In a world of hustle, it can get a little….or a lot…overwhelming. The world is fast paced and we are just doing our best to keep up…or at least I am. I used to think the busier I was, the more successful I would become. However, that is not the case. Now some may not agree with me on this next statement, but I do think it is true (at least in my world and for most people that I know), in the first few years of doing something new or learning something new, you are always busting your butt. You are putting in extra hours, burning the candle at both ends, and everything feels new and way more difficult than it should be. There are seasons of hustle. Think about when you first started your job, you may have had no idea where to start or what to do. Everything had to be learned and you may have felt very overwhelmed. And so… like the leader you are….you put your head down, blinders on, and you hustled. A year or two into it, it may have started to get a little easier. I think there are seasons of hustle where it is necessary for you to put in more time than normal but it doesn’t need to happen every single day.
You also need to know when it is ok to take yourself out of it for awhile, or at least create some space so that the hustle isn’t taking over your life. I thought heading into summer was a good time to look at effective ways to hustle rather than burn out. It’s a good time to look at all your decisions/offers, all the things you’re working on, all the things you’ve said yes to, and ask yourself, “Where am I overpromising? Where am I extending myself to a point that I’m resentful? What do I hate doing that I continue to do?” It’s time to ask that question if you’re a couple years into your leadership, whether you’re seeing great results or not, because there’s always a time and places to systematize your business or leadership (Porterfield, 2022). So many people (including myself) think that you have to hustle day and night in order to be successful. Some of us tend to think that resting means that we aren’t getting anything done. If we keep up the crazy, fast paced, work life, then we simply miss out on life. I think they call that FOMO (fear of missing out). So…how do we continue to move the needle forward in our success and leadership without all the endless hours of hustle?
I needed to figure out a better way to still crush it but have my life back. I needed to figure out systems that could be automated. I needed to figure out my seasons of hustle and my seasons of white space. There is a time that that the hustle season needs to end, and if you want to be here ten, twenty years down the road, you’ve got to create a business and a life by your own design. As always, I went to the productivity and efficiency gurus, like Amy Porterfield, and I started to build a system so that I could finally get it together. Here’s what she taught me:
Step one: Look at your habits, your team, and your schedule. Ask yourself what do you love? What do you hate? Where do you feel resentful? And what needs to change? Look at where there are seasons that require the hustle mentality and let them happen by being prepared for those seasons, however, schedule in the down time and the white space too. This is where you still work hard but you set boundaries and hard lines where ‘no’ is more the answer than ‘yes’, and you go home to your own life at realistic and non-negotiable times.
Step two: Do not accept that hustling non stop is the ONLY way to be successful. It is not and it will burn you out. So make a plan. Be the person who refuses to continue to perpetuate this idea that you’ve got to hustle your life away to be successful in your business. Your time with your partners, your friends, your children, and your dogs are equally important and more to me as your time working on your business. Not to mention, this makes you way more effective as a leader because you are teaching your community to work hard but not non stop as well. Porterfield goes on to say, that when you can infuse your life experiences into your leadership, you likely will have an easier time growing it. And the only way you can do that is to spend time away from the business and soak up all those experiences.
Step three: Talk yourself out of the guilt. Don’t be afraid to try something new….like slowing down. Chances are you have been hustling non-stop for a very long time now with slow progress or perhaps none at all. Try switching it up. Try not listening to the ‘shouldy’ attitude and listen to your body when it is telling you to take that nap, spend time with your family, or walk the dog. Choose one top priority and work on it, but only work on it during a set time, and then go home. If you are more rested, you are more present and the work is more authentic, effective and real.
Step four: Look at where you can automate things so that it is not always you doing all the work. Technology is a wonderful thing and can really help with setting up systems that will work without you there. Look at ways you can set up systems for certain areas so that you can hustle less. For example, I set up a project management system using Asana. I have also set up a start up and shut down system to my day, which you can download here for free! Sundays, I set up my week, schedule in my down time and hustle times, and I stick to those boundaries now. Automated email responses for frequently asked questions are also a huge time saver.
I worked a lot of years with the hustle mentality and it wasn’t until I slowed down and prioritized that I finally started getting somewhere. In fact, I have even done this with my workouts and have started seeing changes in my body too! I used to work out hard for hours only to never really feel any better. But once I followed these four steps that I just taught you, I realized that I needed to focus and prioritize my nutrition and shift my workouts to less time and less intensity. In other words, I slowed down and prioritized and I started to feel way better. So…these four steps work in your professional or personal life!
I challenge you to really take a look at your hustle and see, if perhaps you can organize it into seasons of hustle, and then schedule more of the other seasons of white space, hard work, hard boundaries, and some time for you. I think you will be amazed at just how much more efficient, productive, and successful you become. If you are somebody who is hustling—you’re burning the candle at both ends; you’re struggling; you’re doing all you can, and it’s just not working—please try these steps so that you can have your life back and find some clarity and energy. Take care of yourself. You matter too.
Have you joined our private facebook group called Principals and Leadership yet? Follow me on facebook at Jacealyn Hempel or on the gram @evenifyoumiss1. I am all about building a community of leaders to help each other out!
Porterfield, A. (2022, May 24). How to Create More White Space and Still Succeed. In Online Marketing Made Easy Podcast.
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