The Hustler’s Playbook: Education Over Entertainment

The decisions you make determine the outcomes you create in your life.

Lean Back

Non-hustlers choose to spend their time being entertained. They are “lean back” people.

They watch a lot of television. They can tell you what’s hot, what’s not, and what you are missing. When they’re not watching television, they spend their time on the small screen of infinite distractions. They browse and browse and browse like there is no tomorrow. They never miss a sporting event, and they are up to speed on players, coaches, stats, and the surrounding drama. Then, there are video games.

There is nothing wrong with entertainment. Only too much entertainment is a problem. That time would be better invested somewhere else than spent on empty calories.

Lean Forward

Hustlers make a different choice. They choose to educate themselves. They are “lean forward” people.

They read books. Lots of books. They read widely so they can be fluent in conversational with people of all walks of life. They learn how to think, and they learn how to judge the usefulness of ideas. Hustlers take online courses, they go to live events, and they hire coaches. They build mastermind groups so they can learn from their peers and get a perspective on how they’re doing from people who are going to be honest with them in order to spur their growth and development. Hustlers write, too. They keep journals, and they process their thinking.

This is not to say that hustlers don’t spend time on entertainment. They just spend less time leaning back being entertained because they are too busy leaning forward and making things happen. When they play, even the play is usually centered around their personal growth.

Lean forward. Educate yourself. You are the only real asset you will ever have for producing the results you want in your life.