My grandpa passed away a year ago this month.
He was a great man. And a very positive influence in my life.
In fact, it was from my grandpa and dad (as well as my mom and grandma for that matter!) that I got my work ethic.
No one in my family is afraid to work.
As a kid, if I wanted a bike or video games or comics (and, believe me, I wanted all these things and more), I had to work for them.
On snow days, I’d be out hustling in the neighborhood looking for driveways to shovel at $20 bucks a pop. Telling myself: “Three driveways is all you need for a new SEGA Genesis game!”
You can’t make it as a business owner without hustle and hard work. Period.
So I’m grateful to my grandpa and dad for modeling a good work ethic. That’s carried me a long way in my own business.
BUT…
And this isn’t a knock on my grandpa or dad in any way, but growing up work was something that, 99% of the time, you endured.
It was drudgery. Sacrifice. An intrusion into whatever else you’d rather be doing.
Don’t get me wrong: work was still respected and appreciated because, hey, these bills ain’t gonna pay themselves!
But work was never fun.
I’ve carried that association with me into adulthood. I’ve (mostly) treated work as a means to an end, a way to support my family and finance our lives.
But fun?
Pfft.
Fun is something that happens after work.
That’s a problem.
Because if you look at the most successful people you know (and I’m not talking only financial success; I’m talking about people who are happy, fulfilled, and balanced), if you look at these people I’d be willing to bet they’re having FUN at work.
Bob Bly once told me the reason he got into copywriting and marketing is because he hates being bored.
For Bob, nothing is more fun than writing. (Which helps explain why he’s written and published nearly 100 books!)
For me…
See, I’m not sure. Yes, I love writing (even if it kicks my ass most days.) Yes, I love working with clients. But… it often feels forced.
I often have to will myself through client projects. And one of the hallmarks of fun is that you don’t have to force it. Fun is effortless.
I’ll tell you what I could do all day every day: work with you and work on growing the Just Add Hustle community.
And I love partnering with cool people to help them grow better businesses through email.
I’ll have more on that soon-ish. (And I think you’ll dig it, especially if you run a service-based business.)
For now, a question:
Do you find your work fun?
Hit “reply” to this email. I’d like to hear from you.
Stay hungry and keep hustling,
Paul
P.S. -- I'm playing a rock concert this weekend with my old band, The Elevator Division. It's been 15 years since our last show.
FUN! |
