Hustle culture is essentially the thought process or the programming that makes you feel like you need to move really quickly or do a lot at every moment. You feel like you have to be making intense effort. It feels like this is the only way that you’ll inevitably reach “success.” 

I am a busy woman. I have three businesses and kids, but I also recognize how powerful delegation is. The things that I don’t feel aligned with I either take my time to learn, delegate out or just ask for help. Being able to stay in my lane of genius and stay in my lane of what makes me the happiest was a big lesson for me. 

I think the issue that we run into with being a female entrepreneur is that we’re lined up with this like masculine energy. First off, it wrecks your actual creative power. It wrecks your self worth, because it almost feels like the more busy I am, the more validating it feels. If I’m busy, then I’m validated. 

Do you feel like you need to have a busy schedule?

In the very beginning of my career, before I got into thought work for female entrepreneurs, I was still doing work with a lot of hair stylists. They would feel like if they’re busy that they’re making the most amount of money that they can, when really, they aren’t. They felt like if I have a full schedule, then I’m actually booked. Their prices weren’t adjusted adequately and they were doing more work than they had to. The idea of a full schedule meant that they were successful, but that’s not always the case. 

I feel as though it does a lot of damage to the mental space of creativity, energy and allowing stillness into your life. So many times when you get this validation, and you get this feeling of I’m worthy because I’m busy, then the more busy we want to become. Then we feel more important and we feel more powerful. When in reality, when we slow down, we start to have this panic. 

Worthy is not attached to your productivity.

We’ve been ingrained with this belief and idea and ideology that the busier you are means the more successful you are, then the more successful you are, the happier you are, and the more worthy you’ll feel. 

If you love a super busy life, I would just ask yourself, is it all for the right reasons? I always just allow people to unpack and say like, okay, so why do you love being busy? What joy does that bring you? What fulfillment does it bring you? 

Now, when you slow down, does your body crave movement? If that’s so then we’re just constantly rushing for that dopamine kick, we’re constantly rushing for that feeling of dopamine plus worthiness.

Hustle culture is addicting.

When we slow and we’re constantly thinking about work,  its an actual drug. We’re just always in work mode. We call that a workaholic and it’s not a phrase for nothing. We become addicted to the feeling of validation that we get from how busy we are. 

When we do actually reach some level of perceived success, because success is really an idea for that individual to each person. What ends up happening, is when someone’s like, oh my gosh, congratulations. You’re like yeah, I worked so hard for it. Like that’s a reason to have abundance in your life. 

The reality of the situation is that you have to identify is my brain addicted to this? Do I find worth from overworking or working too much? 

Being an entrepreneur, being a mom, it’s a lot of fucking work.

You have to be able to find some type of grounding balance between your life and what you want for your life, your career and what you want for yourself. Remember, they’re all separate pillars. Just because you have a business doesn’t mean that you are always a business. You are a human being who has feelings and needs and desires and your job is just a facet of your identity. It’s not who you are. It’s just something that you do.

What am I actually benefiting or getting from overworking or feeling like busy is the key? Can I actually be still and in the moment? You want to actually be enjoying this one experience that you get to have.

Work intentionally instead of hustle, hustle, hustle.

I think that because we have this version of hustle culture that’s kind of being thrown at you like, hustle, hustle, hustle. To some degree, yes, I agree that you need to actually work intentionally and do things in pursuit of what you want. Having a really powerful work ethic is beautiful, but also being still and actually being able to enjoy your life makes you enjoy your job more.