Summary

The author describes achieving goals without constant hustle by finding intrinsic motivation and flexibility in their approach, as exemplified by their fulfilling experience studying in China.

Abstract

The article recounts the author's personal journey of fulfilling a childhood dream to learn Chinese by spending five months in China as an exchange student. The author emphasizes the importance of setting broad objectives without rigid routines, which allowed for a state of flow and enjoyment in the process of learning and exploration. They attribute their success to intrinsic motivation, financial preparedness, and the absence of money-related stress, which enabled them to focus on their goals. The author reflects on the challenge of replicating this state of effortless pursuit in current work life and suggests that finding meaning in one's work, or making the work itself the reward, is crucial for daily motivation and satisfaction, regardless of external rewards like views or financial gain. The article concludes by rejecting the societal pressure to constantly hustle and grind, advocating for a balanced approach to work that respects human needs and allows for relaxation and varied activities.

Opinions

The author values flexibility and intrinsic motivation over strict routines and external pressures when pursuing goals.
They believe that financial security can significantly enhance the pursuit of one's objectives by reducing stress and allowing for full immersion in the experience.
The author suggests that the key to achieving a state of flow is to engage in work that is meaningful and rewarding in itself, rather than solely for extrinsic rewards.
They challenge the notion that one must be constantly busy and exhausted to be considered hardworking or successful.
The author advocates for a work-life balance that includes time for rest and activities outside of one's main work, emphasizing that the work will always be there and should not consume one's life

How I Achieve My Goals Without ‘Hustling’ or ‘Grinding’ 24/7

No pushing through until exhaustion either

It took me 1.5 years to prepare for the trip, but the idea had been more than a decade in the making.

At age 6, I saw a leaflet from the local Chinese restaurant on our living room table. My eyes went huge, and my interest was piqued. Pointing at the leaflet, I said “I want to learn this language!”

That didn’t happen — until I visited China as an exchange student, 14 years later, to fulfill one of my long-cherished childhood dreams.

Preparing and setting objectives

I aggressively saved every penny from the $500 I earned at an internship. A transcription side job I found via university added an extra $100–200 to the savings jar (at the time, there was no AI, I transcribed everything manually).

By the time the trip was due, I had saved enough to not have to worry about cash flow for 5 months. I was free.

Once in China, I had four clear objectives:

Get my college credits
Learn Mandarin Chinese
Take dance classes
Explore my surroundings.

That’s it.

These 4 points guided my days, every day.

You see that none of them are specific or SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time-bound). No

Harsh wake-up times
No rigid routines
No “cram 20 Mandarin characters per day.”

Overaccomplishing, without rigid routines

I allowed myself to be flexible and let each day’s circumstances decide how I’d fill my time for that day. And that worked out well:

I ended the semester with an outstanding grade list
I went from being unable to say “yes” to ordering food to my dorm on the phone and having small talk with street vendors at HSK 2 level in 5 months
Once I found a hip-hop dance school I liked that was close enough to campus to cycle there, I took classes 1–2 times per week
I opened my Lonely Planet booklet to a random page and visited the place whenever I had time left.

Despite being a night owl, I naturally woke up at 7 AM every day, excited for what the new day would bring.

I attribute a large part of my positive mood to *not* having to worry about money for the first and only time in my life. This played a huge role in feeling at peace and enjoying the process of language learning and cultural immersion.

Getting work done then vs. now

These 5 months abroad were the one time in my life where I lived in a pure state of flow every day.

Despite 4–6 hours of daily classes, and studying Mandarin for an additional 4–5 hours every day, it never felt like too much. I couldn’t get enough of it.

Ever since, I’ve been desperate to recreate this state of bliss, wherein I effortlessly pursued my goals, without feeling friction, overwhelm or panic.

This was a decade ago.

Today, getting work done has been more challenging.

Online coworking platforms like Focusmate help — a lot. But they’re just tools.

The problem? Have you considered you may be doing work you don’t give a rat’s arse about? And that’s what makes getting out of bed each day so damn hard?

Even if the work you do is not your passion or remotely close to your ‘dream job,’ you should know why you’re doing it.

There needs to be some sort of internal motivation, something that makes the time spent worth it to you, even if the sole purpose is to pay the bills so you can spend your creative energy on your side projects.

‘The work is the reward’

Eve Arnold shared how she tried every side hustle in the book. It took a while to find something she liked. And now, this side hustle pays her mortgage.

One thing she said, I just can’t get that out of my head.

I get that money makes the world go round. Without money, you can’t pay your rent, mortgage, or food. But is blindly pursuing money all there is to it?

What if you make the work itself the reward? Then, you win each day. Because you get to do what matters — to you.

For me, that’s what it feels like to publish a new video. I don’t even care if I get zero, a hundred, or thousands of views. Creating a piece of art on my channel, where I have full creative control, and sharing it with the world by pressing publish, that’s my reward.

And I want all my work to feel like that.

I want the work, and the journey, and the moments of joy in between, and what I spend time on to be the reward, regardless of the outcome, or the end goal.

It’s BS that you’re not working hard enough unless you

Feel exhausted
Are constantly tired
Bragging about how busy you are.

F*ck the hustle and grind.

I’m not a superstar. I’m no rockstar.

I’m also not a robot.

I’m a human with human needs, who wants to work hard and rest hard. It is more than okay to want fun work instead of gruelling work that you hate, dislike, or leaves you indifferent.

Remember, the work will be there.

You might as well do it in a relaxed manner, switch to a different activity when your brain or body say, “Aight, that’s enough for today.” And pick up where you left off tomorrow.