What I think is interesting is the fact Jay and Gary bring in two different views and perspectives on what it means to hustle – but one thing I think is missing from both perspectives. I had a chance to see Jay’s video from yesterday on this very subject (great job by the way, Jay) and it really sparked some interest in me to write this blog post.
As Jay has said – yes, in order to succeed in life, social media, and work – you have to work hard and that’s a given. Gary emphasizes that this is the most important word you have to know working in this business.
So, who is correct here? To hustle or not to hustle? That’s the question. However, while working hard and “hustling” may be common sense to a lot of us, we need to realize the fact that sometimes we have to teach people how to work hard. How do people really know they are working hard and smart in their profession or on a project?
This is where I have tried to bring forth my experience as a track and field athlete in the classroom for my students. There have been some best practices and tips I have shared with them (especially in my social media class and among my graduate students) to teach them what it really means to work hard. Here are some things that have worked for me:
- Approach project/class/internship like you are training for the Olympics: You are not going to start a project the night before it’s due, right? You are going to be preparing for this presentation or final project months in advance and a little bit each day. Some days will be okay, but others will be tough. It’s about doing a little bit each day.
- Persistence is key: Talent is one part of the equation, but persistence is an additional component. You have to be dedicated and committed to doing well, and this may be hard at times. I share with my students a few stories of what it was like for me writing my dissertation at UT a few years ago. There were days where the pages were flying – and then there were days that were “one sentence days.” These days were ones where the words for some reason where not working. You have to recognize this and take a step back to reflect and see what you need to do next time.
- Quality time v. Quantity time: It’s not how much time you spend that matters sometimes, but how much time is focused and spent on a project. My dad and I had weightlifting workouts when I was in track that were an hour long. Yes, one hour. While other athletes would spend 4+ hours lifting, we concentrated our energy to make every minute, lift, and rep count. There were many exercises I did in the weight room where I worked until exhaustion (which Dad refers to as “burnouts”). However, these worked for me and I have applied the same principles into my workethic and shared these principles with my students.
- Take in the successes and failures by leaning from them: Teaching people the fact that while successes are great – enjoy them and realize we all face challenges and failures in life, but both teach us significant things to improve in our future work. There were certainly days as an athlete where I felt I got a “W” for a win but it was not at all my best performance. But, then there were days everything came together. Savor the great days and learn from the tough days – both provide great learning lessons for the future.
In summary, I think both Gary and Jay are great leaders to have in the field and provide a lot of insights for all of us to think about and reflect on. I think what we need to consider here is not why we need to work hard, but how to work hard. What are tips, best practices, exercises, and culture building measures we can implement to teach others how to embody this mentality of having a strong and sustainable work ethic today.
This is something as a professor I am trying to embody myself as well as share with my students each semester.
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
