You’ve probably seen it before. It’s 8:00 PM on a Tuesday, and a Slack notification pings. It’s your coworker, let's call him Dave, "just checking in" on a project that isn't due for three days. Dave isn't actually working harder than you. He’s using flex time to impress the management team by manufacturing a digital paper trail of late-night dedication.
It’s exhausting.
The concept of flexible work was supposed to be our liberation from the 9-to-5 grind. We were promised autonomy. We were told that as long as the work got done, it didn't matter if we were at a desk or at a coffee shop. But somewhere along the line, the "flex" part got twisted. Instead of using flexibility to find a better work-life balance, a massive segment of the workforce started using it as a high-stakes performance art piece.
Honestly, it’s a trap.
When people use flex time to impress, they often fall into a cycle of "availability creep." They start answering emails at dinner. They log on during Sunday football just so their "active" status turns green. They think they’re showing ambition, but they’re actually just burning out and, quite frankly, annoying their managers who just want to log off themselves.
The Evolution of the Flex Time Facade
Flexible work used to be a perk for the elite or the highly trusted. Then 2020 happened, and suddenly everyone was home. According to research from the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR), work-from-home arrangements increased fivefold between 2019 and 2023. This shift created a visibility vacuum. If the boss can’t see you sitting in your cubicle, how do they know you’re working?
This anxiety birthed the "always-on" culture.
Nicholas Bloom, an economics professor at Stanford and a leading expert on remote work, has noted that while productivity often stays stable or rises with remote work, the perception of productivity is what scares employees. They feel they have to overcompensate. They use their flex time to impress by being the first to respond to every message, regardless of the hour.
It’s not just about being "on." It’s about the optics of the schedule.
I’ve talked to managers who admit they see right through it. One VP of Operations at a mid-sized tech firm told me he can tell exactly when an employee is "faking the funk." If the quality of work is mediocre but the person is sending "Great point!" emails at midnight, it doesn't look like dedication. It looks like poor time management. Or worse, it looks like a desperate attempt to stay relevant without actually delivering results.
✨ Don't miss: Kwanza to US Dollar: What Most People Get Wrong
Why We Think It Works (And Why It Doesn't)
We’ve been conditioned to believe in "Face Time." In a traditional office, the person who stays latest is the "hero." When you transition that mindset to a flexible or remote environment, that heroism manifests as digital presence.
Psychologically, this is known as Presenteeism.
A study published in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology suggests that the pressure to be present—even when ill or off the clock—leads to lower overall job satisfaction. When you use your flex time to impress, you aren't building a reputation for excellence. You're building a reputation for being a 24/7 utility.
Think about the long-term cost.
If you set the precedent that you are available at 9:00 PM on a Friday because you want to "impress" the new director, that director now expects you to be available every Friday at 9:00 PM. You haven't impressed them; you’ve just moved the goalposts for your own misery.
The Productivity Paradox
There is a massive difference between "Hours Logged" and "Value Created."
The best employees I know use flex time to optimize their brains. They might take a three-hour break in the middle of the Tuesday to go for a run or handle a family matter, then come back and crush a complex report in two hours because they are refreshed. That’s the real power of flexibility.
Contrast that with the person trying to use flex time to impress. They stay glued to their laptop all day, doing "shallow work"—answering emails, attending non-essential meetings, tweaking fonts—just to ensure they are seen. By the time they need to do "deep work," they are fried.
Real leaders value the report that solves a $100,000 problem, not the fact that you sent it at 2:00 AM.
How to Actually Impress Without Faking the Flex
If you want to stand out, stop trying to win the "who works the weirdest hours" competition. It’s a race to the bottom. Instead, focus on radical transparency and consistent output.
One of the most effective ways to show your value in a flexible environment is the "Friday Update." Instead of pinging your boss at random hours to show you're awake, send a concise, bulleted summary of what you achieved during the week.
- "Solved the bottleneck in the Q3 pipeline."
- "Finalized the client pitch deck ahead of schedule."
- "Automated the weekly reporting process, saving the team 4 hours."
That is how you impress. It shows you are managing your time effectively, regardless of when those hours happened.
The "Bursty" Communication Strategy
Researchers at Harvard have looked into something called "burstiness." In high-performing teams, communication isn't a constant, slow drip of messages all day and night. Instead, it happens in "bursts" of intense activity followed by long periods of silence where people actually get work done.
If you want to use your flex time to impress, be the person who is incredibly sharp and responsive during core collaboration hours, then disappear to do the actual work.
People who are "always available" are rarely the ones doing the most important thinking.
The Downside: When the Culture is the Problem
I have to be honest here. Sometimes, it’s not you. It’s the company.
Some organizations have a toxic "hustle culture" where using flex time to impress is the only way to survive. If your manager rewards the "midnight pinger" and ignores the high-performer who logs off at 5:00 PM, you have a culture problem, not a time management problem.
In these environments, "flexibility" is just a code word for "we expect you to be on call forever."
A report from the Future Forum found that workers with full flexibility reported 29% higher productivity and 53% greater ability to focus than those with no flexibility. However, those same workers also reported a higher risk of burnout if boundaries weren't clearly defined by leadership.
If you find yourself constantly performing "work" just to be seen, it might be time to look at the leadership. Are they setting the example? Do they send emails on weekends? If the CEO is using their own flex time to "impress" the board by working 80 hours a week, that pressure will eventually trickle down to you.
Practical Steps to Reclaim Your Flexibility
You don't need to be a martyr to get a promotion. You just need to be effective.
First, stop the "scheduled send" games. We all know people who write emails at 4:00 PM and schedule them to go out at 4:30 AM. It’s transparent. It’s performative. It’s unnecessary. Just send the email when it’s done, or better yet, send it during business hours so you don't disrupt your team’s peace of mind.
Second, define your "Deep Work" blocks. Tell your team: "I’m going offline from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM to finish the project. If there’s an emergency, call my cell." This shows you are taking ownership of your productivity. It also signals that you value your time, which—counterintuitively—makes others value it more too.
Third, focus on outcomes over activities.
When you have your 1-on-1 with your manager, don't talk about how many hours you put in. Talk about the impact. "I used the flexibility this week to focus on the X project during my peak energy hours, and we’re now two days ahead of schedule." That sounds like a professional who has mastered their craft.
Actionable Insights for Moving Forward
- Audit your "Performative" tasks. Are you joining that 6:00 PM call because you're needed, or because you want people to see you're still there? If it's the latter, stop.
- Set Slack boundaries. Use the "Status" feature to show when you are focused, out for a walk, or done for the day. Normalizing "offline" time actually helps your team feel safe doing the same.
- Over-communicate on results, under-communicate on presence. No one needs to know you're at the dentist, but everyone should know that the report you promised is in their inbox.
- Recognize the "Hero Bias." Be aware that you might have an internal urge to "save the day" at 11:00 PM. Ask yourself: "Can this wait until 9:00 AM?" The answer is almost always yes.
- Align with your manager. Explicitly ask: "What are your expectations for response times outside of core hours?" Getting this in writing kills the anxiety that fuels the need to perform.
Flexibility is a tool for better living, not a new stage for the same old office politics. When you stop trying to use flex time to impress, you actually start using it to perform. And in the long run, consistent, high-quality performance is the only thing that truly leaves a lasting impression.
Stop the theater. Do the work. Go live your life.