How to Hustle Less and Live More

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

Work it harder, make it better
Do it faster, makes us stronger
More than ever, hour after hour
Work is never over

- Daft Punk

We live in a world obsessed with speed, efficiency, and the next big “hack.” Everywhere you look, there’s a new way to streamline your morning routine, a productivity app that will shave hours off your workday, or a get-rich-quick formula promising financial freedom if you just hustle a little harder. Multi-tasking is a point of pride, even through research proves the only thing it’s good for is doing everything poorly. The message is clear: success comes from doing more, doing it faster, and hacking your way to the top.

But where has that left us? We’re a society addicted to shortcuts, constantly seeking to avoid discomfort or maximize efficiency, all while running on fumes. Hustle culture glorifies busyness and reinforces the idea that we’re only valuable when we’re productive. In the race to optimize every moment, we’ve lost sight of something far more important: the ability to simply live.

This constant chase traps us in a cycle of stress, pleasure-seeking, and pain-avoidance. It’s an endless loop of maximizing productivity during the day, then crashing into numbing distractions at night—scrolling through social media, binge-watching shows, or obsessing over the next thing we “need” to accomplish. We’re sprinting on a treadmill with no finish line in sight, living for the next dopamine hit, while a deeper, more fulfilling life passes us by.

My Story

My teenage and young adult years were goal-oriented: get the grades, get into college, get a job, get the degrees. That only accelerated in my 20’s - find a spouse, find a place to live, buy a car, save money, go here, do this, do that. By the time I hit 30 I was in a deep groove of unhealthy hustle. I launched my own business while training for an Ironman triathlon. My type-A drive had manifested itself into an unsustainable quest to check off more boxes. Buy a house, build a dream, make this much, visit this place, buy this thing, forward, onward, more. It was in my 30’s that my body began to really experience what my mind was ignoring. Stress, anxiety, frustration, loneliness, fear and more began to seep through the cracks. High heart-rate, skipping beats, vertigo, sudden bouts of waking up feeling exhausted as my body went through massive inflammation, twitching muscles, painful nerves, numbness of entire limbs, weight gain, a short-temper and reaching to dial all of it back with whatever was on hand. I didn’t want to slow down, I didn’t want to be weak. I was living full-time in fight or flight and couldn’t find a way out.

I worried that if I stopped pushing so hard, I’d slow down and lose my edge. Maybe I’d never find it again.

Hustling hard meant that I missed crucial moments. Weddings. Funerals. Simple beauty. Sunsets. I never would’ve seen this cactus flower open for the ONE single night it blooms. I was wrapped up in destination after destination so fully that the process was a mere annoyance. My life has changed dramatically since those days and as a result I am calmer, deeply joyous, my life glorifies ease and flow. My body is healthy, my mind is healthy, and my heart thrives. The process IS the whole point in life. You have to be here NOW. In order to get from there to here I had to rewire myself out of Hustle Harder and into a Live Now mindset.

Getting Out of This Dynamic

Getting out of this cycle is hard. I sat on the cold table in an urgent care as a cardiac specialist told me that while my heart was fine, the stress-related tension I was experiencing had to go. I laughed, my life was built around stress. I was tough, resilient, I could handle anything. She told me to find something else to do with my life or it would be a short one. She looked at me kindly and patted me on the shoulder. I felt like I had no choices. How do you break free from the constant hustle and life-hack cycle? How do you shift out of stress, pain-avoidance, and the endless loop of doing more to feel worthy?

1. Embrace Presence Over Productivity
Instead of constantly asking, How can I do this faster or better?, start asking, How can I be more present in this moment? Presence is the antidote to hustle. It’s about slowing down and actually living your life—engaging fully in the small, everyday moments instead of rushing through them. This doesn’t mean you stop working or trying to achieve your goals, but it means recognizing that the process is just as valuable as the outcome. Slow down. Be where you are.

• Set aside time in the day/week for planning so it’s not aimless

• Acknowledge when you’re future-thinking is spinning you out of the present

• Come back to here - this moment, these friends, this sky. Look for small things and truly dig in, enjoy them.

2. Redefine Success
Hustle culture has conditioned us to define success as constant productivity and achievement. But what if you redefined success for yourself? Instead of seeing success as hitting your next milestone or goal, what if success was measured by how much joy you felt, how connected you were to the people around you, or how aligned your life was with your values?

• Start asking yourself: Am I living in a way that feels good to me? Am I moving toward a life that brings me fulfillment, or just more busyness?

• Are the things I’m working for bringing me joy? peace? happiness? love?

• Look back at the things you lusted over - how long did they bring you happiness? Did it last?

3. Opt for Depth Over Speed
Life-hacks sell us the illusion that faster is better, but what about depth? There’s a richness that comes from diving into something—whether it’s a project, a hobby, or even a conversation. Instead of rushing through your tasks, choose to go deeper into them. What can you learn from the process? How can you immerse yourself in it, rather than trying to rush through to the next thing? Slowing down and focusing on depth gives life more meaning and less rush.

• Give the moments you have now the merit they deserve.

• You once wished for what you have, don’t move so fast you can’t relish your dreams.

• Be mindful of what you’re trying to avoid in the now by rushing to move to the next thing

4. Shift from Pleasure-Seeking to Meaning-Seeking
The constant pursuit of pleasure—whether it’s through entertainment, consumerism, or quick-fixes—keeps us in a cycle of shallow satisfaction. It feels good in the moment, but it doesn’t last. Instead, start seeking meaning. What brings you a sense of purpose? What activities, relationships, or projects make you feel deeply fulfilled? Meaning lasts long after the initial pleasure has faded. It’s about creating something with depth that resonates far beyond the moment.

• Sometimes simply acknowledging or naming what you’re seeking (entertainment, a social-media like, distraction, attention) can be a great way to become conscious of it.

• Use that awareness above to create a mental trigger - I’m seeking attention, how can I give that to myself?

  • DIY - Consider reflecting on what’s going great for you in life right now!

  • Turn it Around - Give someone else what you’re seeking - text a friend a compliment instead.

5. Focus on Rest and Renewal
Rest is not the enemy of productivity—it's a necessary component. But hustle culture has made us feel guilty for slowing down. The truth is, rest is vital for both creativity and well-being. Find moments for stillness, whether it’s through meditation, a walk, or simply sitting with your thoughts. Allow your mind and body the space to renew. When you shift your focus from constant doing to intentional resting, you’ll find that you’re more present, more engaged, and more capable of deep work when it matters.

• Take breaks without guilt.

• Carve out unstructured time that is off-line. Walk at a park, watch clouds drift across the sky, write, nap. Making space for ‘unproductive’ time might feel super uncomfortable but it might provide you and your nervous system an opportunity to reset.

What You Can Shift Into

Shifting out of hustle culture and into a life of presence, meaning, and connection can be challenging, but I promise you it’s deeply rewarding. Choose depth over speed, meaning over shallow pleasure, and rest over burnout. This isn’t about throwing away your ambitions or abandoning your goals; it’s about approaching them from a place of groundedness rather than stress. When you slow down, you’ll discover that you don’t need to “hack” your life to feel fulfilled—you simply need to start living it.

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