I haven’t read any Byung-Chul Han in the original, but I like the glosses I’ve read. His critiques of “achievement society” etc sound right and help explain a lot of trends I’ve also been paying attention to including quiet quitting, laying flat etc.

But one weak area in his thought seems to be what to do about any of it. I think I gave an idea. Everything he critiques can be reduced to pursuit of efficiency over thoroughness. I think the obvious counter-programming is to pursue thoroughness over efficiency. Thoroughness is in some ways the true north of protocols. When you forget that, protocols degenerate to bureaucracy and then to misguided bureaucratic efficiency drives.

I think what reactivates quiet-quitting type people is thoroughness. Their exhaustion is a rational reaction to efficiency demands. Thoroughness focus is restorative.

This is kind of what reactivated me, writing books. Forces thoroughness if you take it seriously

His book is worth a skim. It’s short. Tries to tie the achievement society to depression too

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