ARLINGTON, Texas – As the first rays of dawn gently pierce through the curtains, casting a soft, golden hue across the suburban home cloaked in the quietude of early morning, they’re the ones already in motion.

With an unwavering determination and hearts filled with ambition, they embrace the rituals that become their discipline—waking up early to seize the day. With a steaming cup of coffee in hand or a laptop at the ready, they embark on their quest, hustling to turn their aspirations into reality one daybreak at a time.

The United States has witnessed a transformative wave in its work culture, as the relentless pursuit of success and productivity has given rise to what many are now calling the “hustle culture” phenomenon.

This hustle wave front has bled into Arlington, Texas—and the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex—ranking Dallas fifth for freelancing business growth, according to Fiverr’s Freelance Economic Impact Report.

Finding balance

Pawlicious Cookies LLC is a prime example of a hustle duo who began their small business from a hobby in September 2021. Two Latinas, Lola Rodriguez and Yolanda Herrera, launched Pawlicious Cookies with the mission to inspire all dog lovers to provide their furry friends the best non-preservative treats from a well-researched and handmade recipe.

“We are a mother and future daughter-in-law duo,” Lola Rodriguez said. “It helps having a support system when starting a business from the ground up where we balance each other’s skills.”

Entrepreneurs like Rodriguez and Herrera are well aware of how hustle culture can impact the mental health of small business owners who launch their businesses by their own hard work. Business owners have noticed both positives and negatives to their adoption of hustle culture.

“The benefits of hustle culture is that it brings this sense of dedication needed for success,” Rodriguez, co-founder of Pawlicious Cookies, said. “It helps you keep a better attitude and learn from all the no’s you might receive. While one door may close, another will open.”

Teeth whitening expert Stephanie Truong, who launched her small business called Smiles by Steph, agrees that there is a balance that one must strike when implementing a hustler attitude in their work ethic.

“Hustle culture can keep you grounded by showing you realistic and logical approaches,” Truong said. “Yet, you can find that being surrounded by a bunch of hustlers is lonely and the nature of it lacks support.”

Small business owners and freelancers note that competitiveness is a common struggle, as a culture of gatekeeping occurs among the freelancing industry.

“Competition, while motivating, can be toxic,” Truong said. “I personally share and don’t gatekeep information because I have confidence that what I bring to the table is unique. There’s enough to go around for everybody to succeed in their own ways.”

Starting a business doesn’t come without a fair share of challenges and struggles. Freelancers who are on the grind also have to find time to teach themselves their own operations. Whether that’s budgeting their finances or running their social media advertisement pages, everything requires research and investment in self-knowledge, Pawlicious co-founder Rodriguez said.

“The greatest challenge I faced when starting my business was my mindset and psychology of it overall,” Truong said. “Finding motivation, battling self-doubt, and building myself throughout every trial and error is a constant hunger. I had to psych myself into the positives from the negatives because it’s highly important to be reflective.”

Self-discipline and networking

While looking for knowledge, these two businesses had different, yet similar approaches to receive their support. Both are similar in finding networking and pop-ups an essential tool to the success of their name branding and exposure.

Smiles by Steph looked within for a strong self-discipline approach to the start of the business, while Pawlicious Cookies LLC leaned on the experiences of other empowered women and Facebook support groups. Both approaches seek effectiveness through a positive aura around their business vision.

“Our ideal vision is to have a shop in the Bishop Arts area in the DFW Metroplex,” Rodriguez said. “We feel like it’s possible through our achievements with Amazon sale distribution, the success of our exposure in pop-up events, and the most recent Oak Cliff win, a competition for small business owners. Our short-term goal is the Dallas Mavericks program for small business owners and entrepreneurs.”

Dallas is the go-to spot for many freelancers even though many live in Arlington, Grand Prairie or Mansfield. This is primarily because Dallas attracts many businesses through its more active lifestyle and younger crowd who are in search of regular events or services.

Different business owners gain their drive for success and hustle differently. Some of their ideas and businesses stem from hobbies, while others from a financial need.

