Morning Brew - 🍷 Secondhand

The hustle used to be a line dance from the ’70s, but now it’s your second or third job, or what you really wish you were doing for a living. Nowadays, if you don’t have a side hustle, you almost feel left out, like you don’t have a Telfar bag. 

Author, entrepreneur, and podcast host Tim Ferriss views hustle culture as detrimental, however, and says it contributes to burnout. On a new episode of Shopify President Harley Finkelstein’s podcast, The Life Of A Rebel, Ferriss describes “the hustle” as a drug, and if he had to choose between “the hustle” and “relentless focus,” he would go with “relentless focus” without a doubt. 

We all know that one person who stays up past midnight grinding nonstop and chugging coffee, but who never reaps the benefits of their hard work. Ferriss says it’s all about working smart, not working hard. And as my physics teacher used to tell me, you have to know when to stop spinning your wheels. 

Dr. Adam Bell is on the same page. In a recent article, he explains that we can actually be conditioned to be hustlers. It’s what psychologist Robert Eisenberger calls “learned industriousness.” There isn’t anything wrong with hustling...until you’re not Netflix and chilling, or sleeping. Short deadline projects may call for the full speed approach, but sometimes a long, hot shower or fifteen minutes in nature might spur some creative inspiration. 

• I’m oohing and aahing over these unexpected uses for your most common household items. Reusing an empty ketchup bottle as a pancake batter dispenser? Genius. 
• Don’t judge a chickpea salad by its name. You would think a veggie take on tuna salad would be awful, but it’s delicious, and my go-to at-home lunch at the moment. 
• Get lost in a rabbit hole of Homeworthy videos—aka home tours and the story behind each one. The peel-and-stick vinyl kitchen tile floor in the most recent video is #apartmentgoals.
• In addition to Poshmark and Depop, here are a few clever ways to save a buck on clothes. The sixth tip is my fashion rule of thumb: If you don’t love it, don’t buy it.

Getting Fido into a puppy pod playgroup can be cutthroat. So, add some pedigree to your dog’s CV by signing them up for expert dog trainer Brandon McMillan’s MasterClass. He’ll teach you and your new best friend the seven most common dog commands—sit, down, stay, no, off, come, and heel. 

It’s 15 lessons (about three hours total) and a steal compared to what you would typically pay for a dog trainer. When my fam got our pup, we all failed puppy training, and the best part of McMillan’s course is you can take it as many times as you want, and you don’t have to feel embarrassed if your dog is a slow learner or barks the whole time. Plus, all the cute doggos featured in the videos are worth it.

This gin is anything but gin-eric.

There’s a G&T (yawn), but then there’s a B&T—as in Bombay and Tonic. And it puts your run of the mill gin and tonic to shame.

While most other gins boil down their botanicals to extract flavor, resulting in a heavier, stronger taste profile (not very yummy), Bombay Sapphire is created using a unique production process known as ~vapor-infusion~ (very yummy).

Which is a fancy way of saying that if you want a unique cocktail, an elevated G&T, or could just use a stiff drink, Bombay is the perfect canvas for cocktail creativity.

Cheers to a better bev with Bombay today.

• Now that plastic bags cost 10 cents each, carrying around a reusable bag is a must. My pick: the Standard Baggu. The “Thank You Happy” print puts a smile on my face.
• I may not be able to afford a Calder mobile, but I can afford the Dusen Dusen $35 tissue box, which I recently bought at the MOMA Design Store. It’s a 3D work of art and practical. 
• When you live in a small apartment, you have to use every inch, especially vertically. For a gal who’s 5’4” (on a good day), this folding step stool from Bed, Bath & Beyond is always helpful to have around.