The Art of Hustling

The world belongs to those who hustle. Many a time we feel stuck in a neutral position, with no way to move forward in life. Quite a number of people have great aspirations in life, but at the end of the day, that is all they have: aspirations. Most of them do not have a single thing to show for all the ambitious goals they have set all their lives. Take an example of a university student who has stayed in the institution for six years for a four-year degree course. Students studying in the public universities of Kenya can attest to this: to be more specific, students from The University of Nairobi and The Technical University of Kenya. Some of us are stuck in jobs that have no major impact in our daily lives: jobs that have made us more unhappy and stressed. They do too much work with not even a single sign of promotion or pay rise. You may know someone in this situation, or, it may be you.

Unfulfilled goals can lead to hollowness, melancholy, a heavy heart, frustration and a general dampening of the spirit. A few common things are found in the lives of the people with unachieved goals:

First on the list is the myriad of excuses. These people are never short of excuses for every mistake they make or situation they are in. “I am just a man.” “I am a woman.” “I would love to start a business, but (excuses).” “I have little time on my hands.” “I was not born with that gift.” “I could not do that because (excuse).” “It will not work for me because (excuse).”The list is long and endless.

Everyone you see that has achieved some modicum of success has had to overcome tremendous obstacles to be where they are at the moment. Robert “Meek Mill,” Williams says, “It was hard times, now it is our time. Chase your dreams, stop walking behind wishes.” Suppress the sentiments and replace them with something really productive to overcome the barriers. Someone once said that “Thinking success conditions your mind to create plans that produce success. Thinking failure does the exact opposite.”

Second. They put in a bare minimum effort and expect a tonne of results. Many of them think that “showing up” actually constitutes the effort, and that the dreams they had in life will naturally fall into place: without working for it.

However, one thing is for sure, the world belongs to those who hustle.  I am not talking about hustling in the sense of scams and drug dealing (however you can learn a lot from the legendary Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory, some of you are familiar with the Black Mafia Family Story). No! I am talking about work-your-ass-off kind of hustling. Where you have to do whatever you have to do, for however long you have to do it until you reach your goal.

“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.”: The great words of Abraham Lincoln that have been engraved in our hearts. Most of the men we admire in history had one thing in common, they are hustlers: for your information, my favourite being Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. His greatest words to me being, “I never let my fear limit me.”

These people complete an insane amount of work because they lived a strenuous life: that is, they hustled. They are self-made because in most cases they were not born with the natural talent or natural abilities. In fact, they were usually dealt a crummy hand at the beginning of their life. They had to hustle more than the others to gain and maintain their vigour and vim. There were plenty other people who are smarter than them. However, they worked way harder than the naturally talented people and ended up hiring them to work for them in the long run.

Most of us are average. I mean average in looks, intelligence and athleticism. This, therefore, means that we are on a level playing field with as millions and millions of people. Despite our average build and minds, most of us believe deep down in their hearts that we are destined for more. That we are destined for greatness: but we have to hustle for it. Many a peoples’ reasons for not hustling run the gamut from laziness to fear of failure.  A lot of times, people think, “I want what the other person wants, but I do not have this, this and this.”

We do not have any control whatsoever on the natural gifts and talents that we are born with. You cannot control how beautiful or handsome you are, how nice your parents are or where you are born. However, we do have total and complete control over how much we hustle. Nobody determines how hard you hustle but you.

First, you have to commit. Time is an artist’s most invaluable asset. When you commit to your visions, you can achieve anything. Commit to yourself and spend more time reaching your goals. Keep your mind fuelled. Work in haste, because time is against you for the responsibilities you have pledged to indulge in. Remember, people do not notice announcements, they notice consistency.

Second, commitment goes hand in hand with consistency. Being consistent is a two-way street. One has to be consistent with their thoughts as well as their actions. As we all know, you become what you think. Milk every minute of the day and dedicate them towards objectives that will make you a better person.

Third, be more efficient. Figure out what works best for you and what does not Starve your distractions while you feed your goals. See what you can cut out and what you should add to your routine that will enhance and evolve your workflow. Becoming faster and more efficient means you can get more work done. Getting more work done makes you more consistent. Becoming more consistent allows your influence to grow even stronger and more quickly. As your influence grows, you begin to open more doors of opportunity. That is when the fun begins as you begin achieving your dreams and wiping off the goals you have achieved from your to-do-list.

