Optimisation is killing the fun
- André Da Silva
- 1 day ago
- 1 min read
On sunny afternoons in Porto, the fast growth trap, and celebrating 5 years of resistance
Last Sunday, while walking around downtown Porto, we were hit by something rare.
The streets were closed to cars, and what remained was a scene that felt like it belonged to another decade. Adults playing and dancing together, children skipping rope, and giant board games scattered across the pavement. There was no marketing in sight, no end goal other than to enjoy the soft sunny day.
It was a natural, organic community forming for the simple pleasure of being there. It made us think about how rare that lightness is today — especially as we look back on five years of o Studio Merge this week (and six of our magazine).
We live in an era of extreme optimization, where even our leisure time feels like it must serve a purpose of productivity or 'personal branding.' This high-pressure environment inevitably leaks into the studio. Lately, it feels like being a good professional isn’t enough; we have to be full-time content creators.
As we celebrate this milestone, we’ve realised that the last five years weren't about 'making it big' through hacks and prompts, they were about the grit required to stay human...
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