Hustle
This is the word that Tina’s whole presentation was based on. As a creative, we all seem to find ourselves living in the hustle. We are told to hustle harder. We are told to hustle longer. We are told to hustle faster. We are told to hustle more. Because, as a creative, if we aren’t hustling then there is this notion that we aren’t doing enough. But, when is enough? Similar to most creatives, Tina was saying yes to the hustle and no to her life.
For Tina, she was finding herself living in the hustle. It was all she knew. She was living for the hustle and that was it. This was her coping mechanism. Not because it helped her cope, but because it took her mind off of everything else. She measured her success off of her hustle. Hustle was life. This all change on the dawn of the 2016 presidential election when her husband left her. The hustle couldn’t help her through this. She couldn’t find the will to hustle anymore. She fell out of it. She didn’t want to do anything anymore. For a couple months she stopped everything.
During this time she came to the realization that the hustle shouldn’t define you. You should never neglect your physical and mental health for the hustle. That’s exactly what she did. She neglected her family and friends as well. So, from there on, she looked at her life. She looked at the major areas of life; like relationships, family, and friends and she set aside time for them. The next step is to cultivate gratitude. List of what you are grateful for today and keep track of that. List off the wins you had each day as well. Lastly, get real with yourself. Ask yourself what your life looks like. Why does it look like this? What steps do I need to change? Make sure to write out quarterly goals as well. Make meaningful work. Take an hour for yourself each week.
Tell people that they can have their hustle because you don’t want it.
Tyler James McDonald 