Peer Pressure - An Illusion?

How many people succumb to peer pressure? The peer pressure that I am referring to here is work peer pressure. I used to succumb to peer pressure and then I've learnt how to deal with it. I used to work in a start-up company where most of my co-workers would work until wee hours in the morning. Yes, that's like over 12 hours a day. That's crazy. Well, I didn't thought so at that time. It was my first job and I thought that's how working life is. So, I did the same. However, after about 6 months of doing that, I got really tired of it coz' I realised that these people are just staying back just because everyone else is doing so. If you were to leave early, you would look bad. I really didn't like that idea and wanted to break away from it. However, it's difficult because of this thing called peer pressure. If you were to leave at 7pm when everyone else is just starting to have dinner and are going to slog on for another few hours after that, you would be deemed lazy, not putting in the hours like everyone else and worst of all, when your boss goes around and find everyone else still working and your chair is empty.
I've come to realise that the technical world is slightly different from the service world, by which, in the service world, once you have closed for the day, there are no more customers to serve and your work for the day is done. However, if you are involved in design work, the work is endless. You can go on optimising until the cow comes home and still find there's still other things to improve on or to work on. Bearing this in mind, we must know when to call it quit for the day. If not, you can just go on and on and on....forever. That was my first realisation and I've learnt to "know when to quit" (for the day, that is).
Next, I've learnt that when my boss pressure me, I would evaluate the urgency of the task he's pressurising me for. I do that by finding out who is the one actually asking for this result and the reason for requesting the results. When you know the real situation what is going on, you yourself can evaluate how urgent is the task and if it can wait till tomorrow. Normally, when bosses are under pressure, be it from their own boss or from customer, they tend to push the pressure on to their subordinate and make it sound as if it's the end of the world if you do not produce those results right NOW! And we as subordinate do feel the pressure and the stress when it's passed on. I've learnt to deal with this pressure and normally I do not succumb to them. For instance, if we had a meeting at 4pm that day and he's pushing me for the results. I would evaluate how urgent it is and would not stay past 5pm to get those results if I think it can wait. Hey....I have to drive through an one hour of traffic to get home and pick up my daughter by 6pm and make dinner. So, sometimes, in life, you just have to prioritise and to me nothing is more important than family.
So, peer pressure or pressure from bosses, are actually not an external factor. It is an internal factor. It's not really peer pressure but you yourself pressurising yourself. Nobody can make you do something that you do not want to. Think about it. And the next time when you have to leave while your co-workers are still laboring away, don't feel bad. As long as you meet your deadlines, the peer pressure thing is just your own illusion.