‘Hustling’ pays off

By Njoki Karuoya

Why do we work? Why do we wake up early each morning to go to places that many of us claim not to like? And particularly for women, especially the mothers, who must wake up earlier than everyone else in order to prepare their children for school (or their meals if they are not school-going children)?

 I tend to think that we generally go to work to improve our social status by earning some sort of income. The first step, of course, is to deal with our basic needs (food, shelter and clothing, which sometimes can be a by the way).

 The more we earn, the higher our status grows, with the ability to enjoy a higher quality of the basic needs (food that makes us sick with what the experts refer to as ‘lifestyle diseases’, shelter and clothes that are way over-priced…). And we are also able to pay for luxuries with a smile and twinkle in our eyes.

 The ones who enjoy waking up early in the morning to go to work are those whose payslips reflect more zeros than a bright Standard Four pupil can count. Sadly, many of these loaded folks don’t enjoy their jobs and are merely there to sustain their exotic lifestyles. In other words, they are prisoners of the zeros and those working under them tend to be very miserable. Why? Because these prisoners of the cash zeros tend to pass on their unhappiness to others by delegating (and then criticising) all their work to colleagues working below them, otherwise referred to as juniors, who generally tend to be overworked and for which they earn peanuts (I guess that comparative phrase was coined due to the size of zeros these protein-charged nuts make).

 If I’m speaking to you right now and you know such a person say ‘Amen!’ Sadly I don’t have a solution for you; other than to tell you to hang in there. It’s what we all do because we are all prisoners of the zeros.

 It would be nice, though, if we could all find something we enjoy doing that also brings in some zeros, no matter how few they are, as they tend to take off the edge from the main job if it does not bring you fulfillment. If you are then able to escalate that hobby or passion to levels that make you smile all the way to the bank, kudos to you.

 There are many people who derive satisfaction from their jobs, and a good number are ‘hustlers’ who started their journeys in the trenches but clawed their way to the top to magnanimous applause. And there are numerous examples out there without me having to name names, beginning with the number one self-styled hustler of Kenya.

 But hustling is not something that many people consider easily as a way of life or a profession. The instinct for many of us is to find a regular, eight to five salaried job that provides us with security of tenure through its monthly remuneration. We tend to look at hustling as a side dish, a mpango wa kando that does not promise much future courtesy of its irregular returns.

 But there are those who risked all for their mpango wa kandos and transcended to greater heights. Here are a few quotes from these top-notch hustlers that may inspire you to take a different look at hustling…. Although this path ideally is only for the brave… or hopeless (as in they have nothing to lose by hustling). Enjoy.

 “Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” (Abraham Lincoln)

 “Good things happen to those who hustle.” (Anais Nin)

 “If you want something from an audience, you give blood to their fantasies. It’s the ultimate hustle.” (Marlon Brando)  

“Mine’s a pretty simple strategy: There’s not a lot of talent here, but there’s a lot of hustle. I have to be in every place I can, and be busy.” (Ryan Seacrest)  

“But for me to have the opportunity to stand in front of a bunch of executives and present myself, I had to hustle in my own way. I can’t tell you how frustrating it was that they didn’t get that. No joke — I’d leave meetings crying all the time.” (Kanye West)  

“Well, I’ve been happily supporting myself for ten years now on the hustle and trade of live entertainment. I guess my breakthrough moment was when I decided to go for it once and for all.” (Jason Mraz)

“Music is my hustle.” (Pitbull)

“My store, Wine Library, outsells big national chains. How do you think we do it? It started with hustle. I always say that our success wasn’t due to my hundreds of videos about wine that went viral, but to the hours I spent talking to people online afterward, making connections and building relationships.” (Gary Vaynerchuk)