Being Boss is about doing the work, not only to build a business that allows you to express yourself, make money doing what you love, and make a positive impact on the world, but it’s also about injecting those same practices, boundaries, habits, and gumption into your life as well.

We try to not glorify the hustle, but getting shit done is how you build a life you love. Sometimes getting shit done looks like spending a week working out sales funnel emails, rocking out a client project, or building your new product line. And other times getting shit done looks like finally booking that massage, taking that vacation, or making time to read that book.

Again, not to glorify the hustle, but I’m always hustling. I’m always getting shit done. I don’t watch much TV (because that’s not a priority in my life) and I don’t ever have more than one lazy day in a row. Instead, from sun up to sun down, I’m mindfully taking action to reach my goals.

Everyday I’m hustlin’.

While figuring this out, I’ve found that the secret to finding some balance between life and work is to pair your work hustle with life hustle.

The secret to finding work/life balance is to pair your work hustle with life hustle. Share on X

You need to hustle work—get shit done!—but you need to hustle your life, too.

WHAT WORK HUSTLE LOOKS LIKE

Work hustle is all the things you’re doing to rock out your career, or the avenue that you’re taking to make money to support yourself. This is the stuff people are usually referring to when you mention “the hustle.” Personally, my work hustle is 6+ hours a day at my computer writing newsletters, recording podcasts, managing my team and clients, and working on upcoming projects. For you, it may look something like this:

  • Finishing school / training
  • Starting and launching your business
  • Content marketing
  • Client work
  • Making products
  • Writing sales funnels
  • Hosting Twitter chats
  • Bookkeeping and otherwise managing your business

WHAT LIFE HUSTLE LOOKS LIKE

Life hustle is everything else. It’s all the things you’re working hard for, and sadly it’s the part of the puzzle that most people push aside because work makes them tired or a Netflix binge is just easier. When I’m done with work for the day, my work is not done for the day—I will continue on to nurture my relationships, engage in activities that aren’t profitable but are fun, or take an epic adventure. Of all the things that I do, create, launch, make, my life hustle is always the hardest, but also the most rewarding.

These are the things that help you accomplish personal growth, and I’ve come to believe that this hustle is what brings the work hustle full circle. It’s what makes it all worth it. Your life hustle could include…

  • Focusing on starting a yoga/meditation/writing/workout practice
  • Doing a #Whole30
  • Taking a vacation (a week in Disney World is the biggest hustle of all!)
  • Putting time and energy into your hobby
  • Putting time and energy into your relationships.

WHEN YOU ROCK THEM BOTH

Building a life you love involves building a job you love, and building a job you love involves building a life you love. The two roll up into a beautiful ball of balance in focus, priorities, taking care of yourself as well as expressing yourself.

And, it’s not about making the hustle cool. Instead, it’s about making taking action into a habit that continually drives you towards health, wealth, and happiness, for yourself, your family, and the people you serve.

Do the work. Be boss.

Emily is the co-host of Being Boss Podcast, helping creative entrepreneurs learn how to run their own creative business with the tough love they need to hear to do the work. She also owns Almanac Supply Co., a maker and retail business focused on creating and curating items to help you live closely with nature, based in Chattanooga, Tennessee.