Michael Scott
The early 70’s saw the rise of ‘Workaholism’, a term invented at the time to describe a trend where people worked relentlessly and continuously to achieve professional goals—seeking self-fulfilment through superficial means.
We’re now in the 21st century, and workaholism has woven its way through every part of modern society, it’s popularity exponential and it’s evolution granting it a new name—‘Hustle Culture’. In a world where every skill and every hobby is monetised, hustle culture is not a mere trend, but a lifestyle in itself—overworking to the point of exhaustion and burnout, and then some; glorifying the prospect of pushing oneself to the point of breakdown.
If not addressed immediately and urgently, the future might find a lethargic, unhappy generation sustained by short-lived highs rather than a healthy one.
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Thus forms the inspiration behind Michael Scott (named after our favourite fictional boss)—A surveillance system that was conceptualised solely as a commentary on the glorification of hustle culture; aiming to shed light on, and force people to rethink their views on work habits and productivity trends.
In order to truly grasp the dangers of workaholism, the user, we decided, must be exposed to the concept in a more obvious, exaggerated manner. This meant that in terms of functionality, the device had to be designed in such a way that it served its own purposes, paying no heed to the user’s comforts or needs. It had to be designed such that it made the user uncomfortable, stressed, and eventually petrified of the device—which would ultimately achieve our goal.
In collaboration with Lamya Alawadhi & Fatma Lootah
Inspiration
The Concept
What It Is
To accomplish this, we decided to create a productivity-surveillance device that constantly monitored the user, urging them to maintain their pace if caught slacking off. The device would start off gentle, softly prompting the user to get back to work if it caught signs of fatigue. After three warnings, however, it would intensify its tone, switching personalities to a violently loud character, screaming at the user to return to work—Thus introducing the device’s two alter-egos: Pam Beesly, and Michael Scott, inspired by the famous sit-com, ‘The Office’.
