COPYCAT

Have you ever read a blog, article or thought piece and had such an appreciation for the perspective that you wanted to add your voice to the room (unprovoked)? If this is you then welcome family you are in good company. I’ll be putting out a number of “copycat” pieces when I see my favorite fellow internet ranters write something that really inspires me. It’s my hope with these pieces that the authors see it as a compliment and not theft. I will write this every… single.. Time (just in case) and always link the inspiring author :).

For this copycat edition and I felt the need to put my stamp on the all-important topic of “Work Life vs Side Hustle” originally written (or at least the one I read) by Miss. Moxey herself. If you want to read her take on the topic check it out here. Now that the bills are paid, let’s get into it.

I love what I do full time, but guys my job is demanding. When I say demanding I don’t only mean temporally, I also mean mentally and emotionally. Some of you I’m sure feel this pain and may also have physically demanding jobs. I say all that to say, with the 24 hours we have in a day to not only get the work done that pays our bills, workout, spend quality time with family and friends, read, meditate and everything else how do you still find time to work on your side hustle?!!

Interestingly, out of pure masochism or necessity I am of the opinion that Millennials and Gen Z are some of the most industrial of the generations. Ok Boomers and Gen X calm down, I’m sure you too are very industries HOWEVER - we Millennials and Gen Zs in my opinion just have you beat. Could this have been born out of the stifling student debt that the system puts most of in; or the fact that a lot of us cannot afford to buy homes? I don’t know, maybe, but it doesn’t change the fact that we kill the game that is affectionately called the “side hustle”.

I will never forget when my colleague from work Andy gave me the advice to get my hobbies to fund themselves so that it doesn’t feel as much like work and will help to build my wealth. Well first of all I want to say thanks for the advice Andy BUT this is still a lot of work haha. Interestingly enough, at work I was speaking to one of the partners and he referenced the need to “spin multiple plates” at work in order to showcase competence and capability. I feel like the same holds true for the side hustle or hustleS. You have to be able to maintain stellar performance not only at the job that feeds you but also in your side hustles. So where is the line drawn? How do you “balance” what you’re doing.

Funny enough, I was just asked this question and I still have no answer other than maybe less sleep. Clearly since I have just come off my The Last Mermaid sabbatical (haha) I was very heavily focused on my job job because why - I would like to still pay my bills and hopefully see another carnival next year (please God). However, here are my top 5 tips for how to spin plates like you’re the main event at Cirque du Soleil.

Make a schedule and stick to it; and I mean from the minute you wake up to the minute you go to sleep.
Carve out time for meditation, exercise, reading and other leisure activities and schedule it like you would any other appointment.
Wake up earlier; I’m an earlier bird so this is easy for me but “early” for me may mean something different for you. For me, my calls tend to start around 8:00 am or 8:30 am so I have to get up between 4 and 5 am to get the most out of my day
Have a bedtime; I’m so serious about this. People have laughed at my alarm when I’ve gone out and it went off saying “Bedtime” but sleep is critical to brain function and I refuse to say wake up earlier without also saying go to bed on time for a good night’s rest
Be gentle with yourself; as Leonard Snart says “make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan”. We can write every strategy and timeline in the book but there are so many unknowns in the world - just take it one day at a time

Time management is also crucial to any successful juggling but suffice it to say your J O B pays you B I L L S and as the great Destiny’s Child once said “Can you pay my bills? Can you pay my telephone bills? Can you pay my automobile bills?” Unless your side hustle has gotten to the point where it can support you full time it is just that a SIDE HUSTLE. If you would prefer to make your side hustle your full time gig, give yourself a timeline and strategy for when you want to leave your J O B and pursue your passion full time.

XOXO

Jae from The Last Mermaid

COPYCAT: Work Life vs. Side Hustle

COPYCAT

Make a schedule and stick to it; and I mean from the minute you wake up to the minute you go to sleep.

Carve out time for meditation, exercise, reading and other leisure activities and schedule it like you would any other appointment.

Wake up earlier; I’m an earlier bird so this is easy for me but “early” for me may mean something different for you. For me, my calls tend to start around 8:00 am or 8:30 am so I have to get up between 4 and 5 am to get the most out of my day

Have a bedtime; I’m so serious about this. People have laughed at my alarm when I’ve gone out and it went off saying “Bedtime” but sleep is critical to brain function and I refuse to say wake up earlier without also saying go to bed on time for a good night’s rest

Be gentle with yourself; as Leonard Snart says “make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan”. We can write every strategy and timeline in the book but there are so many unknowns in the world - just take it one day at a time