Why Work 40 Hours a Week When You Could Work 80? (A Personal Guide to Improving Your “Grind”)

I know, I know, it’s a contradictory title to my train of thoughts but bear with me, it makes sense. For those of you working part-time, full-time, seasonal… anything that involves earning money in return for labor. I’m thinking about you in particular as I write this. I stumbled across an interesting question asked by an entrepreneur a while back, and this question was, “Why work 40 hours a week, when you could work 80?”

An entrepreneurial mindset immediately understands the rhetoric in this question. The reference to ‘40 hours a week’ specifies those who work a 9 to 5, with nothing (but money) to expect in return. Some may work in misery, yet still continue to clock in and out of their shift. Why?? For some, there is no choice. Certain obstacles such as poverty, lack of education, physical attributes or skills may prohibit a raise or promotion. It’s unfair, but sometimes life plays out that way. With that being said, obstacles like these will keep an average worker comfortable. The social status within that person will remain the same. Alarms set at 7am will stay at 7am, until a decision is made to switch up the daily routine. I’ve reached a point in my life, where school confused me. A path to my career was too foggy for vision because I didn’t my mind set on a specific goal. My passions weren’t put to use, and I settled for a comfortable lifestyle. Completion of GE courses, and a restaurant job had me living comfortably. At the time, I felt good. Waiting tables is good money, and education is very important. “A perfect balance,” I thought… Then I thought some more.

Time went by, and being comfortable straight up irked me. I accepted the flow of life, developing habits I now despise. Living paycheck to paycheck, while squeezing in fun on my days off was my lifestyle then. In my opinion, personal well-being falls under two intricate categories: mental health, and physical health. This is extremely important! The right exercise will keep your mind at ease, and your body feeling in tip-top shape. It’s an absolute necessity to treat our bodies well through workouts and good food. On the other hand, your mind needs to be strong to maintain that balance. Cut some time out of your day for self-reflection. Look for ways to improve your game: recognize your strengths and praise them. Recognize your weaknesses and work on them. Grab a notebook and a pen and let your thoughts flood out. It wasn’t too long ago when I felt off-balance with myself. I live two blocks from the beach, and quite often I’d take my thoughts over there with me to reflect upon as I gaze at the ocean. It was a healthy habit, but I later realized that there was more for me to do than to stare at that beautiful. sunset. I found myself here, at the beach, with intentions to escape, rather than reflect. As soon as I realized this a whole new way of thinking flooded my mind. I asked myself, “What is there to run from?” I concluded that my daily routine wasn’t enough to live greatly. You know that incredible feeling of satisfaction you achieve after an exhausting, long day of productivity? You sleep deeply, with a smile on your face, content with how your day went, with anxiety to see what tomorrow brings. Yeah, that feeling… It’s the greatest! I haven’t felt that in a while. I thought of ways to achieve that feeling again, mastering plans meticulously with time management. My brother, my mentor, encouraged me to value every day. He fed me ideas that I carry with me today to really master my full potential. This way of positive thinking led me to a road I’m still driving on today.

I’m not sure when exactly the patterns changed; it was a gradual stunt of personal growth that developed over time. A close friend of mine told me to never, ever, regret anything. Which is totally right. I look back and respect decisions I’ve made, but with one exception, I’ve gotta say that I really do regret how I’ve used my free time. Sometimes it’s a constant struggle to figure out how you’re going to spend your next few hours after work, at home. Unless, you have a motive. You see, back then, in my comfortable lifestyle, nothing pushed me. I lacked motivation which killed me mentally. It took some time, but I’m working with a few passions of mine. I broke it down, and looked at what I spend most of my time doing. (This next step is important, please pay attention, it might help you too). What do you spend your free time doing? I made a list of a few habits of mine, but one of them stuck out the most. My muse consists of media, involving creation. Good music, movies, pictures, etc (anything visually or audibly appealing you see on social media) consumes me. If you know me well, you know the love I have for music. It’s an art-form that moves me, incredibly. The perfect lyrics backed with intricate sounds just might get me through my day. It’s that important to me. I also feel the same way with art and it’s visual appeal. Something about it makes my imagination play a role so curiously within, it’s indescribable sometimes. I’ve found a couple passions of mine. I could name 10 more things that move me just as incredibly, but this is enough to focus on at the moment. I’m working on how to use this passion of mine, to create, consume, and put out into this world somehow. It’s a task I’m willing to put up with, because at the end I know it’s worth it. This leads me to a question about career goals: What do you want to do in life, and why?

I used to answer this question with a career in mind that would keep me financially stable in the long run. I wanted to do something that would get me these cool expensive things… The sickest cars on the market, an awesome house somewhere secluded, the ability to vacate whenever I’d choose to, etc. I was caught up with material things. Money was my ultimate motivator. Money can help you live an incredible life, don’t get me wrong, but money should never be the main factor in your grind. My current job fulfills my financial needs, and at this time in my life, cash flow is important. It’s needed to pay off bills, car payments, food… All that necessary stuff, and it’s alright. I just know that my “job” isn’t my “grind”. My job helps me save up for necessary payments to keep me on my grind. My grind to pursue passions of mine that have me waking up with excitement — excitement to feed my muse.

Your muse will take you far. You’ll put in that easy “80 hours a week” with confidence because it’s at utmost importance to you. That 80 hours is at your own expense. No need to clock in, or out of shift. It’s up to you to put in that work. So if your passion is speaking to you and you can’t ignore it, work with it. See how far it’ll take you. In the meantime, I’d like to leave you with something to reflect upon. Think about your “grind” and what it means to you. Is your job your real grind? Or is something else calling you? Please recognize your daily habits, and realize the importance of everything you do. The moment you’re sleeping, someone else is working. It’s all up to you.

-Brandon