As a side hustler, I am often asked the question, 'how do you do it?' As in, how do I get all this stuff done in the span of 24 hours. I never know how to answer this question because, well, it seems like common sense to me: I work hard and I get shit done.
Sometimes I forget that other people don't have so-called 'passion projects.' They have passions and they have ambition (I like to think we all do), but we all go about achieving success and happiness differently.
I go about making my dreams a reality by side hustling. In addition to that, I rely on my side hustle to always give me something to do. While I love ocassionally spending my 'free time' binge watching TV series, the act of doing it makes me feel like I am gaining ten pounds in the process. Being lazy makes me depressed. I just HATE doing nothing. I have always been like that.
I realize I am my own person. Not everyone needs a side hustle, and even the people who do side hustle do so for different reasons. A side hustle can be ANYTHING. It can be a part-time job someone does to make extra cash for rent. It can be a volunteer gig someone took on because they are passionate about the cause. It can be freelance work someone is doing to further their career. It can really be anything. But while the side hustles may differ, the qualities of the people who can accomplish them are the same.
Here are six things people who side hustle do differently than you.
1. Work, work, and then work again.
Full-time jobs are not just from 9-5 anymore. In 2016, you're expected to start working the minute you wake up to the minute you go to bed. And no, you don't have to actually be doing work the entire time, but you need to be connected. You need to be prepared to read emails, respond to questions, and solve problems whenever necessary. So how do side hustlers side hustle with 2016 style full-time jobs? They hustle in any down time they have.
Before the sun comes up? Hustle. While eating breakfast? Hustle. Five minute coffee break? Hustle. Commute? Hustle. After dinner on the couch? Hustle. In bed late at night when you know you should probably be sleeping? Hustle.
It's non-stop for hustlers, but they don't mind. After all, if you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life. So it's not 'all work, no play' for these people. Their side hustle is 'play.' It's a hobby. It's fun. It's what they love.
2. Write and update to-do lists.
Multiple to-do lists. There's the full-time job list. The personal life list. And the side hustle list.
Side hustlers have so much going on that it would be impossible to stay on top of it all without keeping track of what needs to get done. They are so ambitious, though, that each to-do list is created to be impossible to complete. But when you're side hustling, you understand that you can't actually plan what's going to get done in a day because you never know what's to come up with your full-time job, and that comes first.
3. Map out each day.
In addition to keeping to-do lists, side hustlers map out each and every day. Whether that means committing to waking up at 6am to side hustle until it's time to go to work at 8am, and then setting a time for the gym after work (even if you have to stay late), with time to continue side hustling at night after the gym until bed -- the whole day is always mapped out. If it wasn't, it would be way too easy to slide on the couch under a blanket refusing to touch technology because you used it all day at work and you're tired.
4. Say no to plans.
This is especially necessary if a side hustler has already mapped their day out. Yes, a side hustle is a 'hobby,' and no, it is not a full-time job, but it is important to side hustlers -- and they have to get their work done.
A lot of people who don't side hustle refuse to understand this. Their lives are their full-time jobs and anything outside of that involves hitting the gym, hitting the bar, and hitting the couch. These people constantly try to convince side hustlers to do things outside of work because they think their side hustle isn't important. But it is. And while some people's hobbies include binge watching TV shows, spending time with loved ones, and hanging out with friends, side hustlers prefer to hustle first -- and then in their free time outside of their side hustles (which doesn't include a lot of time), do things like that.
Because of their ability to say 'no' and stick to a schedule to get shit done, side hustlers have an intense amount of willpower -- and all temptation does is strengthen it.
5. Never feel like they can get anything done.
For every one thing side hustlers accomplish, five things get added to the list. It is definitely stressful, but the work is worth it - especially when a hustler hears kind words about their work from others, or when they get paid for it. A side hustler is never bored and always has something they 'could' or 'should' be working on, and they wouldn't have it any other way.
6. Dream big.
Side hustlers have dreams. Big, crazy, ridiculous, unattainable dreams. And they will work harder than humanly possible to achieve them.
Their dreams are what feed them. They are what motivate them to keep working this hard and having the willpower to stick to busy, work-heavy schedules each day.
The best part: these aren't exactly 'dreams' to side hustlers - they are their future's reality. Side hustlers know that anything is possible and that if you want something bad enough, you can get it. You have just to keep going and working hard, even when things get tough and nothing is going according to plan. Eventually, if you work past the hard times, you will achieve success, and side hustlers know and live and by that.
So if you've ever asked a side hustler 'how do you do it,' that's how. They stick to their ambitions and let nothing stand in their way -- not a fever, not a friend's birthday, not a rainy morning, not failure, and not stress. Nothing. They keep going, always, no matter what (or who) tries to bring them down.