What is 'career minimalism'? Here's the Gen-Z trend taking over the workforce in India

Mouli Chakraborty is currently working three gigs at the same time. PIC/NISHAD ALAM

Every so often, the Internet serves up a fresh complaint about Gen Z's supposedly "lazy" and "entitled" work ethic. The youngest entrants in the workforce have earned a reputation for being unreliable and unwilling to climb the ladder the way previous generations did. But according to Glassdoor, perhaps they're just misunderstood. Behind this approach is a simple philosophy: career minimalism.

Traditional aspirations such as becoming a manager, staying loyal to a company, or waiting years for a promotion are no longer at the top of this cohort's wish list. Instead, many young workers treat their full-time jobs as tools for financial stability, while real passion and professional identity are channelled into side hustles, freelance work or entrepreneurial projects. Glassdoor found that 68 per cent of Gen Z respondents would not pursue a management role if not for the salary or title attached.

The logic is straightforward: why be loyal to a corporation that may not return the favour? In an economy where mass layoffs dominate headlines and job security is increasingly uncertain, Gen Z would rather diversify their income than put all their eggs in one corporate basket. So while they are often dismissed as "lazy", many are working well beyond the traditional 9-to-5 - just not within a single organisation. That constant hustle, however, comes with its own consequences.

Vasai resident Reeha Tuscano pursued a media degree even though "the degree isn't as glorified as a doctor or an engineer among those around her," she says. The need to prove herself was twice as much, and so she started working in college itself. Now 20, Tuscano hasn't taken a single holiday in the last three years.

When looking for a job after her graduation earlier this year, Tuscano was very clear. "I only wanted a job with the flexibility to choose what time I go in and leave, because my side hustles are very important." Tuscano works full-time at an events organising company, NR Talent and Event management, and as a wedding content creator on the side, filming and editing content for couples on their big day. "What I make in a month at a full-time job, I can make in three days at a wedding," she says.

Pratik Vaidya

Delhi resident Mouli Chakraborty joined an NGO's communications team in Mumbai, after graduating. Soon she realised that the growth in that position did not align with her future plans. She says, "I was working with local governments and my limited Marathi-speaking ability was a roadblock." She found she was more interested in policy and international relations. So she moved back to Delhi and joined GIZ (German Agency for International Cooperation), a federal enterprise that supports sustainable development and international cooperation for the German government across various sectors.

In her stint at the NGO, Chakraborty realised, "I needed to find more work that would be fulfilling enough and aligned with my idea of growth and impact." She decided to take up extra work on the side, and got a remote contract-based project to do design and communications work for a bank.

Alongside this, Chakraborty is also helping build Xavier's Media Alumni, a collective of media professionals who have graduated from St Xavier's College, her own alma mater. "We bring together alumni, students, and faculty of the St Xavier's Mass Media Department to share knowledge, strengthen relationships, and give back so that we can help each other find successful and fulfilling careers," she adds.

Tuscano manages two jobs at the same time and hasn't taken a holiday in two years. PIC/NIMESH DAVE

But why so many things at once? "Because I can. I think the purpose behind working has changed. When previous generations worked to make a living, for Gen Z the most important thing is growth," she says.

"Job market dynamics are also somewhat changing. I can't imagine staying in the same job for 20 years as my parents did. If Amazon is laying off 30,000 employees, that means 30,000 more people are now my competition in the job market. And these 30,000 people have an ‘ex-Amazon' tag that I don't have," she says. "As they say, it is the age of the gig economy."

The flip side of this is that Gen Z is in a constant state of anxiety, wondering if they are doing enough, and whether their work is good enough. The gig economy also means a lack of perks like gratuity and health insurance that a regular job.

"I am in a position of privilege as well because my parents worked stable jobs. I can quit any job at the drop of a hat because my parents chose stability. They can still take care of my life and health insurance," Chakraborty says, "Also, there are systems in place now where you can set up your own auto-debit retirement fund, if you have enough income from two to three gigs."

It took Shreeum Rakheja nine years to be able to build a stable career

What feels thrilling at 20, when you have no past CTC to measure against and every rupee earned feels like a win, can look very different a few years down the line. Shreeum Rakheja, now 25, has been working since she was 17, starting with bussing tables during her undergraduate degree in Psychology and Business in Canada. "I am an elder sibling. This was my first taste of financial freedom. I loved paying for my younger siblings' little luxuries and I didn't want to stop that."

The pandemic hit during her degree and she had to fly home to Delhi. "I hit up everyone I knew. Somehow I ended up on a set with a styling job at the age of 18," she says, "I had no background in fashion whatsoever. But the vibe of a set just clicked instantly for me."

For a year and a half, Rakheja kept assisting stylists, and before she knew it she was heading styling teams herself. But then the pandemic ended and she had to go back and finish her degree. "I couldn't get a job in Canada because my visa only allowed me to work 20 hours a week there. At this point, I had some good experience under my belt. I realised that I was spending more money on this degree than I would earn if I would just start working. So, I dropped out."

This time she came to Mumbai. "I started styling again, and also began working for a few digital agencies," she says. At an influencer management company she met her now business partner Appurva, with whom she started their agency, She's Aces. She adds, "When people say you have to be at the right place at the right time, the missing link is: you also have to talk to the right people. That only happens when your eggs are in different baskets."

However, Rakheja also faced burnout and anxiety. "I had so much on my plate that it was more a banana leaf than a plate at that point. The instability of not knowing where your next paycheck is coming from, whether what you're investing your time into is worth it - those questions keep you up at night. I've gained the most weight in the last two years, when work took precedence over working out," she says, "One workout won't show results tomorrow but one pitch might."

Rakheja warns those who might look at switching jobs as frequently as she did. "I lost a lot of friends because I was wrapped up in building my career for nine years. Now I'm at a place where I can call someone and get a gig. I won't go broke, but for most people two years or so is more than enough to get to that stage in a traditional trajectory." But is it for everyone? Rakheja is quick to add, "I do reccomend it for the right kind of person."

‘The gig economy is a Western concept'

Pratik Vaidya, Managing Director and Chief Vision Officer, Karma Management Global Consulting Solutions Pvt Ltd, a labour law compliance firm.

"In the short term, multiple gigs feel exciting but the bill usually comes later. Fragmented careers often mean fragmented benefits. PF accounts remain small or scattered, gratuity never really builds up because service is not continuous with one employer, and health cover may be a patchwork of basic group policies and temporary arrangements. If a young worker is injured while on an assignment, or faces harassment in a client environment, which entity is answerable - the platform, the contracting agency, the end client, or ‘no one' because it is all framed as independent contracting?

"The average person in India can't assume that ‘the State will take care of my healthcare and pension'. Even Ayushman Bharat, which offers up to R5 lakh health cover for vulnerable families, does not automatically cover the entire aspirational middle class that is driving this gig wave.

"Formal employment still has a very important place. The compulsory PF contribution, the employer's matching share, group health insurance, and even things like professional tax, ESIC and gratuity are not just deductions - they are structured ways of building a buffer for the future. "Side gigs and multiple projects are not the enemy. The real risk is when ‘living for today' is imported from Western culture without recognising that, in those countries, the State quietly carries a large part of the long-term risk."

68%
Gen Z respondents who would not pursue a management role if not for the salary or title attached