The Misunderstood Concept of the Hustle Culture

Hello dear reader!

Achieving goals will always require work. Ever felt like the harder you work towards a goal, the farther it slips away? Let's explore why our efforts sometimes hinder us, rather than propel us towards our desired outcomes.

We might answer whether the relentless effort is the ultimate path to success.

I am building on a new skill (copywriting). For those of you who know me well, you’re well aware that this is a migratory action from academic research writing. But I noticed that my willingness to keep learning is dropping.

Have you ever been there before? Knowing where your efforts should be but the heart to pursue it is not what it used to be. Let me illustrate what I mean.

Picture this: Whenever you try to fall asleep😴, you remain awake. But as soon as you give up trying, sleep comes to you effortlessly.

This is what the Law of Reversed Effort attempts to explain.

The Law of Reversed Effort

Coined by Aldous Huxley, the law states that the harder we try with the conscious will to do something, the less we shall succeed.

Modern thinkers like Mark Manson, author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, agree with this proposition. He says, “Wanting a positive experience is a negative experience; accepting a negative experience is a positive experience.”

We can confidently say hard work is not all about action but abstinence from it. Also, the intelligence of a hustle is not only what you do but also when you do it. So, how do we handle this?

Your Efforts are the Problem

What a crazy thing to say!?🤯It’s not me.

Let me show you how trying too hard costs you the expected results.

Aldous Huxley says that proficiency comes from combining relaxation with activity.

Let’s step back and ask ourselves, what changes between ‘failing to find sleep’ and ‘sleeping effortlessly’? Sleep = rest = relaxation. Therefore, it is pretty stupid to put effort into relaxing, isn’t it?

To illustrate this, let’s look at an experiment.

Rats were placed in a tube with a string attached to their tails to measure how hard they pulled. When the smell of cheese wafted before them, they ran toward it fervently. Interestingly, they pulled even harder once the smell of a cat was introduced behind them.

When we work hard, we are not only trying to get success but also avoiding problems. Psychiatrist Viktor Frankl observed that we generate anticipatory anxiety when we focus too much on achieving specific outcomes and preventing others.

This is the reason why a poor public speaker will stammer because that is their initial expectation.

Overcoming

Since the problem is trying to prevent negative outcomes, the solution, as Viktor Frankl suggests, is to wish for these things to happen. We’re more likely to achieve the desired outcome by removing the pressure of wanting results.

When you’re struggling to sleep, your desired outcome (sleeping) comes when you give up and desire the opposite (to stay awake).

The more we try, the worse it gets. The more we continue to chase the people and the things we desire, the more they run from us. Release your brain into a flow state, making your actions fluid and effortless.

The process of upskilling in copywriting will be palatable when I’m not anxiously anticipating the results of good clientele.