The Steady Hustle: Build With Passion Without Burning Out
They say “find something you love and you’ll never work a day in your life”. And it is true that when you do enjoy what you do, time flies and you’re rather unbeatable. You’re hard to compete with, because you’ll put in so much more (time, energy, creativity) than someone who does it just for the money, or for extrinsic reasons in general.
But they also say “find something you love and let it kill you”. And this is also true. Passionate people are often even more prone to burn out, as they are less likely to stop when they need to rest and recharge.
As mentioned in a previous article, I’ve spent most of my adult life in an oscillation between overachieving (and feeling like everything goes by way too fast to enjoy or even ‘digest’ as I go) and savoring (plagued by the guilt of “losing precious time”).
For as long as I can remember, Silicon Valley culture has promoted the idea of the ruthless hustle. We hear things like “Don’t stop when you’re tired, stop when you’re done” or “I’d rather hustle 24/7 than slave 9 to 5”.
Yet, if you look up the meaning of hustle, these are some of the definitions you’ll find:
force (someone) to move hurriedly or unceremoniously in a specified direction
push roughly; jostle. ("they were hissed and hustled as they went in”)
obtain by forceful action or persuasion; coerce or pressure someone into doing or choosing something ("don't be hustled into anything")
sell aggressively
obtain by illicit action; swindle; cheat
Similar: bludgeon, bulldoze, steamroller, strong-arm.
I don’t know about you, but reading through these, I don’t resonate with too much of it. I’m not sure this is how I want my life to feel. Not to mention that an overwhelmingly stressful lifestyle like this takes a toll that literally shrinks your brain and holds you back from doing your best work.
A more balanced attitude to work has benefits like better mental clarity, a longer attention span, enhanced creativity, better sleep and improved fitness. Just better mental and physical health. And when the quality of your output is driven by the quality of your judgement and decisions, arguments stack up in favor of a more considerate approach.
Which got me thinking about a new, enhanced term.
The steady hustle is building things with passion and dedication, but doing it in a way that allows you to breathe, have a life outside of it, avoiding frequent burnouts and driving your team nuts.
Does it potentially take you longer to build something while steady hustlin’?
Maybe.
But the result might also be better. Smarter. Last longer.
“Busy” often means what I call “firefighting”, working on whatever is urgent, as you go. I, for one, want to work on the right things rather than the urgency of the day.
David Perell highlights a paradox: “Hustle culture is a form of laziness. Even if people who embrace hustle culture are passionately hard-working in the doing sphere, they are lazy in the thinking sphere. Hustlers are often poor strategists because you have to hustle when you're bad at prioritizing and creating leverage for yourself.”
We know this from Eisenhower’s prioritization matrix.
Source: https://slab.com/blog/eisenhower-matrix/
A relatively new ‘trend’ in the world of entrepreneurship and startups is thinking of camels rather than unicorns, which fits very well with the idea of steady hustlin’. Building with a ‘camel’ mindset means balance instead of burn. The long haul vs. short term obsession with growth. Breadth and depth for resilience. Camels are able to survive for long periods without external sustenance, withstand the scorching desert heat, and adapt to extreme variations in climate. They survive and thrive in some of the harshest regions. These startup camels offer businesses in all industries and sectors valuable lessons on how to survive through crisis, and sustain growth in adverse conditions, even if the metaphor isn’t as flashy.
James Clear inspiringly says:
"There is a difference between moving fast and rushing. You can move fast and be thoughtful. When you rush, you sacrifice thoughtfulness. Conversely, when you are thoughtful but not moving fast, you are overthinking it. Don’t rush, but don’t wait."
Which reminded me of the story of the two men who once had to cross a sea. One asked: "Better to row or sail?" The elder replied: "Rowing will be quicker at first. But if we can align ourselves with the winds and currents, sailing will be faster & more enjoyable."
The quickest way to bludgeon through may not bring you to your next destination faster than thoughtfulness and steadiness.
So steady hustle your way through your next project. And let me know how it went.
I’ll be over here tending to my camel.