I am hoping that with this post, I have drawn a better mental picture in your mind of what hustling entails. The benefits of putting your head down and persistently working on achieving your goal and the opportunities that come along with the focus. The art of hustling will change your mind. In the words of the great James “Ghost” St. Patrick, “Let’s get paid.” Most of them do not have a single thing to show for all the ambitious goals they have set all their lives. Take an example of a university student who has stayed in the institution for six years for a four-year degree course. Students studying in the public universities of Kenya can attest to this: to be more specific, students from The University of Nairobi and The Technical University of Kenya. Some of us are stuck in jobs that have no major impact in our daily lives: jobs that have made us more unhappy and stressed. They do too much work with not even a single sign of promotion or pay rise. You may know someone in this situation, or, it may be you.

Unfulfilled goals can lead to hollowness, melancholy, a heavy heart, frustration and a general dampening of the spirit. A few common things are found in the lives of the people with unachieved goals:

First on the list is the myriad of excuses. These people are never short of excuses for every mistake they make or situation they are in. “I am just a man.” “I am a woman.” “I would love to start a business, but (excuses).” “I have little time on my hands.” “I was not born with that gift.” “I could not do that because (excuse).” “It will not work for me because (excuse).”The list is long and endless.

Everyone you see that has achieved some modicum of success has had to overcome tremendous obstacles to be where they are at the moment. Robert “Meek Mill,” Williams says, “It was hard times, now it is our time. Chase your dreams, stop walking behind wishes.” Suppress the sentiments and replace them with something really productive to overcome the barriers. Someone once said that “Thinking success conditions your mind to create plans that produce success. Thinking failure does the exact opposite.”

Second. They put in a bare minimum effort and expect a tonne of results. Many of them think that “showing up” actually constitutes the effort, and that the dreams they had in life will naturally fall into place: without working for it.

However, one thing is for sure, the world belongs to those who hustle.  I am not talking about hustling in the sense of scams and drug dealing (however you can learn a lot from the legendary Demetrius “Big Meech” Flenory, some of you are familiar with the Black Mafia Family Story). No! I am talking about work-your-ass-off kind of hustling. Where you have to do whatever you have to do, for however long you have to do it until you reach your goal.

“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.”: The great words of Abraham Lincoln that have been engraved in our hearts. Most of the men we admire in history had one thing in common, they are hustlers: for your information, my favourite being Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson. His greatest words to me being, “I never let my fear limit me.”

These people complete an insane amount of work because they lived a strenuous life: that is, they hustled. They are self-made because in most cases they were not born with the natural talent or natural abilities. In fact, they were usually dealt a crummy hand at the beginning of their life. They had to hustle more than the others to gain and maintain their vigour and vim. There were plenty other people who are smarter than them. However, they worked way harder than the naturally talented people and ended up hiring them to work for them in the long run.

Most of us are average. I mean average in looks, intelligence and athleticism. This, therefore, means that we are on a level playing field with as millions and millions of people. Despite our average build and minds, most of us believe deep down in their hearts that we are destined for more. That we are destined for greatness: but we have to hustle for it. Many a peoples’ reasons for not hustling run the gamut from laziness to fear of failure.  A lot of times, people think, “I want what the other person wants, but I do not have this, this and this.”

We do not have any control whatsoever on the natural gifts and talents that we are born with. You cannot control how beautiful or handsome you are, how nice your parents are or where you are born. However, we do have total and complete control over how much we hustle. Nobody determines how hard you hustle but you.

First, you have to commit. Time is an artist’s most invaluable asset. When you commit to your visions, you can achieve anything. Commit to yourself and spend more time reaching your goals. Keep your mind fuelled. Work in haste, because time is against you for the responsibilities you have pledged to indulge in. Remember, people do not notice announcements, they notice consistency.

Second, commitment goes hand in hand with consistency. Being consistent is a two-way street. One has to be consistent with their thoughts as well as their actions. As we all know, you become what you think. Milk every minute of the day and dedicate them towards objectives that will make you a better person.

Third, be more efficient. Figure out what works best for you and what does not.Starve your distractions while you feed your goals. See what you can cut out and what you should add to your routine that will enhance and evolve your workflow. Becoming faster and more efficient means you can get more work done. Getting more work done makes you more consistent. Becoming more consistent allows your influence to grow even stronger and more quickly. As your influence grows, you begin to open more doors of opportunity. That is when the fun begins as you begin achieving your dreams and wiping off the goals you have achieved from your to-do-list.

I am hoping that with this post, I have drawn a better mental picture in your mind of what hustling entails. The benefits of putting your head down and persistently working on achieving your goal and the opportunities that come along with the focus. The art of hustling will change your mind. In the words of the great James “Ghost” St. Patrick, “Let’s get paid.”