How Many After-Hours Hustles Is Too Many? I’m Genuinely Curious.

I don’t have a number. Do you?

Everybody hustles these days.

We cannot avoid hearing, seeing, listening, and attending to such updates. They come one after the other.

Are you…

• Writing online?
• Food on wheels?
• Sending people everywhere?
• Selling umbrellas in yellow or red?
• Producing low or no content printables?
• Flipping baseball cards?
• Coaching somewhat?

I guarantee someone, somewhere, sometime is working on the above. Not all. Many.

And look.

Huge respect.

Life is tough with that additional kid and higher-than-usual inflation.

I get that… until I no longer get that.

The Crazy Hustler

I have many high-intensity hustlers around me.

They have a full-time job, by the way.

Let me start with Bong.

He amazes me. I have never met anyone who can assume an over-the-top incredible workload.

• He starts the day writing 2 online article drafts.
• Then, he walks his neighbors’ dogs.
• Bong goes to work.
• Then he rushes off to sell properties.
• He trades the markets on his way home.

I’ll keep it as that. Bong does more, for sure.

But that is not the point. Or my point.

Bong gets through his life at a fast pace. Before you know it, he is working on B. In the blink of an eyelid, he is at E.

I need to hustle for the money, he says.

Yes, I get it. Of course. I need it, too.

But hustling like him?

No, thank you.

There is this thin red line I have zero interest in crossing. It’s called fatigue. I know what it feels like when I step into that psychological black hole.

It’ll take me months to return to normalcy.

I don’t know how much longer Bong can continue like this.

And.

He wants his promotion this year.

Huh, really?

When he has a barrage of work? When he has a lack of sleep?

I wonder if Bong can pull it off without collapsing.

Hustle medal tally: 4

Here Comes the Triathlete

“Annie, Annie, get up, geeeet uppp~”

“Pssssst, psssst.”

I pricked, kicked the side of her legs, nudged, and finger-jabbed her thighs. It worked. Annie opened her eyes in the nick of time.

“Hey, Annie, it is your turn to present your department’s status.”

That was my managing director over the virtual conference. Annie responded in double quick time.

Camera’s up. Microphone’s up. Risk detector firing all cylinders.

She survived that grueling 20 minutes.

And you may ask. Why is Annie falling asleep in the workplace?

Simple. Annie sport-hustles.

Say what?

Annie is a committed triathlete. And she coaches. I don’t mean she stands at a spot, blows the whistle, and screams.

No.

She coaches proactively.

• Annie leads the group run in the morning.
• She takes a bike session in the evening.

She does this for 4 days a week.

That is a hell lot of training load.

Fatigue hits her hard when she is under the air-conditioning.

And her legs die under the working desk. It takes her forever to crawl to a meeting room.

Annie brings her foam roller and tennis ball (for muscle ache relief) wherever she goes. When 6 pm hits, she gets ready for the next group coaching.

Does she fall asleep on her bike while on the move?

I have no idea.

But 1 thing is clear.

She makes good money. Or, good enough money.

Annie receives $150 per trainee per month. She has 7 of them today.

I leave you to decide if the effort is worth the money.

Hustle medal tally: Technically 1, reality 2 (1 run coaching group, 1 bike coaching group)

Time investment: 3–4 workout hours per day for 4 days a week

Fatigue index: 100/100

The Flipper

George is a funny dude.

And he works hard to flip things.

I don’t mean property apartments or a pan of fried fish. He flips stuff.

George would comb the internet and flea markets for hours… to scout for basement bargains and then sell them online.

These are the things I’ve heard so far.

• Peanut butter (?!).
• Office stationery in bulk in cartons.
• Mobile chargers, laptop batteries, docking stations.
• Workplace equipment such as standing desks.
• Second-hand running shoes.
• Dehumidifiers of all sizes.
• Air purifiers.

There are more.

And I got curious.

“Isn’t it time-consuming to scout and flip things?”

George agreed. He spent nights and nights hunting for basement bargain deals and flipped them for a 10% — 15% profit.

“How much do you make a month? Approx?”

He responded with $2k — $3.5k for 5 hours every evening plus weekend walkarounds.

George’s commitment to this hustle is incredible.

Hustle medal tally: Technically 1, reality uncountable (every product has a different market)

The Close

Bong, Annie, George.

They are hustlers, yes.

And they are people around us. I can relate to them. You can, too.

We’re trying our best to stay afloat in an uncertain macroeconomic environment. More cash is more cash.

But that is just one dimension of things.

How many after-hours hustles should we engage in? Bong has 4, Annie has 2 (disguised into 1), and George has infinite (masked into 1).

They require a heavy time commitment outside of our family and day job.

• Do we have the time and energy left for our loved ones when we are done?
• Do we crash in bed?
• Can we sustain our energy day in and month out?

I think these are questions worthy of deep thinking.

After all, what is the point of rushing to the hospital bed?

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