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by jstummbillig 2375 days ago
Well, there are multiple definitions of hustle. They keep changing with the times and also depending on who you talk to. What one party might consider "selling", another might consider "being preyed upon". What one might consider "courteous", another might consider "sexist".

We are so eager to try and find a neat place for all our interactions. It never works like that. Pretty much everything ends up being relative.

Anywho, as far as definitions go "energetic teamwork" to me does not really qualify, because hustling in any commonly used sense is not at all required to be a team effort.
1 comments
ryandrake 2375 days ago
> Anywho, as far as definitions go "energetic teamwork" to me does not really qualify, because hustling in any commonly used sense is not at all required to be a team effort.

The point of hustle in the “kids sports team” context is that a team that “hustles” can beat an equally skilled team that doesn’t. In my experience this is also true of other kinds of teams and even in contests among individuals.

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motohagiography 2375 days ago
Where the street vs. earnest definitions overlap is it means to "seize the initiative." You get leverage in both contexts, the question is whether you seize the initiative by having something to offer, or by fabriating problems for for your target to solve.

A sign-up wizard that splits up users' PII entry so they are invested in the process by the time it asks them for the valuable stuff is a good UX tech example.

Spam messages that pretend to be bills or from an authority are well into dishonest territory. The key difference seems to be in the honesty of the problematization. It's a continuum.

The best hustles play on the target's conceits, the worst on their virtues. 3-card monte plays on greed and a sense of superiority.

Business ones are basically blackmail like, "everyone thinks you're a smart problem solver who is easy to work with, if you want that to continue to be true, you will solve this problem for me, I'll let you know when you're finished." Less tech oriented, but the leverage pattern is similar.

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