“Smiles by Steph originated from a balance of both a hobby and need,” Truong said. “The drive to pursue something on my own and the need to prove to myself and family as an immigrant allowed my dentistry and dental hygienist aspirations to open me up to opportunities beyond just those fields, especially after receiving rejection letters from dental school.”

Finding the sweet spot

Whether through a hobby or financial need, freelancing and small businesses fall in line with this new wave where the ultimate goal is being one’s own boss. It becomes a matter of taking a risk for most people. But being one’s own boss can have its struggles in areas of mental health. Small business owners hustle constantly, and at times, their success comes at the expense of their self care and balance.

“I’m still in the process of finding that balance,” Truong said. “I’m overwhelmed trying to make everyone happy and still have business standards that are effective at the same time. The way I try to create my balance is to take two rest days out of the week where I focus on hobbies and give attention to my body’s needs.”

“Because me and Yolanda are a wing-man team, we’re able to enjoy quality time as a family and find outlets from the stress of the job,” Rodriguez said. “Yolanda’s is shopping while mine is finding small self-care moments and treats for myself.”

2014 research from Stanford University effectively disproved the notion that longer workweeks equate to higher productivity. According to the study, working more than 50 hours a week resulted in a significant drop in production per hour; in fact, those who worked 70 hours produced the same amount of work as those who worked 55 hours.

“My endgame was to be my own boss,” Truong said. “I would like to own my line of products or be a third-party seller of dental products. I don’t want to work a 9 to 5 to be considered productive, when I can make my own schedule.”

The endgame for many freelancers is for them to be their own employers. Yet, some started their businesses as a mere escape and hobby. Petal & Stem is a florist whose roots sprang from a failed relationship.

“After a difficult breakup, my ex sent me flowers trying to rekindle our relationship,” Petal & Stem owner Megan Ha said. “While I didn’t take him back, those flowers brightened my space for a week. Inspired by their uplifting effect, I started buying and arranging blooms for myself each week. This personal ritual eventually grew into a flourishing flower business that has brought me purpose and joy.”

The dark side of hustle culture

Although Petal & Stem focuses on providing healing and self-care through unique bouquets, running the business side of things isn’t always as stress-free as the therapeutic bouquets the business provides recipients.

“Our current society often glorifies being constantly busy and productive, but this ‘hustle culture’ can promote unhealthy behaviors that lead to burnout,” Ha said. “As a business owner, I try to maintain a healthy work-life balance so that my drive for success does not come at the expense of my mental and physical well-being.”

Ha said social media plays a significant role in exploiting people’s desires and fuels a competitive economy.

Ha said balance and pure success within life are her ultimate goals, not necessarily the hustle culture, despite the advantages that this work mindset may bring.

“Social media also plays a role by showcasing ‘personal brands’ that are built by people constantly working and grinding,” Ha said. “This environment makes it seem like you have to burn yourself out and never stop working if you want to be considered successful or impressive. In my opinion, those perceptions go too far and are unhealthy. But those are some reasons why constant hustle has become such a widespread mentality and culture.”

Making and building connection

Modeling, often viewed as a glamorous gig, can be as stressful as managing one’s own business. Model Arianna Gonzalez is experiencing the first staircase of her modeling career, despite that fact the DFW Metroplex has low booking percentages, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“Modeling is a really inconsistent lifestyle, meaning, I never know when an opportunity will pop up,” Gonzalez said. “I always have to be prepared, so I try to control and manage everything outside of modeling, which is my second job, and my studies that I’m pursuing as my safety net.”

Freelancers are often extroverts because of the heavy networking they have to do. Many of them report that their favorite part of their jobs is precisely that—providing a therapeutic culture with their service, connecting on a personal level or building long-lasting relationships with loyal customers.

“My favorite part would have to be making connections with people,” Gonzalez said. “Every event or shoot I’ve done, I have met amazing people that have given me the opportunity to work with them outside of that specific event. It gives me a chance to show out and get recognized for what I do.”