Hustle Balance

Deeply embedded in my psyche as an athlete was the word hustle. You don’t win games unless you’re willing to hustle or outwork the other team. But unlike real life, hustling ends when the buzzer sounds. 

As the term hustle became synonymous with pulling all-nighters, 84-hour work weeks, and sacrificing your firstborn child, many became weary of trying to keep up. On the flip side, some have worried we’re getting soft. (Don’t worry people, #Hustle culture is alive and well in the name of Elon Musk.) 

Research has shown that we aren’t any more productive after a 50-hour work week. “So much so that someone who puts in 70 hours produces nothing more with those extra 15 hours,” according to a study published by John Pencavel of Stanford University in an article on CNBC.

The weariness from overwork that many of us have felt in our bones is now starting to take hold in our culture. The forced pause during covid prompted a lot of people to question the long-accepted narrative, “The more you work, the more you achieve.”

What could be more helpful is a deeper understanding and value of balance.

Balance, like hustle, is a loaded word. Without some nuance, we default to black-and-white thinking, as if a perfectly equal distribution is possible every day.

At least for me personally, balance is about managing the ebb and flow. It’s less about the day-to-day and more about the big picture. And measured by the quality of my life and the depths of my relationships. 

As Adam Grant so eloquently put it, “Dedication to work isn’t reflected in the hours you put in. It’s reflected in the commitments that you keep.” 

When there’s a project I desperately want to get off the ground, working nights or weekends are required. But when I do so, unplugging on a Sunday or Wednesday to recharge is also necessary to keep from burning out.

There are weeks when my husband picks up dinner and does more than his fair share of bedtime routines. From week to week, there is rarely a 50/50 split. It’s more like 30/70 one week, and 60/40 the next. But if the uneven week turns into weeks, and weeks turn into months, that’s not a balanced relationship—that's neglect. 

Sure, “balance” may not look as sexy across the chest of a graphic tee, but I think it more accurately describes what we’re in search of. Achieving greatness is less about getting more done than it is about getting the right things done. 

Hustle. You won’t achieve anything without it; but if that’s all you do, you’ll achieve nothing.