How to Get Shit Done Without Getting Sucked Into Hustle Culture
Spoiler: why you don't have to be the hardest worker in the room
“When my competition is sleeping, I’m out there hustling because you can’t take breaks.” – MOST ANNOYING QUOTE EVER
Do you have to be a part of hustle culture to be successful? Do you have to work 24/7 to feel like you’re not a worthless slacker?
Over the past decade, it has become more common to brag about how much you hustle and how you’re the hardest worker in the room. Gary Vee made it acceptable to wear your overworking as a badge of honor. Then many imitators showed up lecturing us about sleeping past 5 AM, not working 20 hours a day, and not being productive all the time.
Folks in the hustle culture community are quick to mention any of the following:
What time they wake up (usually some absurd hour).
How you should never be watching any TV at all.
How all of their friends are winners who are billionaires because they don’t associate with peasants.
Mocking people for spending money on anything that they enjoy.
How much money they’re making.
This kind of content is intended to be positive, but it really just stresses most of us out. None of us come on social media to get lectured about how we’re not doing enough.
Here are some counterpoints:
Nobody cares about what time you wake up.
It’s okay to unwind.
Your friends don’t have to be on the same path as you and they’re certainly not losers if they’re not rich.
You don’t have to work all of the time.
There are many decent shows on Netflix worth watching.
This then leads us to the big question…
Do you have to hustle all of the time to get results?
Here are a few harsh truths that you should know about hustling:
You will burn out quickly if you’re always working and you never take the time for yourself.
It’s okay to want some entertainment in your life. If you don’t take the time to let loose occasionally, you’re going to feel miserable. We all need something to look forward to.
Working on the right things is much more important than wasting your efforts on something that isn’t the right fit.
Working all of the time just means that you’re not focusing on the right things.
I fully acknowledge that you’re going to have to put some extra effort in at times when you want to get a project past the finish line or when you’re saving up for a bold goal. You don’t have to burn yourself out though constantly though.
So no, you don’t have to hustle all of the time to get shit done.
With that being said, there’s one thing you’re likely wondering…
How do you feel like you’re accomplishing something without getting sucked into hustle culture?
You can tell when someone’s new to this space of self-improvement or whatever you want to call it. They start sharing memes and quotes about how they never sleep and how they’re the hardest worker in the world. They share the same tired inspirational quotes that we’ve all seen more times than we wanted to. They usually compare themselves to a lion while bragging about how passionate they are.
The trick to not getting trapped in this is to remember two things:
People who act perfect all of the time are usually just lying. Just because someone acts like a perfect person doesn’t mean they are. I’ve discovered that those who try so hard to always say the right things have the most issues.
You need to work on the right things instead of trying to work all of the time. It doesn’t matter what time you wake up because what you do when you’re awake is much more important.
How can you still get ahead financially without hustling 24/7?
It’s possible to progress on your goals without feeling the overwhelming need to work all the time. You need to focus on two things to get shit done without being sucked into hustle culture.
Step 1: Always break your goals down into tiny steps.
It’s easy to feel like you should always be working when you don’t even know the next step. You don’t know where to start so you aimlesly want to spend all of your time doing on compelteling random tasks.
This is why you must break everything down into smaller steps.
This blurb from “Essentialism” really nails it when it comes to tiny steps.:
“Instead of starting big and then flaring out with nothing to show for it other than time and energy wasted, to really get essential things done we need to start small and build momentum. Then we can use that momentum to work toward the next win, and the next one and so on until we have a significant breakthrough—and when we do, our progress will have become so frictionless and effortless that the breakthrough will seem like overnight success. ”
Don’t overwhelm yourself. You don’t want to burn out after a few weeks. You want to stay consistent for the long run. This is why you should break down all of your goals into tiny tasks so that you always have something small in front of you to tackle.
BJ Fogg further elaborates on the idea of smaller steps in “Tiny Habits.” when he puts it so eloquently:
“While small might not be sexy, it is successful and sustainable. When it comes to most life changes that people want to make, big bold moves actually don’t work as well as small stealthy ones. Applying go big or go home to everything you do is a recipe for self-criticism and disappointment.”
You don’t need a big breakthrough moment to get things done. Daily tiny progress will go a long way.
You just have to follow this next step also…
Step 2: Focus on consistency over perfection.
The really magic pill that we’re all looking for is consistency. I realize how annoying this is to hear, but being consistent is much more important than trying to be hardcore.
James Clear summarizes this perfectly in “Atomic Habits” with this:
“The secret to getting results that last is to never stop making improvements. It’s remarkable what you can build if you just don’t stop. It’s remarkable the business you can build if you don’t stop working. It’s remarkable the body you can build if you don’t stop training. It’s remarkable the knowledge you can build if you don’t stop learning. It’s remarkable the fortune you can build if you don’t stop saving. It’s remarkable the friendships you can build if you don’t stop caring. Small habits don’t add up. They compound.”
I’ve been blogging since 2008, and I’ve seen many people come in ready to be the next Gary Vee. So they brag about their hard work, their soul’s being set on fire, and how they never sleep. They end up burning out and disappearing to never be heard from again. You’ve likely seen this kind of character at your local gym at the start of the New Year. I don’t want this to happen to you.
Here’s all you need to do to get shit done without being sucked into hustle culture:
Focus on small steps.
Try your best to be consistent.
Stop thinking that you have to work 24/7 and always be on to get anything done. It’s better to stay committed for the long run than to burn out quickly.
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Nice article and great seeing you at FinCon.