Be the Best You: Hustle!
One of the more challenging things to do in life is to keep going when the chips are down. Maybe you tried something and it did not work out. Now you feel like crap. We have all been there in our lives at some point. Could be work, relationships, business ventures, etc. It happens and it will continue to happen for the rest of your life. So what do you do when things like that happen? You hustle, you keep moving, keep grooving. Hustling can be taken as determination, persistence and even will. Things rarely just get given to you in life. Most of the population is not born into crazy amounts of wealth. You have to earn it, work for it. That might sound like I am endorsing stripping, and maybe that is your chosen profession, but I mean in everything. Hustling means putting your all into it.
Hustling does not mean doing work or tasks just to do them. It means hustling the tasks and work at hand. The ones that move you forward. This goes back to a previous article talking about expectations. Set an expectation, then hustle to beat it. Hustle to come in under budget, hustle to do something for your family. People recognize when someone is putting in effort or not. Want to lead a team and get respect of the team? Start hustling and setting an example for the team. It is contagious. I have always been of the mind to at times go back to my roots so to speak. I do some tasks that people perceive as below me or my “job title”. For one it keeps me grounded and second you gain some respect. Get your hands dirty. It could be even the smallest thing. I remember a President at one company sending out an email to the entire company. This email referenced people leaving their glasses in the cafeteria sink for others to wash. He stated nothing is below anyone, including himself, and told people to place their own dishes in the dishwasher. I loved it.
Think about it. If you hustle and exceed expectations, you are a Rockstar. If you hustle and show you are willing to work for what you are being paid, people pay attention. People talk and usually there are only a few people in each company that hustle hard. Be one. If you are down or not feeling it then take the day off. Recharge. I can remember interviewing a sales manager once. He told me he believed in recharging if not feeling it. I thought about it and I must say it makes sense. That is not to say you have 30 recharge days a year. I can say I have taken less than a handful the last five years.
Hustling also means hustling the things you do not like. The things on your task list that you look at and say “F%#k”. Like our fearless military, run to the sound of gunfire. Charge at that task, own it. If it is on your list because you need assistance or information, then hustle to get it. Hustle your resources to finish the task. Showing you are not afraid of any task means you will become indispensable. Now that is not to be confused with replaceable, if you do not work for yourself. It will show you are essential. Get people talking about you. Saying “every time I work with him/her they are in the business of getting shit done and done right”. When you are an example executives in your business reference as what to be like, you are a leader. Whether you realize it or not.
