Hustle, 10X, work hard, the grind… we see it every day. We’re told that if we aren’t grinding it out… wearing ourselves out… we’re not working hard enough. I say that’s garbage.
I’m certainly not against hard work. Far from it. I think most Americans have been fooled into thinking that good things will just happen to them. As in most things in life, the truth is somewhere in the middle.
What I hate to see is someone wearing themselves to the bone, exhausting themselves and not making progress. The end of that road is littered with regret, despair, and frustration.
Pace Yourself
Life is a marathon and experienced marathoners don’t sprint the first miles of the race. They pace themselves, observe the field, and most importantly, check in with their body.
“How am I feeling?”
“Can I push harder?”
“Can I relax a minute?”
“Do I need water?”
“Am I injured?”
The same happens in life. While we may have to work hard at times, we always need to check in with ourselves to make sure other areas of our lives aren’t falling into disrepair.
Check Your Destination
Just as bad, what if we hustle too hard in the wrong direction? It’s no wonder the mid-life crisis exists. We graduate high-school, go to college and commit to a career path, then work our butts off to “succeed” in life.
We build lives based on what we believe is the right path only to pick our heads up midway and realize we don’t like the destination!
That sucks!
Be Aware of the Time
There are times to hustle and times to rest. You may have to hustle for something one moment and another the next.
Don’t be afraid to stop and evaluate if you are hustling in the right area. If you aren’t… STOP.
Pivot. Regroup. Make a new plan. Do whatever you have to do to get back into alignment.
Hustle When You Have To
Sprint when you need to but, remember the race is long. Check in with yourself. Be patient. Change when needed. When the time comes that your path and purpose is clear, you’ll be able to sprint again.
