Teach me how to #hustle

//Photo Taken By Christina Slaton//

As some of you know, last week Job Offers & Bad Boyfriends was named “Best #Hustle Inspo Blog” in the online women’s magazine, The Indie Chicks, Annual Badass Blog Awards. I’m sure many of you reading this voted for me (or thought about voting for me – and hey I’ll take it!) so consider this post my official THANK YOU! You all rock my socks.

As the first official “award” for Job Offers & Bad Boyfriends, I couldn’t be prouder that it came from The Indie Chicks. I discovered this website a few years ago when I was doing blogger outreach at my job. The content immediately stood out to me because it pushed boundaries. You know that writing that makes you laugh…but like the snort your drink, lose your balance, clap your hands over your mouth laugh? That. They “go there” in the way Cosmopolitan’s “Brazilian Wax 101” article never will. Basic bitches need not read.

So to be their “#Hustle Inspiration” pick of the year? I mean, pinch me. These Indie Chick broads are women who’ve made it their life’s work and mission to empower the women of tomorrow. Job Offers & Bad Boyfriends is just a tiny blog I started in February because I had lost my job for the third consecutive time. When I saw that I won this award, I was ecstatic but couldn’t help but think: have I really inspired anyone here? Truly, is anyone besides my mom reading this?

Clearly yes.

It’s a funny thing to watch something become something you know? I feel like this blog is finally becoming the career and relationship resource I always wanted it to be. I also feel that with great success comes great responsibility, and therefore I promise to do my very best to continue to disrupt the issues facing ambitious career gals.

So let’s start with doing my award justice, and teaching you badass broads what it means to really #hustle.

To hustle means:

To work when it’s inconvenient.

Say you have a goal you’re working towards at your job or in your career. Well, there  will always be a night out, a dinner, a trip, or an event you want to go to, that will ultimately take you away from working towards your goals. Part of you will say “screw it, I work enough”, and that may be true, but that’s why hustlin’ ain’t easy. The most successful people will tell you their personal and social life took a beating when they were starting out. To grind means you sacrifice life’s little luxuries – like time to yourself, time with friends, or my personal favorite, time to sleep a full night. It’s inconvenient and hard, but that’s the point.

To have direction. 

Hustling is not a procrastination sport. Meaning, being proactive and identifying goals far ahead of time is critical. If you’re not working one step ahead, you need to at least be thinking one step ahead. For instance, there are days when I’m scrambling to put words, pictures, and social media together for this blog, but at the end of the day I have a plan in place for milestones I want to meet and advancements I want to make. Therefore, all the effort I put into this blog is working towards those goals I’ve already put in place.

To talk YOURSELF up.

Encouragement from others is fantastic, especially when it’s from people who you admire, but there’s nothing quite like giving yourself a good ol’ pat on the back. If you find yourself looking for affirmation, motivation, or permission from others, take a step back. To be successful – to embrace the hustle – you must love, trust, and believe in yourself FIRST. This may mean giving yourself a few tough love pep talks! Your instinct may be to look to others to talk you up, but I promise you, the power is being able to talk yourself up.

To be hungry.

Not physically hungry…I mean unless it’s the week before a beach vacation and that’s your thing. I’ve talked about being career hungry before, and I can’t emphasis this enough. There’s a certain level of desperation that comes along with being hungry. If that desperation is channeled into something positive, something motivating, it can be very powerful. The bad news is there’s no faking hunger. You either want success, a job, a raise, an opportunity, bad enough, or you don’t. It’s that simple. But once you’re hungry enough, hustling will come naturally.

To put yourself out there.

I can’t tell you how many awkward emails or introductions I’ve made trying to put myself out there, in front of the right people. There are days I just don’t feel like attending ANOTHER networking event, or reaching out to ANOTHER potential client, and I wish opportunities would just come to me. What I’ve learned is that they eventually do, but it takes time and it takes effort. So step out of your comfort zone. Reach out to a networking contact, or ask your boss for a meeting to talk about your career advancement. Hustle babe and just do it.

Because it’s such a fun word…what does the word “hustle” mean to you? Share your thoughts in the comments below. 

Special thanks again to The Indie Chicks for honoring my blog with this award and to all my readers and followers who cast a vote!