This obsession with productivity. Everywhere people try to optimize their work processes, get more productivity out of every day and be as efficient as possible. This focus on productivity is not the best route to success.
Productivity is about planning something. It has much more appeal than doing something and starting to do something is what is Hustle about. Not the busyness of "business", but an achievable milestone determines the hustle. Unlike the productivity craze, which often seems to be a means with no clear end in mind, the hustle culture is about pursuing a specific goal with a clear sense of purpose. Whether it's starting a new business, creating a work of art, or reaching a personal milestone, Hustle culture is about directing your energy and resources toward a defined end goal.
But why do so many people seem stuck in the productivity frenzy? Perhaps it's because we're focused too much on the “how” of productivity –
- setting up systems before the process is simply tried right up the alley of "doing things that don't scale" and
- optimizing processes before running at full capacity
– and not enough on the why behind our work. By prioritizing the goal or purpose behind our work, we can better balance the need for productivity with the need for experimentation and creativity.
It's important to remind myself every day that failure and experimentation are often necessary steps on the road to success. While society may put a high value on productivity and the end-state of “success”, it is important to embrace failure as an opportunity to learn and grow, and to be open to the experimental nature of your work if you want to move forward towards success. The right process is much more important than its optimization.
In a world where productivity is often praised above all else, maybe it's time to give the hustle culture another chance. By focusing on a clear goal and purpose, while embracing experimentation and failure, we may be able to achieve even greater successes than we ever thought possible.
