There’s a new self-improvement challenge taking over TikTok, and it sounds a lot like “hunkering down.” But, in fact, Gen Z calls it “locking in,” and you can do it anywhere. You can lock in at work, you can lock in at the gym, you can lock in to care for your sunroom of house plants. It’s a bit like the hustle culture millennials embraced a decade ago, except with Gen Z’s signature respect for work-life balance.
Kendall Cunningham connects the trend to young people’s question for their better self — as well as their complicated relationships with their smartphones. After all, it’s notable that videos about locking in are often about putting down your smartphone, but the trend also lives on TikTok, which quite famously keeps you glued to your smartphone.
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—Adam Clark Estes, senior technology correspondent
