With the rise of all things “self care”, the social world begun shaming “the hustle”; suddenly, working tirelessly at something that you are passionate about became a bad thing. 

These words and feelings never resonated with me, because I know firsthand that the hustle is a crucial part of this journey. 

Had I not worked endless at my own branding self-discovery, website, visuals, inspiration, goals, etc, etc, etc, I would NEVER have ended up here, writing these words for you.

There is a huge difference between hustling and glorifying being busy. There is a time and a place for hustling; it ebbs and flows as needed, and without it, your business isn’t going to grow as much as it has the potential to.

In a world of instant gratification and ego-boosting opportunities at every turn, we’ve become a culture that starts to become entitled and dependent on things just “falling into our laps” with little to no effort. We think that we deserve to have things work out for us; which sure, that is a beautiful attitude to have/I’m always one for a positive outlook on things, but the hard truth? If it were EASY, EVERYBODY would be doing it.

So, do you want to settle in comfortably with the masses?
Do you want to have what everyone else has to offer?
Do you want to sit back and wait?
And wait…
And wait…
And wait…?

No one is coming to save you.
No one is coming to save your business.
You are all you got.

Finding the perfect work-life balance can usually feel like you’re a dog chasing its tail; and honestly, I don’t think that finding (and staying!) in the perfect place of balance is possible. It’s all about flowing with the seasons, doing the work when the work needs doing, and committing to stepping away once the season of hustle has dissipated.

There is a fine line between hustling and glorifying busyness, and I think that often times, people are using the two terms interchangeably, when in reality, they are very different. Glorifying the idea of being busy is connected with your ego; it’s being used and lived as a way to prove (to yourself or otherwise) that you are busy; and to your ego, being busy equates to success. 

There is a time and a place to hustle, and integrating seasons of hustle (paired with equally as important seasons of rest) is a crucial cog in your business foundation and function. 

I think that as entrepreneurs, we feel the need to glorify our work as a way to prove to others (and most likely to ourselves) that we’ve “made it”. We do things throughout our weeks that we see as a pretty cool perk (like “look at me, I can work from home in my pyjamas **cue instagram story selfie), and YES of course making things happen for yourself is amazing.

I don’t want to discredit the hard work that you’ve been putting in and the place that you’ve gotten yourself to.
Being your own boss is cool as hell.
Seriously.
BUT it’s always SO HARD sometimes.
And stressful.
And frustrating.
And we’ve gotten so wrapped up in the mentality that if we’re DROWNING in our work, then we MUST be doing something right. 

LIKE WHAT?!
How is that the mindset that we’re existing in.
Give your head a shake.
Stress and busyness is NOT a marker of your success.
Say it with me, “my success is NOT measured by how stressed and “busy” I am!”.

As creative entrepreneurs with a serious social media addiction, we often fear as if we’re missing out, or even worse, missing out on potential work, whenever we put our phones down. Our habits and connection to our phones and social feeds wear into our real offline lives, which can then lead to a plethora of other issues, such as: irritability, lack of proper sleep, disconnection, lack of focus, moodiness, feelings of jealousy and comparison, feelings of lack, and so many other negative emotions that we would feel better if we lived without. 

You don't need to eliminate the hustle. You don't need to commit and amplify your "self care" to prove that you're a modern-day millennial entrepreneur whose "killing it" at being self employed because you're drowning in work and inquiries. 

What you need is boundaries.
(louder for the people in the back).
You need boundaries.

And of course, i'm not going to drop that on you and then slowly back away and let you figure it out on your own. I'm right here with you, so let's fix this issue together so that you can honestly step away from the struggle and ENJOY your real life (and I'm talking REAL LIFE. not your social media life. GET OUTSIDE - you're missing out on life). I've created a mini exercise here for you. It's a simple worksheet that is going to help you implement some boundaries and begin shifting things so that you can get your life back (all the while mending fences with the "hustle"). 

Grab the worksheet and start cultivating better balance!

In your corner and here for you,
Kaihla