By skyforbes 
Burnout and low wages are pushing Gen Z to reject hustle culture and build a slower, simpler life
From Baby Boomers to Gen X, every generation has looked for a way out of the rat race. Gen Z didn’t invent the escape, but they gave it an algorithm. In 2025, the #softlife trend is still going strong, especially on TikTok and X, where it continues to resonate with Gen Z and younger Millennials.
What Gen Z’s Soft Life Trend Really Means
The idea of stepping away from overwork isn’t original to TikTok. It just looks different now. Gen Z is doing what generations before them already tried: finding a way out of a system that demands way too much and leaves too little time for enjoyment.
Baby Boomers were the original rat race runners. The phrase itself was coined during their rise through postwar corporate culture. By the 1970s, they were already questioning it.
The rat race evolved to mean a competitive, exhausting struggle, often related to work and life pressures. The early retirement movement started with the Boomers, but Gen X took it further, with books like Your Money or Your Life and movies like Office Space spelling it out.
The Gen Z hashtag #softlife now has over 10 billion views on TikTok. The videos usually show people working at a slower pace, spending more time outside, cooking at home, or doing tasks that look simple and repetitive. These “influencers” are normal people documenting a different way of organizing and simplifying their life.
The soft life is in, and the constant urgency to do things, create, and succeed now, is out. Just like before, it focuses on rest, boundaries, financial restraint, and a pace of life that doesn’t cause anxiety.
Gen Z Doesn’t Want What Millennials Got
Millennials ran so Gen Z could rest. Or so it seems.
Millennials were encouraged to work hard, go into debt for degrees, take on side hustles, and prove their dedication by staying late. Many followed that path and ended up exhausted, underpaid, and priced out of housing.
Gen Z watched this happen. They saw that the promised outcomes didn’t materialize for most people.
That’s part of why 64% of Gen Z now say they care more about mental well-being than financial growth, and 58% would take lower pay if it means better work-life balance.
They’re simply not interested in destroying themselves to meet someone else’s definition of success.
How TikTok Made Soft Life a Movement
TikTok’s algorithm rewards short, calming, visually consistent content. The soft life is easy to format that way. But the values behind it existed before the trend.
Posts tagged #softsaving focus on saving money, not spending it. Viewers see thrifted furniture, DIY skincare, thrifted apartment décor, genius travel hacks, or cheap meal plans. These creators are fine-tuning and adjusting their habits based on wages that haven’t kept up with inflation.
Gen Z Work-Life Balance: Still Working, Just Not Bragging
Soft life content documents the parts of life that exist outside of work. Gen Z uploads a peaceful morning routine with the caption “my boss doesn’t decide my cortisol levels.”
It’s also a shift in what people value: less competition, more autonomy, fewer financial risks taken for status. Some people are leaving high-stress jobs for part-time roles. Others are freelancing, downsizing, or living with roommates longer to avoid financial pressure.
The Guardian profiled people who quit higher-paying roles for simpler ones with fewer hours. They wanted time and mental space, not just a better paycheck.
Mental Health and Money Stress Are Driving It
According to Deloitte, half of Gen Z say long-term finances are one of their biggest sources of stress. That’s not surprising when rent, groceries, and student debt are all rising, yet they’re not solving that by working harder. They’re solving it by simplifying.
That includes “loud budgeting,” where people post exactly what they’re cutting from their monthly spending. They’re regular users setting public limits to keep them honest, and sticking to them.
Financial anxiety is being managed by making small, visible adjustments instead of hiding the pressure to conform.
Brands Want In. Gen Z Isn’t Buying It
The moment a trend goes mainstream, brands try to hijack it. Companies have started marketing “soft life” products. These range from skincare bundles to vacation packages to “wellness workspace” tools. Most of them miss the point.
Gen Z doesn’t want to buy something to feel better. The content that works shows slow routines, free activities, and budget living. When a brand tries to sell it back as a premium lifestyle, most people ignore it or call it out in the comments.
Gen Z is quick to call out anything that feels fake. They know when a post is just an ad in disguise. The soft life trend survives because it’s simple: stretch breaks, walks outside, cooking at home. Stuff that doesn’t require a credit card.
What’s Next for Gen Z and the Soft Life Trend?
Not everyone can quit their job or drop to part-time hours, especially if they’re working two jobs to pay rent. But many are still adjusting how they live. You can see it in job negotiations, scheduling expectations, and budget conversations.
This “leisure” phenomenon recalibrates how much of one’s life should revolve around work. Companies are reacting with more flexible hours, mental health benefits, and remote options becoming standard. Employers are starting to be generous because they’re trying to retain people who don’t want burnout as a default setting.
Older generations tried this too. They just didn’t have the internet to scale it.
Have you stepped into the soft life yet? Do you think Gen Z is really doing it better, or just documenting it more? Drop your thoughts below.
Read my other article: Insulin Resistance After 40: Why You’re Gaining Weight, Feeling Foggy, and Waking Up Achy
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