You Don’t Hate Work — You Hate Who You Work Like

I used to say I hated work.

I’d sit at my laptop, eyes glazed over, heart heavy, watching another productivity guru explain why I just “needed a better morning routine.”

Every day felt like a fight.

Not a good, Rocky-Balboa-under-the-lights kind of fight.

No. The slow, soul-sucking kind where your brain keeps whispering:
“You built a cage and called it a business.”

But here’s the thing…

I used to hate work—or so I thought.

It wasn’t work that drained me.
It was who I thought I had to be to succeed.

“Successful” Looked Like Someone Else

I don’t know when it started.

Maybe it was when I watched the first “Day in the Life of a 7-Figure Entrepreneur” video on YouTube.

Or when I bought that course from the guy with perfect teeth and 17 income streams.

But at some point, I stopped working like me.
And started working like them.

• Copying morning routines that didn’t fit my life
• Chasing metrics that didn’t match my mission
• Forcing offers I didn’t even like selling
• Creating funnels that looked good but felt gross

I kept trying to squeeze myself into someone else’s system.

If you think you hate work, take a closer look at who you’re working like.

And it almost broke me.

When Work Feels Like a Costume

Have you ever tried to be someone for so long…
…that you forget what you sound like?

That was me.

I kept working from a place of mimicry, not mastery.
Performance, not presence.

Even when the money started coming in, I didn’t feel success.

I felt exhausted. Misaligned. Resentful.

And I realized something most people never admit:

It’s not the hustle that burns you out. It’s the pretending.

You Don’t Need More Hacks — You Need Permission

The gurus will tell you:

• Hustle harder
• Add more steps
• Wake up earlier
• Stack more strategies
• Push through

But here’s the truth they won’t sell you:

You’re not lazy. You’re just not you when you work.

Most people don’t actually hate work. They hate the pressure to perform.

I used to say I hated work.
I really thought I just hate work in general — until I looked deeper.

And deep down?

You know it.

According to Harvard Business Review, burnout isn’t caused by laziness—it’s rooted in misalignment.

Let Me Tell You a Story

It was 2019.

I had just hit my first “big month.” You know the one. Five figures. Screenshot-worthy.

But instead of feeling proud?

I felt… nothing.

I’d followed the “funnel formula.”
Crushed the metrics.
Sold the thing.

But the whole launch felt like I was acting.

Like I was putting on a mask every morning and hoping no one noticed how fake it felt.

The scripts weren’t my voice.
The audience wasn’t my people.
And the offer wasn’t from my soul.

So I burned it all down.

Not dramatically. Not with fire and rage.

Just… quietly walked away.

Because I couldn’t do one more day working like someone I didn’t even recognize.

The Shift: Working Like You

When I finally stopped trying to be the “perfect entrepreneur,” something wild happened:

• I got quieter.
• My offers got simpler.
• My days got slower.
• My results got better.

Because when you stop fighting yourself, you stop wasting energy pretending.

And suddenly? You have energy for what actually matters.

Let’s Talk About Who You’re Working Like

Pause for a second.

Who are you modeling your business after?

Is it someone:

• With a totally different personality than you?
• In a different season of life?
• Whose values don’t match yours?
• Who works 80 hours a week and calls that “freedom”?

Because here’s the thing:

If you keep trying to build your dream life using someone else’s blueprint, you’re gonna end up in their nightmare.

The Invisible Rules You’re Following (And Didn’t Choose)

You probably picked up beliefs like:

• “You have to grind to earn.”
• “Bigger always means better.”
• “Passive income is the only goal.”
• “You need a personal brand that’s always ‘on.’”
• “If you’re not scaling, you’re failing.”

But are these your truths? Or just hand-me-downs?

Because sometimes the reason you feel out of alignment is simple:

You’re trying to win a game you don’t even want to play.

Rewriting the Way You Work (Without Hating It)

Let’s get practical.

1. Define What Enough Looks Like For You

Not society. Not Instagram. Not your mastermind group.

You.

• How much is enough income?
• What’s enough growth?
• What does a rich life feel like to you?

Because if you never define “enough,” you’ll always feel like you’re losing.

2. Audit Your Calendar, Not Just Your Strategy

Look at how you’re spending your time right now.

• How many hours are you in calls you hate?
• How much content are you creating from obligation?
• Where are you saying “yes” out of fear, not alignment?

Be ruthless. Because your schedule is your soul’s bank account.

3. Stop Performing, Start Being

You don’t need to:

• Post every day
• Create a podcast
• Do reels
• Go live
• Share your breakfast routine

You just need to be real.

Your audience doesn’t want perfect. They want resonance.

And you can’t resonate while wearing a mask.

Real Talk: Work Isn’t the Problem

You don’t hate working.

You hate working like someone you’re not.

You hate:

• The overcomplication
• The noise
• The forced energy
• The fake urgency
• The copy-paste tactics that never felt right

But when you work in a way that honors your energy, your personality, your pace?

You love it again.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Take time with these. Don’t rush. Let them land.

1. Who do I feel like I’m performing as when I work?
2. What parts of my business feel heavy, fake, or forced?
3. What would it look like to work like me?
4. Where did I learn what “success” should look like—and is that still true for me?
5. What kind of client would I love working with every day—even for free?
6. If I gave myself permission to rebuild from joy, not strategy, what would I change?

Final Thought: The Exit Is Inside You

You don’t need to burn it all down (unless you want to).

You just need to return to the part of you that started this.

The part that was excited. Curious. Creative. Bold.

That part isn’t gone.

It’s just been drowned out by advice, noise, and pressure.

But it’s still there.

Waiting for you to stop working like someone else.

Waiting for you to come home to your own way.