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Episode 245 - Hustle Culture: Is Working Harder Still Worth It?

Episode Summary
Ish wins the Exercise New Zealand Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Fitness Industry (and wasn't even there!), while Sacha hustles across the South Island. This leads to a deep conversation about hustle culture, rise and grind mentality, and whether working harder actually gets you ahead anymore.

Plus: AI end of the world chat, and why the younger generation wants their technology separated again.

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Midweek Mini - What's The One Thing For The Week?

Why One Thing? – You have 52 opportunities in a year to get one thing nailed each week. Clarity breeds genius.

Focus vs. Urgent – The one thing for the week isn't necessarily the most urgent thing—it's the meaningful longer-term thing that needs attention.

The Exercise – Dump everything that needs doing on paper, then identify the overarching focus that sums up what success looks like for the next 7 days

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Sometimes you reach the end. The absolute end. Sacha is moving house, dealing with impossible transactions, and has just discovered the movers left three massive items behind. Ish is surprisingly recharged from mini-breaks and witnessing his co-host process what happens when resilience runs out. This is a raw, real conversation about those moments when life is genuinely hard—and how to hold onto the "but it's worth it" part.

Key Topics Discussed

When You Reach The End

• Recognising you're at your breaking point (and that's a skill)
• Over-the-top emotional responses when resilience is at an all-time low
• The ability to recognise you're losing it while staying (relatively) calm

Life Is Hard, But It's Worth It

The mantra that's getting Sacha through:

• Acknowledging that yes, life IS hard right now
• Focusing on what's coming on the other side
• Making the learning about yourself worth it
• Asking: "How can something horrible be useful? What am I learning about myself?"

Memorable Quotes

"Would it be all right if everybody just today, just on this day, just did their jobs? Is it too much to ask of the people around me to just do the job that I coincidentally have paid you a lot of money to do?"

Key Lessons for Leaders

1. Recognise Your Breaking Point: The ability to identify when you're at the end is itself a valuable skill
2. Reframe the Narrative: "Life is hard, but it's worth it" - hold onto the second part
3. Find the Learning: Ask "What am I learning about myself right now?" even in horrible situations
4. Control Your Controllables: Change your clothes, drink water, take micro-pauses
5. Notice Small Joys: Small moments that don't require coordination

The Not So Breakfast Show - A podcast for leadership and career development

Sometimes the best episodes come from the worst days.

Life is hard, but it's worth it.