If you listen to some self-improvement lectures about success, you'll hear a familiar saying: Hustle (忙碌) harder. It sounds like success is just a matter of willpower and that the life of your dreams is within reach. Many young people are buying into this mindset, spending every waking hour working toward ambitious goals, only to find themselves worn out and unfulfilled.
Hustle culture promises success, but it often leads to burnout and disappointment. The truth is that success and fulfillment don't come from constant struggle. They come from something deeper and more sustainable: persistence (坚持).
Hustle culture praises big goals. But what the experts won't tell you is that most of those goals require a mix of timing, luck, and sometimes even genetics. No matter how hard you hustle, success isn't always within your control. Persistence culture, on the other hand, takes a different approach. Instead of focusing on massive, high-risk goals, it emphasizes consistent effort over time. It encourages growth, learning, and steady improvement-factors that are within your control.
Hustle culture focuses on goals, ignoring the process. It tells you to chase success at all costs, even if that means doing things you hate along the way. For example, you love podcasting (制作播客). You enjoy the connection with your audience. But if you follow hustle culture, your focus shifts to profit, audience growth, and social media engagement. To "succeed," you have to learn marketing strategies that you don't actually enjoy.
Persistence culture, in contrast, prioritizes the process itself. It asks: Do you enjoy what you're doing? When you love the process, you don't need external approval to keep going. Success becomes a byproduct of consistency and passion. Instead of measuring success by external factors, it asks: How can I improve? Maybe your podcast isn't getting millions of downloads, but are you becoming a better interviewer?
Are you developing new skills? These are the measures that matter because they're within your control.