A DATE WITH DANIELLE HOW TO HUSTLE WITHOUT BEING A HUSTLER

HOW TO HUSTLE WITHOUT BEING A HUSTLER

by Danielle Klooster

About a month ago, I hosted a Clubhouse room with a few other business coaches and business hustlers (said with love) to talk about how to hustle in business without being a hustler. It was such a great conversation that I decided to carry it over into my magazine column. So – here it is!

To give you the context, I think we should first talk about the conventional perception of what constitutes a hustler. The negative connotation of ‘hustler’ is the picture of someone who colours outside the lines, is overly aggressive, and always has a (self-serving) agenda. These folks never seem to sleep. They’re always looking for an angle. They believe that in order to win they need to ‘get one over’ on someone else. When I am thinking of hustlers in this context, I always think of the pool hustler. You know the one… they pretend they don’t know much, if anything, about billiards, and then, after the poor, unsuspecting mark is sufficiently bought-in, wham! They take them for everything they’ve got.

On the positive side, hustlers take action. They travel light and take no prisoners. They make things happen. They have a goal, and they are determined to make it happen.

Which kind of hustler are you? Which do you want to be?

Do the Hustle

The key difference between hustling and being a hustler is your mindset and energy. If you feel – believe – that:

You need to push, push, push to get anywhere

You can’t trust others to help or support you and you need to make it all happen yourself

It’s okay to cut corners, blur the ethical lines and tell ‘white lies’ to get what you want or believe you deserve then you might be a hustler.

And you’re probably an exhausted wreck.

The good news, though, is that if you can believe and invest in showing up that way, you can also choose to believe something else. Something that serves you and moves you forward without hurting others. The key is to let go of the belief that the only way to win is at someone else’s expense or by operating offside from good ethics. You don’t have to be a hustler and live in grind, grind, grind to realize your dreams and goals. Honest. Quite often, we find that hustlers do get ahead – or at least that’s how it appears.

Hustling, in terms of taking action, is a good thing. Being decisive and taking meaningful action is the cornerstone of achievement. But let’s not just make random decisions and take action based on impulse (which is also exhausting!). Setting good goals, “with soul”, as my Sharp Women co-founder Ranchelle teaches, is the place to start. Here’s what I suggest:

• Visualize your end game. This is what we call

“setting an objective”. Create a statement that describes what success looks like.

• Then set goals for what you’ll do to achieve that objective.

• Then create action plans (pro tip: having a project management software program is a total lifesaver!) to get you to those goals.

Danielle Klooster is a business trainer, strategist and coach who has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs go and grow in their businesses. She is also the cofounder of Sharp Women with Ranchelle Van Bryce.

Fear vs. Faith

To hustle without being a hustler, you’ll want to take action from a place of confidence and faith. Here at Sharp Women, we talk a lot about having a personal development practice, and I can’t stress enough how pivotal it is to your success in life and business. Challenge your limiting beliefs and the stories you tell yourself about how to win. Reframe those limiting beliefs into beliefs that serve you and move you forward.

You can hustle from a place of peace. It is both possible and effective.