At this year’s Financial Blogger Conference, I attended Jeff Rose’s session on how to get traffic, even if Google dumps you. What struck me, however, wasn’t the idea of getting traffic without Google — it was the fact that Jeff Rose has seen so much success. Why?
In part, because he hustles.
How Jeff Rose Hustles
In the last couple years, I’ve struggled with the idea of hard work and how it doesn’t always mean you get ahead.
My husband is a great example of this. He works harder than anyone I know, but he continues to be passed over for full-time university positions. He’s still an adjunct professor, and because he’s a great teacher who likes to help people, he spends many unpaid hours helping students (and sometimes tenured professors) understand research design and statistics.
It doesn’t matter how hard he works; he’s still not paid what he’s worth.
So, what’s the difference between hard work and hustling? Personally, I think it has a lot to do with purpose and planning. My husband’s working hard and helping students, but he’s not hustling to make connections and get his work “out there” for more people to see.
Jeff talked about how many guest posts he’s written to promote his movements and book. Not only that, but he planned out what he needed to do, and came up with a way to do it. He created a strategy and branched out into different areas to diversify his traffic sources.
It’s possible to take this approach to your career and your financial decisions. Can you branch out to diversify your skill set?
Jeff started making videos, created a podcast, and wrote a book. He did this on top of having financial planning clients and running his blog. The diversity of his projects shows that he’s always hustling to learn and implement new skills.
How YOU Can Hustle for Success
You should look for ways to diversify your skill set and start hustling. Hustling can provide a better chance of success than hard work alone. Here are some ways you can hustle your way to success.
- Network: Figure out who to talk to, and make those connections. Get ideas, join mastermind groups, and interact with others who can exchange ideas with you. You might even find a business partner.
- Recognize opportunities: It’s true that luck is sometimes instrumental in success. If you want to take advantage of luck, you have to be able to recognize and seize opportunities.
- Get yourself out there: This is one of the things I struggle with most. If you want to be successful, you need to put yourself out there and share with others. Let them know what you’re doing, and ask for help. I have a hard time asking people to do things for me, but Jeff doesn’t mind. He always gives back, of course, but he’s willing to ask first.
By adding a little planning and hustle to your life, you can improve your situation and find success.
What do you think? Is hustling different from hard work?
{ read the comments below or add one }
I have been running my blog for over two years and only recently seen my traffic start to rise. The big difference was networking and reaching out to other bloggers. The whole “if you build it they will come” just isn’t true, especially for something like a website with millions of other sites striving for viewers attention.
Not I spend a lot more time talking to others rather than working hard on the site. I still work hard to make updates and improve the site, but you also have to work hard to get people to take notice of your work.
I definitely need to work on networking. I see the value in it – I’m just a natural introvert!
I see hustling as strategically working hard — investing your time and effort into those activities that are most likely to get you the most results for your efforts. It’s something I need to work on more!
I love hearing hustle stories and agree with everything you’ve said. If you want to make more money you can’t just work hard, you have to work smart. You’ve got to put yourself in front of those people who can help you find success or pay you more money and THEN work hard.