Exhaustion And The Grind

Greetings again Fam. It's your Hustleman broadcasting from the ATL. I'm going to try to keep this post short (key word = try). I enjoying sharing the stories and the thought process behind hustling but I think it's time to share some of the hidden rules and regulations of "The Game" also. I'll post some of the rules in a future post, I promise. What I would like to speak on now concerns part of the mentality a hustler needs to have to be successful.

I once read a magazine interview that featured Jay-Z. If you don't know who Jay-Z is then please stop reading my blog immediatley! I'm just playing *smirk*. Jay-Z was a hustler, the drug dealer type, who made himself into a successful rapper and then on to just an all around entreprenuer. This article was fascinating, but the thing that stuck out the most was a small tidbit about what someone taught him about "The Grind". The quote went something like this, "Work now, rest when you're dead." And that about sums up the grind of hustling.

So what exactly is "The Grind" you ask? Well allow me to elaborate a little. A Hustler is tied to 3 main things:
1) The Goal - This can be anything that the Hustler is trying to accomplish. It of course usually requires large sums of money.
2) The Game - There are many "games out there", from the music game, to the drug game, to the mack game, to the sports game, etc. "The Game" is an established invisible entity that has it's own rules and regulations. Anyone trying to be successful in a particular arena must follow it's rules and regulations or they will eventually be wiped out by the game itself. Quick example, if you were a singer, you would enter the music industry. This industry is a game. Play by the rules until you can make your own rules. Think R. Kelly or Madonna here. Those that do well by the game, usually are the ones who add to the game and elevate it to another level. Think Oprah in the talk show game here. I can write a whole post about this but I hope you see my point.
3) The Grind - "The Grind" is the actual work that goes into The Game to get out of it what you're trying to get. And what you're trying to get out of The Game is your goal. Simple.

So when you hear a hustler talk about they are on their grind, you know that they are working to achieve their goal. "Work now, rest when you're dead." One reason why the word grind is used instead of the word work is really a mental thing. Work brings the image up into most peoples minds as a 9 to 5 gig (job). You do your 8 hours then go home. And if you're not a manager or an owner that's all you want to do. Not for a Hustler. A Huslter doesn't work, we grind. We make it a point to put in as much time, sweat and enegry as necessary everyday we go out. If that means 4 hours, cool. If that means 10 hours cool. If it means you have to Hustle in the dead of night at 3am, cool. They are no hourly restrictions when it come to the almighty grind. The Game itself doesn't stop, the best you can do is to just play as hard as you can.

What always reminds me of the grind and how harsh it is on you physically and mentally is exhaustion. Take yesterday for example. I had no damn clue as to how tired I really was. I went out to the block with a migrain beating in the front of my head. That didn't stop me. I was draggin'. I was walking slow, I was talking slow. That didn't stop me. I knew I was tired but I have goals to reach damnit! It finally came to point where I had to make myself go home early because my migrain was too much to ignore, feel me? I grabbed something to eat then got online to do my standard checks on things. I just couldn't take it anymore. I made myself lay down. And that's all I remember. My cell phone kept going off and I was just too exhausted to get to it. I don't even remember moving, my eyes just opened. After about 5-6 hours I finally woke up, still tired, but I had things to do around the house that I was supposed to do earlier. I think I need to hire a maid and an assistant for real LOL.

Anyway Fam thanks for reading these words as always. Be well and stay focused. I'll be back at you soon. I'm out. Peace!