating intentional spaces for imagination, individuals can envision futures free from systemic oppression. Daydreaming allows for the integration of rest, reflection, and Womanism to dismantle barriers and reconnect with one’s true, authentic self.
When we disconnect from grind culture and lean into the human right to rest, the system can no longer exploit us because the collective has learned to heal from its toxins and live without it. As we enter 2025, I suggest we work to establish a resting culture within the field starting with reflection, pulling from womanism concepts, and creating space to daydream our wildest dreams.
References
Alonso, J. (2022, November 16). More than a third of student affairs workers looking to quit. Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2022/11/17/more-third-student-affairs-workers-looking-quit#:~:text=The%20study%2C%20which%20surveyed%20324,treat%20one%20another%20with%20respect.
Hersey, T. (2022). Rest is resistance: A manifesto. Little, Brown and Company
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