In recent years, the popularity of talent shows such as Operación Triunfo and Masterchef, as well as the emergence of YouTubers and streamers such as El Rubius and Ibai Llanos, has marked the emergence of a new work imaginary in which the definitions of what we understand as “work” are changing. In this context, creative jobs are presented as the “ideal job”, shaping expectations and rules about work in all types of sector (from services to academia). People are then encouraged to look for jobs that they are passionate about and that are fulfilling, following high-risk career paths characterised by an intensification (crunch culture) and extensification of work (the confusion between personal/professional life and leisure/work), in a context of cuts in the welfare state characterised by the shift from traditional notions of a career to more informal, precarious and intermittent forms of employment.
In recent years, the popularity of talent shows such as Operación Triunfo and Masterchef, as well as the emergence of YouTubers and streamers such as El Rubius and Ibai Llanos, has marked the emergence of a new work imaginary in which the definitions of what we understand as “work” are changing.